3 - (SYM 81) Express, Suppress, and Reappraise: Investigating Links Between Experiences of Discrimination, Emotion Regulation, and Eating Behavior Among Sexual Minority Adults

Sexual minority (SM) individuals experience eating disorders at higher rates compared to their heterosexual peers. The psychological mediation framework posits that experiences of stigma predict emotion dysregulation, predisposing SM individuals to health disparities. We investigated 1) differences in emotion regulation (ER) and eating behaviors across SM and heterosexual individuals and 2) the potential mediating role of ER on the relationship between discrimination and eating behavior. We hypothesized that 1) SM individuals would report higher levels of suppression (putatively maladaptive ER) and lower levels of expressive flexibility and cognitive reappraisal (putatively adaptive ER) compared to heterosexual individuals and 2) ER (i.e., suppression, cognitive reappraisal, and expressive flexibility) might partially explain associations between discrimination and eating behaviors (i.e., cognitive restraint, uncontrolled eating, and emotional eating). Participants (N=386; 186 SM, 196 heterosexual) completed self-report measures of minority stress, ER, and eating behaviors. As expected, SM individuals reported lower cognitive reappraisal (M=28.62, SD=7.67) compared to heterosexual individuals (M=30.17, SD=7.17). SM individuals reported elevated emotional eating (M=46.06, SD=37.43) and uncontrolled eating (M=42.83, SD=26.57) compared to heterosexual individuals (Memotional=37.43, SD=33.10; Muncontrolled=36.83, SD=24.91). No significant differences in expressive flexibility, suppression, or cognitive restraint were detected across groups. Mediation analyses detected the presence of a direct effect of discrimination on cognitive restraint (B=.44, SE=.20, p=.03). However, none of the ER facets examined (expressive flexibility, cognitive reappraisal, suppression) mediated this link. Mediation analyses did not detect direct or indirect effects when examining the effect of discrimination on uncontrolled eating or emotional eating. In sum, these findings indicate that reappraisal may be a useful transdiagnostic treatment target among SM individuals given the differences observed across groups. Additionally, emotional eating and uncontrolled eating may warrant further investigation within SM populations given the elevations demonstrated when compared to heterosexual populations. Future research should investigate ways that other forms of ER and reactions to minority stress may be implicated in disordered eating behaviors using longitudinal and experimental methodology.