Citation

Bukowski LA, Hampton MC, Escobar-Viera CG, Sang JM, Chandler CJ, Henderson E, Creasy SL, Stall RD. J. Urban Health 2019; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Center for LGBT Health Research, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, 130 De Soto Street, Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s11524-019-00355-3

PMID

31037482

Abstract

Depression among Black transgender women (BTW) in the USA is an often understudied mental health concern with far-reaching consequences for overall physical and mental health at both the individual and community levels. Intimate partner violence (IPV) among BTW is also a frequently understudied and important social determinant of health in need of further exploration. This study sought to address the gap in research on the relationship between IPV and depression among BTW using a time- and location-based community sample of BTW from six US cities. In addition, it sought to explore the potential protective or suppressive effect of perceived social support on this relationship. Generalized structural equation models were used to assess conditional direct and indirect effects of IPV on depression via the suppression effect of perceived social support. Evidence was found of a statistically significant conditional direct effect of IPV on depression as well as a statistically significant suppression effect for perceived social support. Specifically, there was a 20% lower likelihood of increased depressive symptomatology for every 1-unit increase in perceived social support reported by participants. These findings indicated that perceived social support may be an important intervention point for helping to improve the mental health and well-being of BTW.

Language: en

Keywords

Black; Depression; Intimate partner violence; Social support; “African American” transgender