Perceived Familial Stigma of Sexuality

Abstract

The study evaluated the psychometrics of a newly developed scale that measures the perceived familial stigma of LGBQ-sexuality. Exploratory, confirmatory, bifactor, and omega reliability analyses were conducted on a set of items and suggest these scores reliably measure the intended construct, with specific factors of homonegativity, discretion, and familial customs.

Keywords:

• Scale development
• LGBTQ
• EFA
• bifactor

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on Contributors

Carlos A. Vidales is a 5th year Psychology PhD candidate at Iowa State University. His research and counseling interests include understanding the interactions of compassion and masculinity in recovery from alcohol dependency among men of color, and the role of parental rejection on LGBTQ individuals’ behavioral health.

Gaithri A. Fernando is a professor in the Department of Psychology at California State University, Los Angeles. Her research and clinical interests lie in cultural experiences and expressions of trauma and resilience in the face of traumatic experiences. A Fulbright Scholar, she was the guest editor of the first Special Issue on South Asian mental health for International Review of Psychiatry. Her work is featured in translational research and community-based education programs and cited by journalists investigating the role of psychiatry in cross-cultural settings.

David L. Vogel is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at Iowa State University (ISU), a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA), and a licensed psychologist in the State of Iowa. He is the Director of the ISU Interdisciplinary Communication Studies program. His professional interests focus on issues of diversity with specific attention to the role of stigma and stereotyping as they are applied to psychological health and the decision to seek therapy. He has published over 120 peer-reviewed articles and has given over 100 national conference presentations. His research has been supported by grants from the National Institute of Mental Health, the Department of Defense, and the American Psychological Foundation.