Familial Support and Disclosure: A Two-Sample Study of LGBT Sexual Assault

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals have higher rates of sexual assault and rape victimization compared with their cisgender (cis) and heterosexual counterparts. One support system that may be helpful for survivors of sexual assault is family support, which reduces the impact of some of sexual assault's negative health outcomes. Two phases of online survey data from U.S. adults were merged-a panel sample that included cis women and transgender/non-binary (trans/NB) people (n = 1,366) and a social media sample that included cis women, trans/NB people, and cis men (n = 1,540). Approximately 62% of trans/NB individuals, 47% of lesbian women, 65% of bisexual women, 44% of heterosexual women, 45% of gay men, 40% of bisexual men, 25% of heterosexual men disclosed rape in their lifetime. Disclosing to a family member was lowest among cis men (11%), while overall family support was lowest among trans/NB individuals. The combination of lack of family support, high rates of victimization, and low disclosure rates among specific subgroups of the LGBT community puts people at greater risk for sexual assault-related negative health outcomes. Researchers may consider family support as an important confounding variable to assess when examining negative health outcomes among LGBT sexual assault victims.