Double Jeopardy: Does Intersectional Discrimination Moderate the Relationship Between Acculturation and Cigarette Dependence Among Latinx Sexual Minority Men Current Smokers?

Introduction: The Double Jeopardy Hypothesis posits that sexual minority people of color may have a greater risk of substance use because of dealing with heterosexism and racism. We sought to test this hypothesis by examining whether appraisal of intersectional forms of discrimination predict greater cigarette dependence and whether acculturation attenuates that relationship among Latinx sexual minority men (SMM) who smoke.

Methods: Participants were 258 Latinx SMM who identified as current smokers recruited via Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk). OLS regressions tested (1) the relationship between appraisal of intersectional forms of discrimination (total and subscales) and Hispanic/non-Hispanic acculturation on cigarette dependence, and (2) the moderating effects of appraisal of intersectional discrimination (total and subscales) on the relationship between Hispanic/non-Hispanic acculturation and cigarette dependence.

Results: In line with our hypotheses, non-Hispanic acculturation was associated with lower cigarette dependence. Appraisal of intersectional discrimination and subscales moderated the relationship between non-Hispanic acculturation and cigarette dependence. Simple slopes tests showed that the effects of non-Hispanic acculturation on cigarette dependence were strongest for those who experience lower intersectional discrimination.

Conclusion: Our findings suggest that Latinx SMM may have resilience that helps them deal with the negative effects of discrimination on cigarette dependence, especially for those who are more acculturated to the U.S. These findings may point to Latinx SMM taking on U.S. negative views towards smoking. However, future studies should use a more nuanced assessment of acculturation that does not rely on a language-based acculturation measure.