Minority Stress and Psychological Distress Among Asexual Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Individuals

Abstract

The presence of minority stress has been well-documented among members of the transgender and gender nonconforming community, as has the effect of minority stress on their psychological distress. Little attention has been given to transgender and gender nonconforming people who identify as asexual. This study examined the relationships among minority stressors and psychological distress among individuals holding the intersecting identities of transgender and gender nonconforming and asexual. Data were collected from 300 adults using various listservs and social media platforms. It was hypothesized that all minority stressors assessed would predict psychological distress. However, multiple regression results revealed that only vigilance (β = .22, p < .001) and gender expression minority stress (β=. 24, p < .001) were significant positive predictors of psychological distress, F(11, 258) = 10.21, p < .001, f2 = .43; the overall model accounted for approximately 30% (R2 = .30) of the total variance in psychological distress. Implications for practice and research are discussed.