Sexual identity development among lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths: Consistency and change over time

A longitudinal report of 156 lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths examined changes in sexual identity over time. Fifty‐seven percent of the youths consistently self‐identified as gay/lesbian, 18% transitioned from bisexual to gay/lesbian, and 15% consistently identified as bisexual over time. Although youths who consistently identified as gay/lesbian did not differ from other youths on time since experiencing sexual developmental milestones, they reported current sexual orientation and sexual behaviors that were more same‐sex centered and they scored higher on aspects of the identity integration process (e.g., more certain, comfortable, and accepting of their same‐sex sexuality, more involved in gay‐related social activities, more possessing of positive attitudes toward homosexuality, and more comfortable with others knowing about their sexuality) than youths who transitioned to a gay/lesbian identity and youths who consistently identified as bisexual. Contrary to the hypothesis that females are more sexually fluid than males, we found that female youths were less likely to change identities than males. The finding that youths who transitioned to a gay/lesbian identity differed from consistently gay/lesbian youths suggests that sexual identity development continues after the adoption of a gay/lesbian sexual identity.