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Relationship between sexual orientation and psychotic experiences in the general population in England

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 November 2019

Louis Jacob Open the ORCID record for Louis Jacob [Opens in a new window] ,
Lee Smith ,
Daragh McDermott ,
Josep Maria Haro ,
Andrew Stickley  and
Ai Koyanagi
Louis Jacob*
Affiliation:
Faculty of Medicine, University of Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Montigny-le-Bretonneux78180, France Research and development unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, CIBERSAM, Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 42, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona08830, Spain
Lee Smith
Affiliation:
Cambridge Centre for Sport and Exercise Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK
Daragh McDermott
Affiliation:
School of Psychology and Sport Science, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK
Josep Maria Haro
Affiliation:
Research and development unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, CIBERSAM, Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 42, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona08830, Spain
Andrew Stickley
Affiliation:
Department of Preventive Intervention for Psychiatric Disorders, National Institute of Mental Health, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Kodaira, Tokyo, Japan
Ai Koyanagi
Affiliation:
Research and development unit, Parc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, CIBERSAM, Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 42, Sant Boi de Llobregat, Barcelona08830, Spain ICREA, Pg. Lluis Companys 23, Barcelona, Spain
*
Author for correspondence: Louis Jacob, E-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

Background

Non-heterosexual individuals are at high risk for a variety of factors associated with the emergence of psychotic experiences (PEs) (e.g. common mental disorders, substance use, and stress). However, there is a scarcity of data on the association between sexual orientation and PEs. Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the sexual orientation-PE relationship, and to identify potential mediators in this relationship.

Methods

This study used nationally representative cross-sectional data from the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey. Sexual orientation was dichotomized into heterosexual and non-heterosexual. Past 12-month PE was assessed with the Psychosis Screening Questionnaire. Regression and mediation analyses were conducted to analyze the association between sexual orientation and PEs, and to identify potential mediators involved in this relationship.

Results

The final sample consisted of 7275 individuals aged ⩾16 years. The prevalence of non-heterosexual orientation and any PE was 7.1% and 5.5%, respectively. After adjusting for sex, age, and ethnicity, non-heterosexual orientation was positively associated with any PE (odds ratio 1.99, 95% confidence interval 1.34–2.93). The strongest mediators involved in this relationship were borderline personality disorder (BPD) traits (mediated percentage = 33.5%), loneliness (29.1%), and stressful life events (25.4%).

Conclusions

These findings suggest that there is a positive relationship between sexual orientation and PEs in the general population in England, and that underlying mechanisms may involve BPD traits, loneliness, and stressful life events. Future studies with a longitudinal design are warranted to shed more light on how these factors are implicated in the association between sexual orientation and PEs.

Keywords

English nationally representative surveymediation analysispsychotic experiencessexual orientation
Type
Original Articles
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 51 , Issue 1 , January 2021 , pp. 138 - 146
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Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2019

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