{"id":107512,"date":"2026-03-13T16:09:55","date_gmt":"2026-03-13T16:09:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/?p=107512"},"modified":"2026-03-13T16:09:56","modified_gmt":"2026-03-13T16:09:56","slug":"uri-study-shows-identity-related-stress-compounds-impact-of-trauma-for-lgbtq-individuals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2026\/03\/uri-study-shows-identity-related-stress-compounds-impact-of-trauma-for-lgbtq-individuals\/","title":{"rendered":"溏心vlog免费B站 study shows identity-related stress compounds impact of trauma for LGBTQ+ individuals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 March 13, 2026 \u2013 A professor at the 溏心vlog免费B站 is on a \u201cQueST\u201d to determine how identity-related stress interacts with past traumatic experiences in LGBTQ+ communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jillian Scheer, assistant professor of psychology in the College of Health Sciences<\/a>, is leading the research for Project QueST: Queer Survivors of Trauma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis research is helping inform the development of interventions aimed at reducing trauma-related mental health problems and substance use among LGBTQ+ populations, particularly by addressing the impact of discrimination and strengthening social support,\u201d said Scheer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Data was collected via an online survey from those who identified as sexual and gender minority women, or transgender and\/or gender-diverse, were at least 18 years of age, and experienced at least one traumatic event, such as abuse or assault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The range of identities among survey participants included cisgender women, transgender men, nonbinary individuals, genderqueer individuals, and people who endorsed multiple identity labels. The average age of the 59 respondents was 28.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants assigned a numeric value to five variables: how often they experienced discrimination, ability to regulate emotions, perceived social support, their self-efficacy, and their severity of posttraumatic stress symptoms related to traumatic events. Regarding discrimination, participants were asked what identities they believed those experiences were related to, which enabled the researchers to better capture intersectional experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe responses suggested that discrimination and earlier trauma\u2014especially childhood abuse\u2014both independently contribute to posttraumatic stress symptoms,\u201d said Scheer. \u201cOne key finding was that people who reported more discrimination also tended to report lower social support, and lower support was associated with more severe PTSD symptoms. This suggests that discrimination may indirectly affect mental health by eroding support networks or making people feel less supported.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A description and analysis of the survey was published in a peer-reviewed article in the Journal of Interpersonal Violence<\/em><\/a> in February.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To understand how the experiences described in the survey play out in people\u2019s day-to-day lives, a subset of the survey participants was asked to complete a 14-day daily diary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More research papers are expected to result from this study. Some of the topics will include daily post-traumatic stress symptoms and negative effects such as experiential avoidance, the influence of community belonging and social support on substance use outcomes, and associations between minority stressors and dissociation in daily life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Information from Project QueST is also being used to develop a new telehealth intervention in Scheer\u2019s Minority Stress & Trauma Lab called RISE (R<\/strong>ecovery through I<\/strong>nhibitory learning, S<\/strong>elf-E<\/strong>fficacy building, problem-solving, and community building).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Funded through a Rhode Island Foundation medical research grant, RISE is designed for LGBTQ+ people living in Rhode Island who have experienced trauma and report posttraumatic stress symptoms and hazardous alcohol use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRISE combines cognitive behavioral therapy skills\u2014such as goal setting, mindful emotional awareness, cognitive flexibility, and strategies for managing high-risk situations\u2014with a brief expressive writing component that helps participants process traumatic experiences,\u201d said Scheer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scheer is hopeful that information gleaned from Project QueST and RISE can be used to make a positive difference in people\u2019s lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor LGBTQ+ individuals, discrimination and other oppression-related experiences can function as chronic stressors that compound the impact of trauma,\u201d said Scheer. \u201cImproving supportive environments and addressing discrimination may therefore play an important role in improving mental health outcomes and reducing hazardous drinking in the population.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 March 13, 2026 \u2013 A professor at the 溏心vlog免费B站 is on a \u201cQueST\u201d to determine how identity-related stress interacts with past traumatic experiences in LGBTQ+ communities. Jillian Scheer, assistant professor of psychology in the College of Health Sciences, is leading the research for Project QueST: Queer Survivors of Trauma. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":107514,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[4,1905],"class_list":["post-107512","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives","tag-college-of-health-sciences","tag-research"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107512","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107512"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107512\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107513,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107512\/revisions\/107513"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/107514"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107512"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107512"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107512"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}