Evidence for a “bar culture” has not been entirely consistent (Bloomfield, 1993), however, and recent research suggests there may be age-cohort effects, in which younger sexual minorities are less reliant on bars for social venues (e.g., Crosby, Stall, Paul, & Barrett, 1998). Moreover, disparities in alcohol consumption appear to emerge in adolescence, long before a bar culture develops. One recent study with younger sexual minorities was able to address the role of social norms in drinking behaviors that did not occur in the context of a “bar culture.” During the transition from high school to freshman year of college, LGB individuals endorsed more permissive social norms among their social networks, which mediated the relationship between sexual orientation and increased alcohol use (Hatzenbuehler, Corbin, & Fromme, 2008a). Future research is needed to establish whether specific stressors resulting from stigma may play a role in the development of more permissive social norms among sexual minorities.
