Psychometric Properties of the Sexual Subjectivity Inventory among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Emerging Adults

ABSTRACT

Research highlights the significance of positive sexual self-perceptions for general and sexual health. Yet, most research on the sexuality of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals has been risk-oriented, leaving a critical gap in knowledge about normative and healthy sexuality among sexual minorities. In part, this gap is due to a lack of sexual health measures with established psychometric properties for LGB individuals. The current study examined the factor structure, reliability, factorial invariance, and validity of the Sexual Subjectivity Inventory (SSI) in a sample of 746 lesbian (n = 123), gay (n = 204), and bisexual (n _females = 234; n _males = 185) emerging adults (M_age = 23.4 years). Factor analyses revealed the same five-factor structure found in similar aged heterosexual samples and strict factorial invariance by sexual and cisgender identities. Factor scores were internally consistent and associated with indicators of sexual well-being (i.e., safe sex self-efficacy, internalized homonegativity) and general well-being (life satisfaction, identity achievement) in theoretically meaningful ways. Sexual subjectivity was largely unrelated to health risk behavior. Results support the use of the SSI with LGB emerging adults for advancing holistic perspectives on LGB sexuality.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary Material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2022.2091100

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by a grant from the Michigan Psychological Association.