Original articleConcordance and Discrepancy in Sexual Identity, Attraction, and Behavior Among Adolescents
Section snippets
Sample design and population
Participants in the study were students aged 14 and older, enrolled in grades 9 to 11 in either public or private schools in Montreal (Canada). In 2004, principals from 59 public high schools in Montreal (39 French school board, 20 English school board) and 2 private high schools were notified about the study by mail and then contacted by phone and invited to participate. The survey was approved and administered in 14 high schools (8 French school board, 4 English school board, 2 private).
Sample characteristics
No parents refused permission, and all eligible students consented to participate. A total of 1,951 adolescents completed the QYRBS (mean of 5.4 classrooms and 139.4 students per school). Of these, 16 surveys were discarded because of mostly empty or defaced answer sheets, and data from 1,935 of 1,951 eligible students (99.2%) were included in the analyses. Respondents were 51% male (49% female), 61% Caucasian (16% Asian, 10% black), 33% allophone (39% French, 27% English) with a mean age of
Discussion
Approximately 1 in 10 Montreal high school students sampled endorsed nonheterosexual identity, attraction, and/or behavior. This “nonexclusively-heterosexual” subgroup however was quite heterogeneous, lending credence to Kinsey's statement that “The world is not to be divided into sheep and goats” [23]. Although 9% reported same-gender attraction, 7% reported GLB or unsure sexual identity and 4% reported same-gender behavior, these groups were not concentric circles and no single question
Conclusion
The results of this study indicate that “nonheterosexual” youth are a heterogeneous group that cannot be identified accurately using a single question. In both research and clinical settings, the best way to assess sexual orientation, consistent with AAP guidelines, is to ask multiple questions that address the dimensions of identity, attraction, and behavior. All youth who endorse any combination of nonexclusively heterosexual identity, behavior or attraction are potentially at risk for the
Financial Interests
None of the authors have financial disclosures or conflicts of interest to declare.
Acknowledgments
This study was supported by funds from the McGill University Department of Psychiatry's One in Three Foundation awarded to Dr. Richard Montoro. Dr. Thombs is supported by a New Investigator Award from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and an Établissement de Jeunes Chercheurs award from the Fonds de la Recherche en Santé Québec.
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