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The demography of sexual identity development and disclosure among LGB people in Europe

Author

Listed:
  • Anna Caprinali

    (Università degli Studi di Trento)

  • Agnese Vitali

    (Università degli Studi di Trento)

Abstract

Background: Despite a non-negligible share of youth in Europe identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or queer, we know little about the demography behind the development and disclosure of one’s sexual identity, particularly regarding their timing and their variation by LGBTQIA identity. This limited understanding hinders the use of sexual orientation as a predictor in social sciences. Objective: We provide descriptive evidence on the demography of sexual identity development and disclosure among LGB people in Europe. We focus on age at self-disclosure and age at first coming out to others and describe differences across European countries, birth cohorts, and between lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals. Methods: We use the 2019 EU LGBTI II Survey data administered by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights and employ descriptive statistics, t-test, and survival analyses to investigate age at self-disclosure and first coming out. Results: The age at self-disclosure has remained stable across successive cohorts of LGB people in Europe, whereas the age at coming out to others has decreased considerably. Accordingly, the gap between age at self-disclosure and age at coming out to others has reduced across cohorts. However, longer age gaps are consistently observed among LGB men across all cohorts and countries. Age at self-disclosure varies considerably across Europe, being highest in Central European countries and lowest in Eastern European countries. Contribution: This contribution offers the first systematic description of the age at self-disclosure and coming out in Europe and how they vary according to LGB identity, cohort, and country.

Suggested Citation

  • Anna Caprinali & Agnese Vitali, 2025. "The demography of sexual identity development and disclosure among LGB people in Europe," Demographic Research, Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research, Rostock, Germany, vol. 52(5), pages 125-140.
  • Handle: RePEc:dem:demres:v:52:y:2025:i:5
    DOI: 10.4054/DemRes.2025.52.5
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Cevat G. Aksoy & Christopher S. Carpenter & Jeff Frank, 2018. "Sexual Orientation and Earnings: New Evidence from the United Kingdom," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 71(1), pages 242-272, January.
    2. Alexandre Flage, 2019. "Discrimination against gays and lesbians in hiring decisions: a meta-analysis," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 41(6), pages 671-691, September.
    3. Buser, Thomas & Geijtenbeek, Lydia & Plug, Erik, 2018. "Sexual orientation, competitiveness and income," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 151(C), pages 191-198.
    4. Giulia M. Dotti Sani & Mario Quaranta, 2020. "Let Them Be, Not Adopt: General Attitudes Towards Gays and Lesbians and Specific Attitudes Towards Adoption by Same-Sex Couples in 22 European Countries," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 150(1), pages 351-373, July.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Europe; sexual orientation; sexual identity development; self-disclosure; coming-out; LGB identity;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J1 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics
    • Z0 - Other Special Topics - - General

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