DOI: 10.4103/ijsp.ijsp_255_25 ISSN: 0971-9962

Internalized Homophobia, Psychological Distress, Attachment Styles, and Community Connectedness in Indian Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Individuals

Darshana Sarmah
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Abstract

Background:

Despite increasing visibility of sexual minorities in India, limited research has examined how internalized stigma contributes to psychological distress within this collectivistic context.

Aims and Objectives:

This study explored relationships between internalized homophobia (IH), attachment styles, community connectedness, and psychological distress among Indian lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals. Four hypotheses were tested: higher IH would be associated with greater distress; insecure attachment styles (anxious and avoidant) would correlate with higher distress and greater IH; community connectedness would negatively correlate with both; and community connectedness would mediate the link between IH and distress.

Materials and Methods:

A cross sectional survey of 74 participants (18–50 years) recruited through LGBTQ + networks across India used standardized measures of these constructs.

Results:

IH correlated positively with distress ( r = 0.33, P = 0.005). Anxious ( r = 0.39, P < 0.001) and avoidant ( r = 0.46, P < 0.001) attachment were linked with distress but not with IH ( P > 0.05). Community connectedness correlated negatively with both IH ( r = −0.29, P = 0.011) and distress ( r = −0.26, P = 0.027). Mediation analysis showed IH predicted lower connectedness ( B = −1.59, P = 0.008) and higher distress ( B = 2.10, P = 0.016), but the indirect effect through community connectedness was nonsignificant ( B = 0.40, P = 0.178, ΔR 2 = 0.02). Thus, mediation was not supported.

Conclusion:

This study offers the first empirical integration of minority stress, attachment, and community connectedness frameworks in an Indian LGB sample, emphasizing culturally grounded models addressing familial and community based resilience.

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