Child Maltreatment and Bullying: Examining the Experiences of LGB Children and Adolescents

Child Maltreatment and Bullying: Examining the Experiences of LGB Children and Adolescents

Research on sexual minority populations has traditionally focused on trauma exposure and etiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) within adults who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB). Indeed, multiple studies have found that LGB adults consistently report higher rates of trauma than their heterosexual counterparts, including the experience of hate crimes and verbal and/or physical harassment [1]. However, LGB individuals do not experience trauma only in adulthood; many suffer years of child physical abuse (CPA) and child sexual abuse (CSA) within the home.