Manipulating Minority Stress: Validation of a Novel Film-Based Minority Stress Induction With Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults

Minority stress experiences have been linked to sexual minority individuals' disproportionately high incidence of mental and physical health concerns relative to heterosexuals. However, an absence of experimental methods for manipulating minority stress in laboratory settings limits the potential to draw causal links between minority stress and health outcomes. We describe the development and preliminary validation of a short, novel film-based minority stress induction in 3 studies (N = 686). Study 1 was conducted online with a sample of sexual minority adults and demonstrated the ability of the minority stress induction to induce negative emotional responses. Study 2 compared the induction to a neutral control in a sample of heterosexual and sexual minority adults and showed the induction's unique emotional impact on sexual minorities. Study 3 used sexual minorities' qualitative responses to the induction to demonstrate its ability to elicit 5 minority stress themes in sexual minority participants. The 3 studies outline a model for the creation of new experimental stimuli in the sexual minority stress field and highlight the need for testing of new stimuli in numerous samples to establish validity. We also outline a method for evaluating open-response text from participants for minority stress content using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) software. These new tools will allow experimental researchers to elicit minority stress in sexual minority participants in a controlled experimental fashion, and in turn may inform future prevention and intervention efforts with this population. Public Significance Statement This paper describes the development of a new research tool that can be used in experimental studies examining the effects of minority stress (e.g., discrimination) on lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals. Using this tool, future researchers will be able to probe the causal dynamics underlying experiences of minority stress and ultimately better understand high rates of mental illness in the LGB community and develop targeted interventions.