Legislative Debate-Attributed Suicidality Among LGBTQ+ Adults: The Buffering Effect of Community Belongingness

TL;DR

This study finds that LGBTQ+ adults in Kentucky experience high rates of suicidal thoughts and attempts linked to anti-LGBTQ+ legislative debates, but a sense of community belonging can reduce this risk.

Contribution

This paper introduces the novel concept of 'debate-attributed suicidality' and identifies community belongingness as a protective factor.

Findings

59.7% of LGBTQ+ adults in Kentucky reported increased suicidal thoughts due to anti-LGBTQ+ legislative debates.

LGBTQ+ community belongingness significantly reduced odds of both suicidal thoughts and attempts.

Transgender and BIPOC individuals faced disproportionately higher risks of suicidality.

Abstract

Background: In recent years, the sociopolitical landscape in the United States has shifted due to an increase in state-level legislation regarding LGBTQ+ rights, a trend that has been particularly pronounced in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. While the mental health impacts of enacted laws are increasingly documented, a critical gap remains in understanding the psychological toll of the legislative debates themselves—the prolonged periods of public discourse surrounding the restriction of rights. Methods: Utilizing data from the 2025 Queer Kentucky Survey (N = 817), this exploratory study examined the association between LGBTQ+ community belongingness and acute suicidality attributed specifically to anti-LGBTQ+ legislative debates. Data were derived from a non-probability snowball sample. Binary logistic regression models that adjusted for age, race, gender identity, education, and income were utilized. Results: Prevalence of debate-attributed suicidality was alarmingly high: 59.7% of the sample attributed increased suicidal thoughts, and 44.1% attributed a suicide attempt, specifically to the legislative debates. LGBTQ+ belongingness was a robust protective correlate, associated with significantly lower odds of both suicidal thoughts (OR = 0.61, p < 0.001) and attempts (OR = 0.41, p < 0.001). Analyses further revealed divergent risk for suicidality across demographic characteristics. Conclusions: Findings are consistent with the interpretation that legislative debates may function as distinct structural stressors associated with suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts. While community belongingness may offer a critical buffer, the elevated risks among Transgender and Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) populations highlight the need for intersectional, structural interventions beyond individual resilience.

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