A Digital, Minority Stress-Focused Single-Session Intervention Benefits Multiply-Minoritized Sexual Minority Adolescents

Abstract

Objective. Leveraging data from a previously-conducted randomized trial, we examined whether Project RISE— a digital single-session intervention (SSI) focused on minority stress—was associated with equal improvements in levels of internalized stigma, identity pride, hopelessness, depression, and anxiety among White, sexual minority (SM), cisgender youth and racially and ethnically minoritized (REM), SM, and gender minority (GM) youth. We also tested whether higher levels of social support moderated outcomes.Methods. Participants randomly assigned to the intervention were included (n = 261 adolescents 13 to 16 years old; M age = 15; 51% REM youth; 68% transgender/gender-diverse). Two-way MANCOVAs were conducted to examine potential group differences outcomes across timepoints (i.e., post-intervention, two-week follow-up), between individuals holding multiple minoritized identities versus one. Moderation analyses were used to investigate whether social support moderated RISE outcomes. Results. Identifying with multiple minoritized identities was associated with higher levels of identity pride immediately post-intervention, and identifying as a GM was associated with slightly greater identity pride post-intervention. Youth who endorsed GM identities reported higher levels of hopelessness, depression, and anxiety at two-week follow-up, relative to cisgender youth. No other differences emerged.Conclusions. Youth with multiple minoritized identities, and especially those who identified as a GM, experienced significantly higher levels of identity pride following an online SSI targeting minority stress for LGBTQ+ teens. Results highlight the importance of applying an intersectional minority stress framework to online intervention design and considering social contexts (e.g., high versus low social support) when selecting treatments for youth with intersecting identities.