The role of LGBT+ vicarious trauma in binge eating: a psychological mediation model through emotion dysregulation in an Italian context

Past research has shown an increased prevalence of disordered eating behaviours in LGBT+ people compared to heterosexual and cisgender people (Parker & Harriger, 2020). Minority stress (Meyer, 2003) has been found to be consistently associated with disordered eating behaviours, including binge eating (Santoniccolo et al., 2024), which may offer an explanation for this health disparity. Vicarious trauma – in which people witness discrimination, harassment, unfair treatment or violence happening to other LGBT+ people – has been found to be associated with negative mental health outcomes (Balsam et al., 2013). This presentation explores the relationship between vicarious trauma and binge eating drawing on doctoral work from the “LGBT+ body image and eating behaviours” project, aimed at better understanding of health disparities and informing prevention approaches. A cross-sectional online anonymous survey was conducted involving 372 self-identified LGBT+ people from the Italian context. Self-report questionnaires were administered regarding distress related to heterosexist experiences, binge eating and associated factors. Descriptive and bivariate analyses were conducted. Mediation analyses were conducted through the “PROCESS” macro including vicarious trauma, emotion dysregulation and binge eating, controlling for age and socioeconomic status. Statistically significant positive associations were found between vicarious trauma, emotion dysregulation and binge eating. Mediation analyses (R² = .146) found a significant direct (β = .199, BootSE = .087, 95% CI [.027, .371]) and indirect (β = .09, BootSE = .032, 95% CI [.031, .161]) effect of vicarious trauma on binge eating behaviours through emotion dysregulation. Vicarious trauma seems to have a small but significant effect on binge eating through emotion dysregulation. Exposure to vicarious trauma in day-to-day life is likely to reduce availability of psychological coping resources for LGBT+ people, possibly heightening the risk of enacting dysfunctional coping behaviours such as binge eating. Vicarious trauma may be an important factor in increasing health disparities for LGBT+ people by increasing emotion dysregulation and binge eating. Policies for reducing harassment, discrimination and violence related to sexual orientation and gender identity in institutional, organizational and social contexts are needed which may help prevent negative health outcomes. Clinical contexts may benefit from considering the effect of minority stress on emotion regulation processes.