What if attachment influenced “coming out”?

The moment ofcoming outoften represents a pivotal stage in the construction of identity for members of the LGBTQ+ community. This deeply personal approach involves many relational and emotional issues, but one factor remains little studied: the role of attachment developed during childhood in the way a person experiences this disclosure of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

“Studies focusing on both LGBTQ+ realities and deep relational processes such as the attachment bond remain few in number,” noted Milica Djordjevic, a master’s student in psychology supervised by Audrey-Ann Deneault, professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Montreal.

To explore the question, this summer she began a study which concerns these two concepts intimately linked to the construction of the self. Attachment refers to the emotional bonds that form in childhood with parental figures or people who take care of the child. THEcoming out,for its part, corresponds to a form of self-disclosure where the gaze and reactions of those around you can have consequences on the well-being of the person.