Religious Identity Dissonance: Understanding How Sexual Minority Adolescents Manage Antihomosexual Religious Messages

Sexual minority adolescents from religious contexts may be at high risk of mental health issues due to religious identity dissonance. This study investigated the cognitive strategies used to manage antihomosexual religious messages and resolve religious identity dissonance among sexual minority adolescents. In 2014, 46 adolescents were interviewed in Los Angeles, CA. Youths were prompted to discuss experiences with religion, antihomosexual messages, and their strategies for managing these messages. Ninety-one percent of the sample reported hearing antihomosexual religious messages. Messages came from multiple sources (e.g., parents, pastors) and contained three types of content (i.e., creation, sin, and afterlife). A quarter of the sample reported religious identity dissonance. Three primary strategies to manage antihomosexual messages emerged. Findings indicate that all youths, including nonreligious youths, use cognitive strategies to manage negative messages and that these strategies relate to current religious identification.