Psychiatric Services Editor’s Choice
Editor Lisa Dixon and the Early Career Psychiatrist Advisory Committee offer curated collections from the rich resource of articles published in the journal. Updates will focus on one area, summarizing for the researcher, clinician, and policy analyst the latest information and seminal research with links to specific content from Psychiatric Services.
Lisa Dixon Introduces Editor’s Choice
February 2025
LGBTQ+ Mental Health
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or sexual-diverse or gender-diverse (LGBTQ+) individuals face a greater risk of mental illness because of their repeated exposure to psychosocial stressors stemming from discrimination, stigmatization, and violence—an issue highlighted in Psychiatric Services in 2006 that remains deeply relevant today. Despite growing societal awareness of LGBTQ+ issues, an increasing number of policies continue to limit the rights and opportunities of individuals who identify as LGBTQ+ compared with their peers. These policies restrict medically necessary services, threaten privacy and civil liberties, and contribute to pervasive exposure to harmful rhetoric that perpetuates societal stigma.
This Editor’s Choice collection demonstrates the breadth of research conducted over the decades, highlighting both the progress made and ongoing discrimination faced by LGBTQ+ individuals—even from the very professionals they turn to for support. For historical context, a 1985 study published in Psychiatric Services and included in this collection revealed that more than 10% of health care professionals endorsed the belief that LGBTQ+ individuals who contracted AIDS were deserving of their condition.
Promising trends in research are also highlighted, including an improving understanding of the associations between intersectionality, minority stress, and health outcomes. Advances in education, training, and treatment are described. Currently, a majority of research studies focus on documenting numerous disparities in health outcomes and service utilization for LGBTQ+ individuals. These disparities stem from a myriad of factors, including ongoing interpersonal and structural discrimination. It is our hope that this collection will continue to grow, with an emphasis on approaches to reducing disparities and barriers that have already been so aptly described.
Eric Rafla-Yuan, M.D., Fiona (Fí) Fonseca, M.D., M.S., Lisa B. Dixon, M.D., M.P.H.
The Association of LGBTQ+ Psychiatrists, Philadelphia (Rafla-Yuan); Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester Minnesota (Fonseca). Dr. Dixon is Editor of Psychiatric Services.
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