Disparities in Mental Health and Life Satisfaction Between Sexual Minority and Heterosexual Individuals: the Mediating Role of Relational Attitudes

Introduction Lesbian women, gay men, and bisexual (LGB) individuals often have adverse mental health outcomes connected to their sexual minority status. We hypothesized that distress in LGB emerging adults may be connected to specific relational attitudes in their connection with their parents. We examined whether sense of relational entitlement and authenticity in relationships mediated the association between sexual orientation and mental health outcomes. Methods Participants were 152 women and 69 men aged 18–21, 105 (47.5%) of whom identified as heterosexual and the others as LGB. They completed questionnaires online in 2020–2021 assessing inflated and restricted sense of entitlement, relational authenticity, psychological distress, well-being, and life satisfaction. Results LGB participants reported more inflated and restricted sense of entitlement and psychological distress than heterosexual participants, and less relational authenticity and life satisfaction. Mediation models showed that inflated and restricted entitlement fully mediated the association between sexual orientation and psychological distress and that inflated entitlement and authenticity in relationships fully mediated the association between sexual orientation and life satisfaction. Gender was not a moderator in these models. Conclusions LGB individuals’ negative mental health outcomes may be connected to imbalanced relational entitlement and low authenticity in their relationships with their parents. Policy Implications Our findings show the need for supportive services for LGB youth and their parents, encouraging mutuality, openness, and authenticity. This is particularly true in Israel, where traditional masculine roles reign and the Orthodox Jewish law condemns sexual minorities. Policymakers should work to decrease disparities between heterosexual and LGB individuals.