The role of queer people of colour identity affirmation on psychological flexibility amid everyday discrimination among Black sexual and gender minority adults

Discrimination negatively affects psychosocial health, especially among Black sexual and gender minority (SGM) adults. Psychological flexibility is important for mental well-being, and research suggests that identity affirmation can support psychological health during daily stressors like discrimination. This study examined how QPOC identity affirmation relates to psychological flexibility amid everyday discrimination in Black SGM adults (N = 256). Findings demonstrate that QPOC identity affirmation serves as a significant positive predictor, with individuals exhibiting higher levels of identity affirmation reporting increased psychological flexibility when encountering discrimination. A notable interaction was identified between perceived discrimination and QPOC identity affirmation, indicating that the association between perceived discrimination and psychological flexibility is contingent on one’s level of QPOC identity affirmation. Moderation analysis showed that for those with strong QPOC identity affirmation, frequent discrimination reduces psychological flexibility. Thus, among Black SGM adults, QPOC identity affirmation does not act as a protective factor in highly discriminatory environments. Among the covariates, identifying as a man was linked to greater psychological flexibility, and higher subjective social status also corresponded with elevated psychological flexibility. Perceived discrimination was not significantly linked to lower psychological flexibility. Future studies may benefit from examinations of social and structural factors alongside individual-level adaptive responses to distressing experiences.