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Abstract
Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals have higher prevalence of lifetime suicide ideation and attempt than their heterosexual peers, but less is known about differences in suicide acceptability (i.e., believing suicide is a viable answer to a problem). The purpose of this study was to examine if LGB adults had greater suicide acceptability than heterosexual adults. A total of 4 items in the General Social Surveys from 2008 to 2014 assessed whether a nationally representative sample of U.S. adult respondents (n = 5,037) thought it acceptable for individuals to kill themselves if one: goes bankrupt, dishonors their family, is tired of living, or has an incurable disease. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to assess the association of sexual orientation with suicide acceptability items after adjusting for confounding factors. Compared with heterosexuals, lesbians/gays had higher odds of reporting suicide acceptability if one goes bankrupt (OR = 1.92; 95% CI: 1.06, 3.46), dishonors family (OR = 1.83; 95% CI: 1.01, 3.28), or is tired of living (OR = 2.25; 95% CI: 1.30, 3.90). Bisexual and heterosexual groups were largely similar across the 4 suicide acceptability items. No sexual orientation differences were observed for reporting acceptability of suicide in the instance of an incurable disease. Post hoc analyses revealed significant interactions between sex and sexual orientation, such that differences in suicide acceptability seemed to be driven by sexual minority women rather than by sexual minority men. Suicide acceptability differs by sexual orientation, and community-level interventions around changing norms about suicide may be a prevention strategy for sexual minority individuals.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This work was partially supported by a Health Services Research & Development Career Development Award (CDA-14-408) to JRB, and an individual National Research Service Award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (F31DA037647) to RWSC.
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John R. Blosnich
John R. Blosnich, Center for LGBT Health Research, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh and Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, VA Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Megan C. Lytle
Megan C. Lytle, Department of Psychiatry, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York, USA.
Robert W. S. Coulter
Robert W. S. Coulter, Center for LGBT Health Research, Graduate School of Public Health and School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Darren L. Whitfield
Darren L. Whitfield, Center for LGBT Health Research, Graduate School of Public Health and School of Social Work, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.