Family Rejection, Social Isolation, and Loneliness As
Journal of LGBT Youth, 11:347–363, 2014 Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC ISSN: 1936-1653 print / 1936-1661 online DOI: 10.1080/19361653.2014.910483 Family Rejection, Social Isolation, and Loneliness as Predictors of Negative Health Outcomes (Depression, Suicidal Ideation, and Sexual Risk Behavior) Among Thai Male-to-Female Transgender Adolescents MOHAMMADRASOOL YADEGARFARD, MALLIKA E. MEINHOLD-BERGMANN, and ROBERT HO Graduate School of Counseling Psychology, Assumption University, Bangkok, Thailand This study examined the influence of family rejection, social iso- lation, and loneliness on negative health outcomes among Thai male-to-female transgender adolescents. The sample consisted of 260 male respondents, of whom 129 (49.6%) were self-identified as transgender and 131 (50.4%) were self-identified as cisgender (nontransgender). Initial multivariate analysis of variance indi- cated that the transgender respondents, when compared to the cis- gender respondents, reported significantly higher family rejection, lower social support, higher loneliness, higher depression, lower protective factors (PANSI-positive) and higher negative risk factors (PANSI-negative) related to suicidal behavior, and were less cer- tain in avoiding sexual risk behaviors. Multiple regression analysis indicated that the exogenous variables of family rejection, social isolation, and loneliness were significant predictors of both trans- gender and cisgender adolescents’ reported levels of depression, suicidal thinking, and sexual risk behaviors. The implications of these findings are discussed. KEYWORDS Adolescents, depression, family rejection, loneliness, sexual risk behavior, social isolation, suicidal ideation, transgender Received 6 July 2013; revised 29 November 2013; accepted 12 December 2013. Address correspondence to Mohammadrasool Yadegarfard, Graduate School of Coun- seling Psychology, Assumption University, Bangkok, Thailand.
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