Social isolation and connectedness as determinants of well-being: Global evidence mapping focused on LGBTQ youth

ABSTRACT

Social isolation describes a lack of a sense of belonging, the inability to engage and connect with others, and the neglect or deterioration of social relationships. This conceptual review describes how social isolation and connectedness affect the well-being of LGBTQ youth. Most studies focused on the psychosocial experience of social isolation, which led to suicide attempt, self-harm, sexual risk, and substance use. Scholarly work has drawn from a variety of frameworks, ranging from minority stress theory to positive youth development, to devise interventions that target isolation and connectedness in schools, community-based organisations, and in online environments. Finally, we discuss the importance of addressing social, cultural, and structural dimensions of social isolation in order to foster enabling environments that allow LGBTQ youth to thrive. This conceptual review suggests that individual and social transformations are the result of young people's meaningful participation in shaping their environment, which is made possible when their capabilities are fostered through social well-being. Our findings suggest the need for measures of social isolation among youth in databanks produced by global institutions, such as the World Health Organization.

KEYWORDS:

• Social isolation
• LGBTQ youth
• connectedness
• minority stress
• social well-being

Acknowledgements

Support for this research was provided in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation. We thank Dr. Elizabeth King, who assisted in reviewing the Russian language document.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

ORCID

Jesse L. Clark http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5862-6530

Additional information

Funding

Support for this research was provided in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation [grant number 75575]. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation. Jesse L. Clark was supported in part by the NIH [grant number R25 MH087222].