Testing a Model of Binegativity, Drinking-to-Cope Motives, Alcohol Use, and Sexual Coercion Among Self-Identified Bisexual Women

Kelley, Michelle L.; Ehlke, Sarah; Braitman, Abby L.; Stamates, Amy L.

doi:10.1080/15299716.2018.1481482

Cited by 17 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…Drinking to cope motives was high among this sample, possibly due to recruitment criteria, suggesting there may have been a ceiling effect. This premise is further supported by a higher average (15.50) and lower standard deviation (5.27) of drinking to cope motives compared to previous studies of regular drinking bisexual women with less stringent recruitment criteria (e.g., Kelley, Ehlke, Braitman, et al, 2018; Kelley, Ehlke, Lewis, et al, 2018). Although drinking to cope is commonly conceptualized as a trait level variable (e.g., Armeli et al, 2010; Dvorak et al, 2014; Simpson et al, 2014), drinking to cope motives may be dynamic, especially for risky drinkers, and fluctuate with one’s immediate experiences.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 58%

“…An example item for the coping scale is: “To forget about your problems.” A sum score was computed and higher scores indicated greater motivations to drink to cope with negative emotions. The DMQ has been used among sexual minority samples, including bisexual women, and has shown high reliability and construct validity (e.g., Cooper, 1994; Kelley, Ehlke, Braitman, et al, 2018; Kelley, Ehlke, Lewis, et al, 2018; Lewis et al, 2016; Merrill & Read, 2010; Talley et al, 2012). Cronbach α for the coping subscale for the present study was .89.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The role of alcohol demand on daily microaggressions and alcohol use among emerging adult bisexual+ women.

Ehlke¹,

Kelley²,

Lewis³

et al. 2022

Psychology of Addictive Behaviors

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Objective: Bisexual women drink more and have more alcohol consequences than heterosexual and lesbian women. This higher risk may in part be attributable to sexual orientation microaggressions. Drinking to cope motivations and alcohol demand may influence the association between microaggressions and alcohol use. The present study used a daily diary design to examine the association between microaggressions and sameday alcohol use (yes/no, quantity) and consequences, and if drinking to cope and alcohol demand moderate this association among bisexual+ (i.e., bi+) women. Method: Participants were 103 emerging adult bi+ women who completed a baseline assessment, including an alcohol purchase task to measure alcohol demand. Subsequently, participants reported their experiences of microaggressions, alcohol use, and alcohol consequences for 28 days. Multilevel model analyses were conducted. Results: Microaggressions were associated with a higher likelihood to drink and greater same-day alcohol use and consequences. The association between microaggressions and alcohol quantity was stronger for those who had a lower price associated with the highest expenditure (lower P max ). For those who would stop drinking at lower price values (lower breakpoint), reported spending less overall on alcohol (lower O max ), and had lower P max values, microaggressions were associated with more consequences. For those with higher breakpoint, O max , and P max microaggressions were not associated with consequences. Conclusions: Microaggressions may have a deleterious impact on alcohol use and consequences for bi+ women, particularly for those with lower alcohol demand. Clinicians should encourage bi+ clients to consider how microaggressions influence their drinking and support clients to engage in positive coping skills. Public Health Significance StatementThis study found that emerging adult bisexual+ women are more likely to drink, consume more alcohol, and report more alcohol consequences on days when they experience more microaggressions related to their sexual orientation. Findings highlight the important and detrimental role that sexual orientation microaggressions have on alcohol use behavior among emerging adult bisexual+ women.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 58%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of alcohol demand on daily microaggressions and alcohol use among emerging adult bisexual+ women.

Ehlke¹,

Kelley²,

Lewis³

et al. 2022

Psychology of Addictive Behaviors

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“…Participants were recruited from social media sites (e.g., Craigslist, Reddit, Tumblr, Facebook) and the psychology research participant pool at the participating university. Criteria for participation in the larger study were as follows: (a) female, (b) self-identified as bisexual, (c) between 18 and 30 years of age, and (d) engagement in sexual behavior (e.g., touching, kissing, sex) in the past 30 days (Kelley, Ehlke, Braitman, & Stamates, in press). Eligible participants were directed to an online survey link to complete a 30-min questionnaire that included questions about alcohol use and drinking norms.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bisexual women’s reports of descriptive drinking norms for heterosexual, bisexual, and lesbian women.

Ehlke¹,

Stamates²,

Kelley³

et al. 2019

Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity

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Bisexual women drink more than lesbian and heterosexual women. However, few studies have examined factors that influence drinking among bisexual women. Although descriptive drinking norms are strong predictors of drinking, little research has examined how drinking norms influence alcohol use for bisexual women. The present study examined bisexual women’s reports of descriptive drinking norms for bisexual, lesbian, and heterosexual women and associations with their own frequency of alcohol consumption, quantity, binge drinking, and hazardous alcohol use. Participants were 179 self-identified bisexual women between 18 and 30 years of age who reported past 30-day drinking. Participants perceived more frequent alcohol use for bisexual and heterosexual women compared to lesbian women. Further, participants perceived higher alcohol quantity for heterosexual compared to lesbian women, but norms for alcohol quantity did not differ between bisexual women and other groups. Descriptive drinking norms about bisexual women were positively related to participants’ frequency of alcohol consumption, binge drinking, and hazardous alcohol use. In contrast, descriptive drinking norms about heterosexual women were negatively associated with participants’ binge drinking and hazardous alcohol use. Findings document the importance of assessing drinking norms separately for bisexual, lesbian, and heterosexual women. Alcohol interventions that include information about drinking norms for bisexual women specifically may be more effective at reducing hazardous drinking.

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“…Similar to the framework proposed by Hatzenbuehler (2009), Kelley, Ehlke, Braitman, et al (2018) found evidence for a sequential mediation model whereby bisexual women who experienced more instances of binegativity reported greater experience with sexual coercion through heightened use of drinking to cope and greater frequency of subsequent alcohol use. Further, an additional study (Schulz et al, 2020) found support for a similar model whereby the experience of binegativity and alcohol-related problems were sequentially mediated by greater drinking to cope motives and alcohol use.…”

Section: Mechanisms Explaining Alcohol and Drug Use Among Bisexual Womenmentioning

confidence: 53%

“…Specifically, bisexual persons have been perceived as promiscuous (Dodge et al, 2016; Hequembourg & Brallier, 2009), disloyal (Israel & Mohr, 2004), and nonmonogamous (Hequembourg & Brallier, 2009; Klesse, 2005) by both heterosexual and lesbian/gay persons. Such stigmatization against bisexuals is described as binegativity (Yost & Thomas, 2012) and has been associated with poor health outcomes such as alcohol and drug misuse among bisexual women (Brewster & Moradi, 2010; Kelley, Ehlke, Braitman, et al, 2018; Kelley, Ehlke, Lewis, et al, 2018). Interestingly, data from the Wave 2 NESARC study indicated that gay men and lesbian women reported higher rates of sexual orientation discrimination compared to bisexual and heterosexual men and women (Evans-Polce et al, 2020); however, it may be important to consider that bisexual persons are less likely to disclose their identity (Doan & Mize, 2020), which may in-turn protect them from sexual discrimination.…”

Section: Mechanisms Explaining Alcohol and Drug Use Among Bisexual Womenmentioning

confidence: 99%

Risk factors associated with alcohol and drug use among bisexual women: A literature review.

Schulz¹,

Glatt²,

Stamates³

2022

Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology

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Bisexual women report elevated alcohol and drug use compared to other sexual minority women. This review summarized extant research on mechanisms (i.e., coping processes with minority stress and victimization, disclosure of sexual identity, connectedness to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ+) community, religiosity, and normative perceptions) that may influence alcohol and other drug use among bisexual women. Specifically, bisexual women experience unique sexual discrimination (i.e., binegativity) and are at heightened risk for other forms of victimization and other stressful life events. Given this heightened experience with stress, bisexual women may use alcohol as a maladaptive coping mechanism. Further, disclosure of one's sexual identity may produce opportunities for connecting with the LGBTQ+ community, but such openness may increase exposure to discrimination and stigmatization among bisexual women. Findings on religiosity have been mixed, but there is some support that bisexual women may use substances in response to internal conflict between their religious beliefs and sexual identity. Lastly, we found that normative perceptions of other bisexual women's drinking behaviors are strongly tied to their own levels of alcohol use. From a therapeutic perspective, we suggest that practitioners recognize the unique experience of minority stress and teach strategies that lessen internalized stigma and promote healthy psychosocial adjustment among their bisexual clients. Clinicians may also help their clients find sources of support, which may protect them against the use of alcohol and drugs to manage minority-induced stress. Public Significance StatementBisexual women are a vulnerable population at increased risk for substance use-related harms. This review discusses underlying mechanisms (i.e., coping processes with minority stress and victimization, disclosure of sexual identity, connectedness to LGBTQ+ community, religiosity, and normative perceptions) that may be unique or contribute to substance use among bisexual women.

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Testing a Model of Binegativity, Drinking-to-Cope Motives, Alcohol Use, and Sexual Coercion Among Self-Identified Bisexual Women

Cited by 17 publications

References 60 publications

The role of alcohol demand on daily microaggressions and alcohol use among emerging adult bisexual+ women.

The role of alcohol demand on daily microaggressions and alcohol use among emerging adult bisexual+ women.

Bisexual women’s reports of descriptive drinking norms for heterosexual, bisexual, and lesbian women.

Risk factors associated with alcohol and drug use among bisexual women: A literature review.

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