How Sense of Community Affects Sense of Self Among Sexual Minorities: Critical Consciousness as a Mediating Mechanism.

Research shows that sense of community may enable lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals to resist and fight against societal heterosexism and increase their positive sense of self. Less is known, however, about the underlying processes. The present study examined whether sense of community wo...

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Published in:American Journal of Community Psychology Vol. 68; no. 1/2; pp. 177 - 187
Main Authors: Yip, Charles Chiu Hung, Chan, Kevin Ka Shing
Format: Article
Published: Wiley-Blackwell Sep2021
Subjects:
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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      dt: Sep2021
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      pub: Wiley-Blackwell
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        10.1002/ajcp.12511
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        atl: How Sense of Community Affects Sense of Self Among Sexual Minorities: Critical Consciousness as a Mediating Mechanism.
      aug:
        au:
          Yip, Charles Chiu Hung
          Chan, Kevin Ka Shing
        affil:
          Department of Psychology, The Education University of Hong Kong, Tai Po, Hong Kong
          Centre for Psychosocial Health, The Education University of Hong Kong, Tai Po, Hong Kong
      su:
        Hong Kong (China)
        China
        Critical consciousness
        Sexual minorities
        Sense data
        Critical thinking
        Structural equation modeling
      sug:
        subj:
          Critical consciousness
          Sexual minorities
          Hong Kong (China)
          China
          Sense data
          Critical thinking
          Structural equation modeling
      keyword:
        Critical action
        Critical reflection
        Identity affirmation
        Lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals
        Self‐esteem
        Sense of community
        Critical action
        Critical reflection
        Identity affirmation
        Lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals
        Self‐esteem
        Sense of community
      ab: Research shows that sense of community may enable lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals to resist and fight against societal heterosexism and increase their positive sense of self. Less is known, however, about the underlying processes. The present study examined whether sense of community would affect sense of self (i.e., identity affirmation and self‐esteem) through critical consciousness (i.e., critical reflection and critical action) among LGB individuals. A total of 401 LGB individuals from Hong Kong, China, provided cross‐sectional questionnaire data on sense of community, critical reflection, critical action, identity affirmation, and self‐esteem. Structural equation modeling and bootstrap analyses were performed to analyze the direct and indirect relations among the variables. Results showed that sense of community was positively associated with critical action, and this association was mediated by critical reflection. Moreover, critical action was positively associated with self‐esteem, and this association was mediated by identity affirmation. Theoretically, this study demonstrated how LGB individuals' sense of community may have a positive impact on their sense of self through the mechanism of critical consciousness. Practically, this study pointed to the utility of cultivating positive in‐group perceptions among LGB individuals in liberating them from oppressive ideology, mobilizing them to resist social injustice, enhancing their identity affirmation, and increasing their self‐esteem. Highlights: The association between sense of community and sense of self is mediated by critical consciousness.Sense of community liberates LGB individuals from societal heterosexism.Sense of community mobilizes LGB individuals to join individual and collective advocacy actions.Critical consciousness has an identity‐affirming effect for LGB individuals.Critical consciousness has a self‐empowering effect for LGB individuals.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype: Article
      src: R
    language: English
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