Conceptualizing outness through sexual minority disclosure narratives

Outness refers to the degree to which one self-discloses or expresses one’s personal identity (Klein, 2014). The concept of outness was first conceptualized as a stage in identity development (Cass, 1979; McCarn & Fassinger, 1996). Recent literature shows support for coming-out as a dynamic process that can vary depending on various social factors (e.g., culture, social support) as well as internal factors (e.g., motivation; Jhuang, et al., 2011; Klein, et al., 2015). This study aims to establish a model of outness using sexual minority disclosure experiences to capture the various domains in encompasses as well as provide researchers with a comprehensive definition of outness. Sexual minority disclosure narratives were collected through social media pages/forums. Responses were coded separately by two graduate-level researchers using Braun and Clarke’s (2006) methods of identifying themes within psychological-related narratives. After coding separately, researchers compared codes and combined the codes into potential themes and sub-themes that identify patterns within the narratives. Specifics of the themes and sub-themes were refined and given clear names for each. Results from 30 disclosure narratives reveal three main themes that conceptualizes the coming-out process: Disclosure Recipients, Disclosure Considerations, and Disclosure Methods