Perceived Discrimination, Alcohol Use Disorder and Alcohol-Related Problems in Sexual Minority Women of Color

Abstract

The goal of the present study was to examine whether intersectional minority stress (in relation to race, gender identity, and sexual orientation) was a unique predictor of psychological distress, Alcohol Use Disorder and alcohol-related problems in a community sample of 182 Latinx and African American sexual minority women in the United States. Further, the authors tested whether psychological distress mediated the relationship between intersectional minority stress and Alcohol Use Disorder. Modified targeted nonprobability sampling was used to recruit participants. Regression analysis revealed that when examined concomitantly, race and sexual orientation-based discrimination served as a unique predictor of alcohol-related outcomes; sexism was not a unique predictor. Psychological distress was a significant mediator in the relationship between intersectional minority stress and alcohol-related outcomes. Future research should expand on the detrimental impact of intersectional minority stress on alcohol-health disparities, including the identification of mental health variables that mediate and/or moderate this relationship.