Drag has gained visibility through the popularity of tv shows like Ru Paul’s Drag Race and HBO’s We’re Here. Even with this popularity, the past several years have been especially stressful for drag queens and kings. Early in the COVID-19 pandemic many venues had to cancel performances. It hindered performers’ artistry, creative development, their sense of community, and their income. Drag performances have also become a political talking point. These political attacks dehumanize drag artists and put them at greater risk of harm. The psychological stress from recent years for drag performers is evident. Drag performers are people, not an idea to debate.

Despite these challenges, there is power to performing drag.

New Research on Drag Performance and Mental Health

A recently published article by Knutson et al. (2023) shows us how drag can be therapeutic and benefit your mental health. One hundred and sixty-three drag performers answered questions about things like their social support and creativity. Then the researchers looked at how these factors hindered or helped drag artists' mental health.

How Is Drag Therapeutic?

Social Support

A significant finding from this research is about the positive impact of social support in drag performers’ lives. The research suggests that the sense of community and social support derived from engaging in drag can have therapeutic effects on mental health. Higher levels of social support from friends and family were associated with less depression. The support from family was not associated with resilience though. The researchers found that social support from friends, or from those outside of one’s family of origin, predicted drag artists’ resilience. The more social support drag artists had from their friends and chosen family, the more resilience they had. These findings emphasize the value of drag performers being supported by those in their life. The support from friends and family of choice is particularly important, as this type of social support may lessen depression and increase their resilience when facing adversity as a drag artist.

Creativity

Drag allows for self-expression and fosters creativity, which contributes to its therapeutic value. It is important to note that while moderate levels of creativity can be beneficial, individuals with very low or very high levels of creativity may experience a sense of isolation as performers, potentially limiting the psychological benefits they gain from their drag involvement. Furthermore, as some performers achieve a high level of creativity and financial success in the drag industry, they may find themselves feeling less connected to their fellow performers, which could impact their overall sense of community and social support. Knutson et al.’s findings show us that performers gain the most mental health benefits from drag when they have ‘just the right amount’ of creativity at play.

 The therapeutic benefits of drag come from its ability to be a community-based and creative endeavor. Drag performers seem to gain the most mental health benefits when they have the powerful combination of social support and creativity. The unique potential for drag communities to simultaneously be sources of support and creativity is one of its biggest strengths. At a time when these communities are under attack, it’s now more important than ever that we support drag artists, encourage their use of creativity in community, and protect them from harm.

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This blog is informed by the following psychological research:

Knutson, D., Ramakrishnan, N., McDurmon, G., Federici, D. J., & Koch, J. M. (2023). Drag performance and health: Predicting depression and resilience. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 10(3), 440-450. https://doi.org/10.1037/sgd0000542

 If you would like a PDF of this research article, please feel free to contact me via email (jenna@drjennabrownfield.com) and I will gladly share it with you.