Drug Use and Risk Correlates Among Latinx Sexual and Gender Minority Immigrants

Latinx sexual and gender minority (SGM) immigrants face significant hardship in the United States that may impact drug use severity. Yet, data on drug use among this community is severely limited. The present study employed latent profile analysis to identify subgroups of drug use severity across sociodemographic (age, years in the United States, and income), psychosocial stress (intersectional discrimination, acculturative stress), and social support. Recruitment efforts on closed online community groups and immigrant networks yielded a community sample of 195 Latinx SGM immigrants based in the United States. The latent class analysis supported a three-class solution with the highest severity class characterized by low levels of social support and intersectional discrimination but moderate levels of acculturative stress, whereas the lowest severity class reflected low levels of stressors and high social support. Multivariate analysis of variance tests demonstrated significant differences by gender identity and sexual orientation. Notably, transgender participants reported significantly higher rates of substance use and lower rates of social support than cisgender participants. Recommendations for clinical work and future research are provided.