More than one in 10 Australian adolescents identify as being sexually diverse, a new study of high school students has revealed.
The Jama Network Open research surveyed 6,388 year eight students, which found 12 per cent of students identified as gay, bisexual, pansexual or asexual, while 3.3 per cent identified as gender diverse.
Jennifer Marino, a senior research fellow at the University of Sydney and author of the report, said the findings highlighted an “urgent need” for support programs to decrease stigma, discrimination and violence.
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Of the respondents, 17.7 per cent of people self-identified as having a mental health diagnosis. Generalised anxiety disorder was the most common, 7.8 per cent, followed by ADHD, 6.2 per cent, and social anxiety disorder, six per cent.
“Our observations support recommendations for child health policies that promote inclusion and support of diverse gender identities and sexualities from a young age to mitigate the deleterious impact of minority stress and internalised transphobia and homophobia,” she said.
“Future research with younger adolescents, particularly longitudinal and population-based studies, should include items about sexuality and gender identities, and we should conduct ongoing qualitative research with community, to ensure these items reflect lived experience of sexuality and gender diversity.”
In comparison to similar research conducted internationally, Australian adolescents identifying as gender diverse was slightly higher than that in New Zealand, 2.3 per cent, and the United States, 1.5 per cent.
In regards to sexually diverse adolescents, United States data found 9.4 per cent identified as gay or bisexual, and 11.1 per cent identified as gay, bisexual or “other”.
The Jama report noted that methods and sample groups were different in each research study, including the varying options for respondents to consider.
You can read the complete study here.