Bullying Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth

Valerie A Earnshaw; Laura M Bogart; V Paul Poteat; Sari L Reisner; Mark A Schuster

doi:10.1016/j.pcl.2016.07.004

Bullying Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Youth

Pediatr Clin North Am. 2016 Dec;63(6):999-1010. doi: 10.1016/j.pcl.2016.07.004.

Authors

Valerie A Earnshaw¹, Laura M Bogart², V Paul Poteat³, Sari L Reisner⁴, Mark A Schuster⁵

Affiliations

¹ Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA. Electronic address: valerie.earnshaw@childrens.harvard.edu.
² Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Health Unit, RAND Corporation, 1776 Main Street, P.O. Box 2138 Santa Monica, CA 90407-2138, USA.
³ Counseling, Developmental, and Educational Psychology Department, Boston College, 140 Commonwealth Ave, Campion Hall 307, Chestnut Hill, MA 02467, USA.
⁴ Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA; The Fenway Institute, Fenway Health, 1340 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
⁵ Division of General Pediatrics, Boston Children's Hospital, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, 300 Longwood Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA.

Abstract

Bullying of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth is prevalent in the United States, and represents LGBT stigma when tied to sexual orientation and/or gender identity or expression. LGBT youth commonly report verbal, relational, and physical bullying, and damage to property. Bullying undermines the well-being of LGBT youth, with implications for risky health behaviors, poor mental health, and poor physical health that may last into adulthood. Pediatricians can play a vital role in preventing and identifying bullying, providing counseling to youth and their parents, and advocating for programs and policies to address LGBT bullying.

Keywords: Bullying; Gender expression; Gender identity; Healthcare; LGBT; Peer victimization; Sexual orientation; Youth.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adolescent Behavior / psychology
Bullying / statistics & numerical data*
Crime Victims / psychology*
Female
Gender Identity
Humans
Male
Peer Group
Sexual and Gender Minorities / psychology*
Social Perception
Social Support

Grants and funding

K12 HS022986/HS/AHRQ HHS/United States