Description

Stage 5 (identity) and stage 6 (intimacy) of Erikson’s psycho-social developmental theory is used to model identity formation (sexual minority) and identity reformation (religious) processes, and to consider the effect of these process on intimacy. How do two outcomes (resisting versus embracing sexual minority identities) influence the subsequent stage of intimacy? How do identity choices reflect differences in personality, values, and well-being? Our data comes from two studies: longitudinal data from the study Homosexuality Among Highly Religious Mormons (HAHRM) gathered in 2002 and 2005, and the Four Options Survey (FOS) data from 2016.

Gary Horlacher is a genealogist for Ancestry. He initiated a study of gay Mormons while in a Ph.D. program at BYU in Marriage, Family, and Human Development in 2002. He is working with Tyler Lefevor, Ron Schow, and Lisa Diamond on this research.