The mediating effects of attitudes toward homosexuality between secure attachment and disclosure outcomes among gay men

W. Jellison, A. MacConnell

Past research has found that a stronger secure attachment style, developed in childhood, enhances one_s ability to acknowledge negative feelings, cope with negative life events, and develop satisfying social relationships. Because an integral part of the _coming out_ process for gay men is the ability to seek support from the gay community in order to reevaluate negative beliefs toward homosexuality, a gay man_s attachment style may strongly impact this critical stage of his life. Results demonstrated that men who more strongly endorsed a secure attachment style reported more positive attitudes toward their own homosexuality, and that these more positive attitudes could mediate the relation between more secure attachment style, greater levels of self-disclosure regarding their homosexuality, and greater self-esteem. Implications of these data for internalized homophobia, the coming-out process, and effective social functioning are discussed.[Copies are available from: Haworth Document Delivery Center. The Haworth Press, Inc., 10 Alice Street, Binghamton, NY 13904-1580, USA]