Developmental asset profiles as moderators of the association between intersectional discrimination and mental health among Black sexual minority men.

= 2.85) residing in three Midwestern cities completed an online Qualtrics survey conducted between December 2023 and January 2024. The mental health outcomes assessed included depressive symptoms, anxiety, and suicidal behaviors. Intersectional discrimination was modeled as a latent factor characterized by three indicators: anticipated, day-to-day, and major discrimination. Eight developmental asset indicators (both external and internal) informed a latent profile analysis (LPA); moderation was examined using the Bolck-Croon-Hagenaars approach in Mplus, while controlling for age, household income, homelessness, and sexual identity disclosure. The LPA revealed a four-class solution: low assets (25.5%), moderate assets (30.5%), inconsistent assets (27.4%), and high assets (16.6%). Discrimination was positively associated with depressive symptoms across all profiles, with the exception of the high assets group; the strongest effect was noted in the inconsistent assets category, while the weakest was in the high assets group. Regarding anxiety, discrimination was positively correlated with low, moderate, and inconsistent assets but negatively associated with high assets. Additionally, discrimination was positively related to suicidal behavior across all profiles, with the strongest effect observed in the moderate assets group. Younger age and housing instability were consistently linked to poorer mental health outcomes. These findings suggest that developmental assets can buffer some-but not all-of the mental health impacts of discrimination, suggesting that uneven asset patterns may heighten risk.