@article {hatzenbuehler_structural_2014,
	title = {Structural stigma and HPA axis reactivity in LGB young adults.},
	journal = {Annals of Behavioral Medicine: A Publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine},
	volume = {47},
	number = {1},
	year = {2014},
	month = {feb},
	pages = {39{\textendash}47},
	abstract = {BACKGROUND: Youth exposed to extreme adverse life conditions have blunted cortisol responses to stress. PURPOSE: This study aims to examine whether growing up in highly stigmatizing environments similarly shapes stigmatized individuals{\textquoteright} physiological responses to identity-related stress. METHODS: We recruited 74 lesbian, gay, and bisexual young adults (mean age = 23.68) from 24 states with varying levels of structural stigma surrounding homosexuality. State-level structural stigma was coded based on several dimensions, including policies that exclude sexual minorities from social institutions (e.g., same-sex marriage). Participants were exposed to a laboratory stressor, the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), and neuroendocrine measures were collected. RESULTS: Lesbian, gay, and bisexual young adults who were raised in highly stigmatizing environments as adolescents evidenced a blunted cortisol response following the TSST compared to those from low-stigma environments. CONCLUSIONS: The stress of growing up in environments that target gays and lesbians for social exclusion may exert biological effects that are similar to traumatic life experiences.},
	keywords = {Adolescent, Adult, Bisexuality, Female, Homosexuality, Humans, Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System, Male, Pituitary-Adrenal System, Prejudice, Psychological, Social Environment, Social Stigma, STRESS, Young Adult},
	issn = {1532-4796},
	doi = {10.1007/s12160-013-9556-9},
	author = {Hatzenbuehler, Mark L. and McLaughlin, Katie A.}
}
