# Race, Ethnicity, Sex, Sexual Orientation, and Discrimination in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study

## TL;DR

This study finds that children from marginalized racial, ethnic, and sexual minority groups face different levels of discrimination based on their intersecting identities.

## Contribution

The study introduces a novel analysis of how race, ethnicity, sex, and sexual orientation intersect to influence discrimination experiences in children.

## Key findings

- Girls from minoritized racial or ethnic groups and with minority sexuality reported less sexual orientation-based discrimination than boys from similar groups.
- Sexual minority boys and girls from minoritized racial or ethnic groups experienced higher rates of racial or ethnic discrimination compared to their heterosexual peers.
- Intersectional identities significantly affect the likelihood of experiencing discrimination during late childhood.

## Abstract

Is the intersection of a child’s sexuality, ethnicity, race, and assigned sex at birth associated with discrimination based on sexual orientation, ethnicity, or race?

This survey study of 9854 children enrolled in a cognitive development study highlighted that girls from minoritized ethnic or racial groups and with a minority sexuality were less likely to experience sexual orientation–based discrimination compared with boys from these groups. Children from groups minoritized by ethnicity or race and sexuality were more likely to experience ethnic or racial discrimination compared with children from the same groups who were ethnically or racially minoritized and heterosexual.

These data suggest that intervention programs addressing intersections of multiple forms of vulnerability are essential for mitigating unique discrimination experiences among ethnically or racially minoritized and sexual minority children.

This survey study uses data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study to examine the association of intersectional strata of race, ethnicity, sex, and sexual orientation with discrimination based race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation.

Children are disproportionately exposed to sexual orientation–based discrimination and ethnic or racial discrimination due to intersections of sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, and assigned sex at birth. Yet, there is sparse evidence in clinical settings.

To investigate how social strata of sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, and assigned sex at birth intersect and are associated with experiences of sexual orientation–based discrimination and ethnic or racial discrimination.

This survey study included data retrieved from children enrolled in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study between 2016 and 2020. Children were recruited from 21 study sites across 17 states. Eligible participants were between ages 9 and 11 years at recruitment. Baseline data (2016-2018), first-year follow-up data (2017-2019), and second-year follow-up data (2018-2020) were included. Analyses were conducted between June and October 2024.

Logistic regressions were conducted to test the association between children’s social strata indicated by intersections of sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, and assigned sex at birth and discrimination based on sexual orientation and ethnic or racial discrimination.

Among 9854 children (mean [SD] age at baseline, 9.5 [0.5] years; 4582 girls [46.5%]; 202 Asian [2.0%], 1488 Black [15.1%], 2030 Latinx [20.6%], 906 multiple races [9.2%], 4921 White [49.9%]), White sexual minority girls reported the highest percentage of sexual orientation–based discrimination (113 of 312 [36.2%]). Ethnically or racially minoritized boys reported the highest percentage of ethnic or racial discrimination (41 of 174 [23.7%]). After accounting for covariates, ethnically or racially minoritized sexual minority girls were less likely to report sexual orientation–based discrimination compared with ethnically or racially minoritized heterosexual boys (odds ratio [OR], 0.60; 95% CI, 0.43-0.85). Ethnically or racially minoritized sexual minority boys (OR, 3.17; 95% CI, 1.71-5.88) and girls (OR, 2.09; 95% CI, 1.47-2.97) were more likely to report ethnic or racial discrimination compared with ethnically or racially minoritized heterosexual boys. Moreover, ethnically or racially minoritized sexual minority boys (OR, 3.39; 95% CI, 1.81-6.34) and girls (OR, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.56-3.21) were more likely to report ethnic or racial discrimination compared with ethnically or racially minoritized heterosexual girls.

In this survey study investigating experience of sexual orientation–based discrimination alongside ethnic or racial discrimination during late childhood, findings highlighted that intersections of sexual orientation, ethnicity, race, and assigned sex at birth contributed to disproportionate exposures to sexual orientation–based discrimination and ethnic or racial discrimination among children. These findings provide valuable insight into intersectional experiences of discrimination among children.