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Purpose: Sexual and gender minority (SGM) youth (e.g., gay, lesbian, bisexual, questioning, transgender) are systemically impacted by victimization and poor mental health because of discrimination in society. To prevent adverse outcomes, we must understand factors that help communities support and protect SGM youth. This study examined to what extent protective factors longitudinally predict outcomes 2 years later in an effort to inform more sensitive prevention efforts., Methods: Students from nine Colorado high schools (N = 2,744) completed surveys across four consecutive school semesters (T1 to T4). Structural equation modeling was conducted to determine the longitudinal associations between baseline protective factors (access to medical and counseling services, help-seeking beliefs, trusted adults, family support, peer support, spirituality) and distal adverse outcomes (substance use, depression, suicidal ideation, peer victimization, bullying perpetration, sexual violence victimization and perpetration, homophobic name-calling victimization, and perpetration), by sexual orientation., Results: All protective factors examined, except for access to medical services, were associated with lower likelihood of adverse outcomes. Associations differed across sexual orientations. For students identified as questioning or something other than heterosexual, lesbian, gay, or bisexual, family support is a notable protective factor of depression, peer victimization, bullying perpetration, and sexual violence perpetration. Family support was not significantly protective for these outcomes among heterosexual, lesbian, gay, and bisexual students., Conclusions: There is no singular protective factor or universally impactful intervention for public health. Public health initiatives should recognize intersectional identities of young people and build strategies that are relevant to specific identities to create more comprehensive and effective programing., (Copyright © 2021 Society for Adolescent Health and Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Peer victimization, also referred to as bullying victimization, is associated with deleterious mental health outcomes including depression and suicidality. However, most of the bullying literature in the USA is centered around the experiences of non-Latinx White and African American adolescents. To center Latinx experiences, this cross-sectional study includes a sample of Latinx students from 19 Colorado high schools (n = 2554). School-level ethnic peer representation (proportion of Latinx peers) and individual student's willingness to seek help were examined independently as moderators between bullying victimization and mental health outcomes (depression and suicidality) separately by gender. Results indicated that Latinx youth who experienced peer victimization also reported higher symptoms of depression and suicidality. A greater willingness to seek help was associated with less symptoms of depression and suicidality among young Latinx youth, while school-level ethnic peer representation was only associated with lower symptoms of depression for Latinx adolescent females. Among Latinx youth who were victimized, a greater willingness to seek help was protective for symptoms of depression and suicidality. Results suggest that school-based programs for bullying prevention and mental health promotion need to examine culturally specific protective factors to reduce victimization and promote help-seeking norms among Latinx youth.

Homophobic name-calling and sexual violence are prevalent among US high school students and have been associated with a host of negative consequences including anxiety, depression, and substance use disorders, especially among sexual and gender minority youth. Although homophobic name-calling and sexual violence are linked to common risk and protective factors, most prior studies have failed to include gender and sexual minority groups. The present study used path analyses to explore the associations between eight protective factors and the outcomes of homophobic name-calling perpetration, homophobic name-calling victimization, sexual violence perpetration, and sexual violence victimization. The sample included LGB (n = 938), transgender (n = 140), and heterosexual (n = 3,744) high school students in Colorado, USA (N = 4,822). Protective factors included: (1) family support; (2) peer support; (3) friendships with trusted adults; (4) participating in healthy activities; (5) helping others; (6) spirituality; (7) access to counseling; and (8) access to medical services. For homophobic name-calling perpetration and victimization, significant negative associations emerged across different groups for the protective factors of family support, peer support, helping others, spirituality, counseling, and medical access. For sexual violence perpetration and victimization, significant negative associations emerged across different groups for the protective factors family support, peer support, and counseling access. Findings suggest that prevention and intervention efforts to address gender-based harassment should focus on building protective, supportive environments across the schools, families, and communities.