Health and relationship quality of the LGBTQIA+ population in Europe

A growing body of literature investigates disparities between sexual minorities and their heterosexual peers. However, few papers, focusing mostly on single countries, have considered socio-economic outcomes besides occupational opportunities and earnings, such as health, loneliness, and social connections. The contribution of our research is twofold. First, we rely on a novel data set that allows for a wide cross-national analysis (27 EU member states) of differences in reporting sexual orientation and disparities between sexual minorities. Second, we are able to consider a rich set of individual specific health outcomes, behaviors, relationship quality, and attitudes towards social media (ab)use. The results indicate that LGBTQIA+ people have a higher probability of reporting adverse physical and mental health conditions and are more likely to take health-related risks. They also have lower-quality social relationships, are more likely to experience feelings of loneliness, and spend more time on social networking sites. Some of these effects significantly differ across gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals. Finally, we find heterogeneous effects of individual relationship status, residence area (rural versus urban), and household income, as well as access to legal rights and other social benefits.