Table 3.
Female outcomes and mediators by sexual orientation from weighted analysis of 4534 youth in the U.S. National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (1995–2009).
| Measure |
Compl hetero (n = 3952) |
Mostly hetero (n = 431) |
Bisexual (n = 105) |
Lesbiana (n = 46) |
p-valueb |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chronic pain outcomes | n | Weighted % (SE) | n | Weighted % (SE) | n | Weighted % (SE) | n | Weighted % (SE) | |
| Headache | 0.003 | ||||||||
| Rare | 2547 | 63% (1.2) | 256 | 55% (3.0) | 61 | 55% (5.8) | 20 | 38% (10.3) | |
| Weekly or daily | 1405 | 37% (1.2) | 175 | 45% (3.0) | 44 | 45% (5.8) | 26 | 62% (10.3) | |
| Stomachache | 0.20 | ||||||||
| Rare | 3176 | 80% (0.8) | 323 | 75% (3.0) | 77 | 75% (5.3) | 35 | 71% (8.0) | |
| Weekly or Daily | 776 | 20% (0.8) | 108 | 25% (3.0) | 28 | 25% (5.3) | 11 | 29% (8.0) | |
| Muscle/joint pain | < 0.001 | ||||||||
| Rare | 3164 | 80% (1.0) | 311 | 67% (2.5) | 72 | 63% (6.6) | 31 | 65% (8.9) | |
| Weekly or daily | 788 | 20% (1.0) | 120 | 33% (2.5) | 33 | 37% (6.6) | 15 | 35% (8.9) | |
| Mediators | |||||||||
| Child maltreatment | |||||||||
| Neglect | 0.007 | ||||||||
| None | 3652 | 92% (0.5) | 390 | 92% (1.6) | 82 | 80% (5.5) | 39 | 89% (5.8) | |
| 1 + times | 300 | 8% (0.5) | 41 | 8% (1.6) | 23 | 20% (5.5) | 7 | 11% (5.8) | |
| Physical | 0.003 | ||||||||
| None | 2964 | 75% (1.1) | 267 | 66% (3.1) | 61 | 60% (6.7) | 30 | 70% (7.9) | |
| 1 + times | 988 | 25% (1.1) | 164 | 34% (3.1) | 44 | 40% (6.7) | 16 | 30% (7.9) | |
| Sexual | < 0.001 | ||||||||
| None | 3794 | 96% (0.4) | 393 | 93% (1.5) | 92 | 91% (3.4) | 39 | 86% (6.1) | |
| 1 + times | 158 | 4% (0.4) | 38 | 7% (1.5) | 13 | 9% (3.4) | 7 | 14% (6.1) | |
| Suicidal ideation (SI) | < 0.001 | ||||||||
| No | 3357 | 85% (0.8) | 323 | 74% (3.0) | 77 | 78% (4.9) | 34 | 76% (8.5) | |
| Yes | 595 | 15% (0.8) | 108 | 26% (3.0) | 28 | 22% (4.9) | 12 | 24% (8.5) | |
| Suicide attemptd among those with SI | 0.51 | ||||||||
| Never | 408 | 66% (2.8) | 69 | 61% (5.5) | 17 | 62% (12.1) | 8 | 85% (9.8) | |
| 1 + times | 187 | 34% (2.8) | 39 | 39% (5.5) | 11 | 38% (12.1) | 4 | 15% (9.8) | |
| Weighted mean (SE) | Weighted mean (SE) | Weighted mean (SE) | Weighted mean (SE) | ||
| Depressive symptomsc | 16.2 (0.16) | 17.6 (0.31) | 18.1 (0.83) | 17.2 (0.94) | < 0.001 |
| Social supporte | |||||
| From adults | 4.51 (0.02) | 4.26 (0.06) | 4.34 (0.10) | 4.13 (0.14) | < 0.001 |
| From teachers | 3.62 (0.03) | 3.35 (0.05) | 3.44 (0.12) | 3.25 (0.15) | < 0.001 |
| From parents | 4.83 (0.01) | 4.73 (0.03) | 4.66 (0.09) | 4.70 (0.09) | 0.003 |
| From friends | 4.41 (0.02) | 4.38 (0.04) | 4.37 (0.09) | 4.63 (0.12) | 0.30 |
| Total support | 17.4 (0.06) | 16.7 (0.12) | 16.8 (0.30) | 16.7 (0.34) | < 0.001 |
| Self-esteemf | 11.7 (0.10) | 12.7 (0.29) | 12.6 (0.48) | 13.7 (0.63) | < 0.001 |
a
Lesbian combines “mostly gay” and “100% gay.”
b
Results from t-tests and chi-square analyses to test the differences among sexual orientation groups within each gender group for each mediator and outcome.
c
Depressive symptoms: 0–60; higher scores indicate greater depression.
d
Suicide attempts reported only for participants who responded “yes” to suicidal ideation.
e
Social support from adults, teachers, parents, friends: 1–5, total: 4–20; higher scores indicate greater social support.
f
Self-esteem: 1–5; higher scores indicate greater self-esteem.