Dual Minority Status

[Page 475]Dual minority status refers to individuals who identify with two different minority statuses. This entry briefly introduces and defines dual minority status as it relates to psychology and gender. Different perspectives and approaches to dual minority status are discussed. The entry concludes with a discussion of clinical approaches to working with individuals from dual minority statuses. For the purposes of the current entry, the focus will be on racial/ethnic identity, sexual identity, and gender identity. The terms dual-status minority and dual-identity minority may be used interchangeably.

Researchers have noted that dual-identity individuals, throughout their development, adapt and learn to alternate between their two identities. Within this adaptation process, dual-identity minorities may learn to reconcile inconsistent values or cognitions and expand their self-definition. When they are ...