Factors Associated with Label Preference and Mental Health Quality of Life among College-Aged African American Sexual Minority Men

In the post-secondary education environment, student organizations, faculty, and administers are seeking to identify strategies and programs that can reduce and/or eliminate disparities in prolonged mental health quality of life among sexual minorities. This observational study provides a preliminary needs assessment analysis of college-aged African American sexual minority males to inform community engagement best practice strategies and contribute to developing more appealing intervention packaging targeting this population of males who are at risk for diminished mental health quality of life. Specifically, this study documented attitudes about sexual orientation-identity label-preference and characterized the relationship between sexual orientation-identity label-preference and mental health quality of life. Participants completed a mental health quality of life measure and supplied sociodemographic data that included information about their sexual risk behaviours, relationship status and dynamics, and attitudes toward sexual orientation-identity label-preference. The study sample included 55 males who self-identified as a sexual minority and AA (94.5%). Participants were between 18 years and 29 years old (M = 21, SD=2.7) and classified as undergraduate students (84%). The studV findings indicated that participants endorsed varying sexual orientation-identity preferences; however, 71% rejected all sexual identity labels. Factors more strongly associated with sexual orientation identity label-rejection included a higher likelihood to have sex outside of a relationship, history> of depression, and a greater likelihood to disclose their sexual orientation-identity to a female. Comparatively, mental health quality of life symptom endorsement and intensity scores were higher than the normative sample scores. Overall, the findings may sen'e to better characterize the relationship between sexual orientation-identity label-preference and mental health quality of life, and improve our understanding surrounding sexual minority mental health and related health disparities with particular attention to developing acceptable mental health inten'entions targeting AA men with diverse sexual orientations.