ABSTRACT

This chapter focuses on to consolidate up-to-date knowledge and formulate a comprehensive research model of occupational stress and degrees of sexual orientation disclosure of Lesbian, Gay and Bisexuals (LGBs) in the workplace. The model illustrates the relationship between societal homophobic attitudes, organisational climate in relation to support for LGBs, individual determinants, perceived homophobia in the workplace and subsequent outcomes in terms of degrees of disclosure of sexual orientation and occupational stress outcomes. Furthermore, numerous authors have emphasised the importance of using multiple degrees of sexual orientation disclosure measurements. The research evidence and model presented in this review also supports the suggestion proposed by Driscoll, Kelley and Fassinger that the degrees of sexual orientation disclosure are linked to workplace climate and therefore need to be treated as a dependent variable. In times of recession and faced with increasingly competitive markets, it makes business sense for organisations to attract, develop, retain and fully utilise the talents of their full workforce.