Effects of Friendship among Same-Sex Attracted Youth on Sexual Minority Identity Development in Young Adulthood

Citation

Kuhlemeier, A. (2021). Effects of Friendship among Same-Sex Attracted Youth on Sexual Minority Identity Development in Young Adulthood. J Homosex. pp. 1-26 , PMCID: PMC8521548

Abstract

Using data from Waves 1 and 3 of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, this study investigated the interactive impact of adolescent friendship network characteristics and same-sex attraction (SSA) on the development of sexual minority (SM) identity in young adulthood. Results indicate that SSA youth who identified a best friend that also identified them as their best friend were 5.3 times more likely to identify as a SM compared to those who did not experience reciprocity. For each additional classmate who listed them as a friend, SSA youth were 1.2 times more likely to identify as a SM. Increased centrality in friendship network increased the likelihood that SSA youth would identify as a SM by 1.8 times. Sex-stratified results reveal that particular network characteristics impact boys and girls differently. These findings point to the importance of further investigating relationships between friendship characteristics and identity formation among adolescents.

URL

https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2021.1913918

Keyword(s)

Adolescence

Reference Type

Journal Article

Journal Title

J Homosex

Author(s)

Kuhlemeier, A.

Year Published

2021

Pages

1-26

DOI

10.1080/00918369.2021.1913918

PMCID

PMC8521548

NIHMSID

NIHMS1701267

Reference ID

5811