Personality profiles and health behaviors among sexual minority middle-aged and older adults: Identifying resilience through latent profile analysis

Resilience has been defined as a personality characteristic that promotes adaptation when facing hardships. Research has found evidence of resilience in sexual minority (SM; i.e., lesbian, gay, bisexual) adults, despite facing additional stressors such as discrimination and victimization. Yet, very limited research has been conducted on resilience in this marginalized community. Utilizing data from the Midlife in the United States study, this study conducted latent profile analysis using the Big Five personality traits (i.e., openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, neuroticism) to identify distinct personality profiles in a sample of SM (n = 159) and propensity-score matched heterosexual (n = 318) middle-aged and older adults. Additionally, the associations between the personality profiles and health-risk/promoting behaviors were assessed. Four profiles were identified: Average (35.2 %), Resilient (47 %), Overcontrolled (7.3 %), and Undercontrolled (10.5 %). The results found that Resilient SM participants were significantly more likely to engage in problematic drinking but were also more likely to have a routine physical exam than Resilient heterosexual participants. Participants with a Resilient profile were more likely to engage in moderate physical activity than other personality profiles for both SM and heterosexual participants. These results suggest that SM adults have the potential for resilience which is often overlooked in research.