Mindfulness for Reducing Minority Stress and Promoting Health Among Sexual Minority Men: Uncovering Intervention Principles and Techniques

Tailored, evidence-based interventions are in high need for sexual minority men (gay, bisexual, and queer men who have sex with men) to address prevalent mental health issues and HIV/STI risk. This study describes the formative research that informed the development of Mindfulness-Based Queer Resilience (MBQR): a mindfulness-based intervention for health promotion among sexual minority men.

Guided by the ADAPT-ITT model, we conducted a series of interviews with community stakeholders, including sexual minority men with anxiety and depressive symptoms (n = 15) and mindfulness service providers with experience working with sexual minority men (n = 11). Thematic analysis was used for data analysis.

Six intervention principles and seven key techniques/delivery considerations emerged relevant to intervention development. Principles included (a) reducing minority stress as a key theoretical guide, (b) affirming LGBTQ + identity and facilitating healthy identity development, (c) attending to intersectionality, (d) facilitating resilience and self-empowerment, (e) trauma sensitivity, and (f) promoting healthy relationships and a healthy community. Key techniques represent the pathways through which MBQR may address the adverse impacts of minority stress, including through attention control practice to facilitate agency and self-awareness, enhancing emotion regulation, reducing reactivity to minority stress-informed thoughts, self-compassion to increase self-acceptance, and reducing behavioral avoidance. Delivery considerations also included careful navigation regarding mindfulness and religion, as well as using modern technology to increase reach, access, and engagement.

If proven to be feasible and efficacious, MBQR may offer the potential to alleviate adverse impacts of minority stress and improve mental and sexual health of sexual minority men.