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Depression in Hong Kong’s LGBTQ community shows no signs of improving: survey

Researchers attribute the lack of improvement in mental health outcomes to continued discrimination

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The government should allocate dedicated resources to support LGBTQ individuals, an academic says. Photo: Antony Dickson
Jiang Chuqin

Members of Hong Kong’s LGBTQ community are suffering from similar levels of depression and anxiety as seven years ago, a survey has found, with researchers attributing the lack of improvement to continued discrimination.

The survey by the Chinese University of Hong Kong and a local non-profit group, the Society of True Light, polled 1,433 individuals last year who identified as LGBTQ and found that 30.8 per cent of them had symptoms of moderate to severe depression. It found 24 per cent had moderate to severe anxiety symptoms.

A 2017 survey of 1,050 individuals found that the numbers were 30.9 per cent and 25.9 per cent, respectively.

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“It revealed that in the past seven years, the local LGBTQ community showed no statistically significant improvement in these mental health outcomes,” Randolph Chan Chun-ho, an associate professor at the university’s social work department, said on Wednesday.

“The proportion of those exhibiting depression and anxiety symptoms was also higher than that of the general public, which was closely related to the continued discrimination and bias they face in their daily lives and the lack of basic legal protection.”

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Nearly 35 per cent of respondents reported that they had looked for a mental health service, with most seeking help from school counsellors and social workers.

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