Every action has a reaction: A model of coworker reactions to sexual minority employees' identity disclosure

Abstract

The current study examines the predictors and consequences of the ways coworkers react following sexual identity disclosure. We propose that employees may experience different reactions following disclosure depending on their social and sexual identities and that such reactions will impact their job attitudes, well-being, and subsequent identity concealment. Data were collected from 308 lesbian, gay, bisexual, and pansexual employees using a two-wave field survey design. Results for the predictors of coworker reactions indicate that employees who identified as Black, transgender/genderqueer, or bisexual/pansexual reported they experienced more unsupportive reactions from their coworkers following the disclosure of their sexual identity as compared to White, cisgender, and gay/lesbian employees. Supplemental analyses further indicate that Black bisexual/pansexual employees experienced the least positive reactions from coworkers as compared to the other referent groups. Results examining the outcomes of coworker reactions demonstrate that positive disclosure reactions are associated with decreased job satisfaction and increased turnover intentions, emotional exhaustion, and subsequent identity concealment, whereas negative disclosure reactions are associated with increased depressive symptoms and emotional exhaustion. Findings demonstrate a need to expand on conceptual and empirical work on identity disclosure to consider coworker reactions and underscore that the disclosure experiences of sexual minority employees are not uniform.