A test of the rejection identification model among gay men in Turkey

Abstract

ABSTRACT Despite the improvements in the rights of LGBTIQ+ groups, gay men continue to confront prejudice and discrimination in various areas of life, whose effects harm their well-being. Turkey is one of the countries where prejudice and discrimination are high and pervasive. This study tests the possible mediating role of ingroup identification (i.e. satisfaction, solidarity, salience, importance, individual self-stereotyping, ingroup homogeneity), as proposed by the rejection-identification model (RIM), in the negative relationship between perceived discrimination and well-being in a sample of 496 Turkish gay men. Results indicated that identity salience mediated the links from perceived personal discrimination to negative affect and psychological well-being, but the mediating effects were contrary to predictions of the RIM. As for the direct effects, perceived personal discrimination predicted all four outcomes of well-being (i.e. psychological well-being, positive affect, negative affect, and life satisfaction), whereas perceived group discrimination only predicted negative affect. The results mark the context-dependent nature of the model and are discussed considering the literature regarding the RIM and minority stress theory.