Hearing “that’s so gay” and “no homo” on academic outcomes for LGBQ + college students

Mathies, Nicole; Coleman, Thomas F.; McKie, Raymond M.; Woodford, Michael R.; Courtice, Erin Leigh; Travers, Robb; Renn, Kristen A.

doi:10.1080/19361653.2019.1571981

Cited by 27 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…With respect to our first hypothesis, we found significant associations of microaggressions with student social integration within the campus community. This is consistent with previous studies that linked heterosexist microaggressions on campus with student academic outcomes [10,27]. As concerns sexual minority students, one plausible explanation for this result is the association of microaggressions with psychological distress [19], which in turn would relate to academic outcomes [39].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…In our study, interactions with faculty were not impacted by environmental microaggressions, perhaps because students experience these faculty interactions as strictly related to addressing the educational mission of colleges and universities, namely teaching. This interpretation is somewhat consistent with Mathies and colleagues' study [27], which reported that microaggressions like "That's so gay" and "No homo" were associated with academic stress but not with students' satisfaction about their academic and intellectual experience at campus.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 86%

“…Furthermore, encountering discrimination on campus can interfere with the academic development of sexual minority students [26]. In fact, due to the psychological stress associated with discrimination [20], LGBQ+ students may withdraw, both psychologically and physically, from their institution, and thus develop negative interactions on campus, damaging perceptions of the overall academic experience, and negative overall perceptions of campus climate [27]. However, how heterosexist microaggressions contribute to negative academic development among sexual minority and heterosexual students remains under-researched [27].…”

Section: Microaggressions and Student Academic Experiencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Academic development is generally considered to be a multifaceted construct that involves both academic (in terms of student's academic performance and his or her level of intellectual development, commitments to the institution, and goals associated with graduation and career) and social integration components [28]. Past work on heterosexism evidenced that environmental experiences of discrimination may interfere with students' academic functioning [5,10,26,27], paying most attention to dimensions of academic integration and underscoring the investigation of students' social integration within the academia, including the quality of peer-group interactions and student interactions with faculty, along with perceptions of the faculty's concern for student development. Mathies and colleagues [27], for instance, analyzed…”

Section: Microaggressions and Student Academic Experiencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Past work on heterosexism evidenced that environmental experiences of discrimination may interfere with students' academic functioning [5,10,26,27], paying most attention to dimensions of academic integration and underscoring the investigation of students' social integration within the academia, including the quality of peer-group interactions and student interactions with faculty, along with perceptions of the faculty's concern for student development. Mathies and colleagues [27], for instance, analyzed…”

Section: Microaggressions and Student Academic Experiencesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Heterosexist microaggressions, student academic experience and perception of campus climate: Findings from an Italian higher education context

2020

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While overt instances of harassment and violence towards LGBQ+ individuals have decreased in recent years, subtler forms of heterosexism still shape the social and academic experience of students in higher education contexts. Such forms, defined as microaggressions, frequently include environmental slights that communicate hostile and derogatory messages about one's sexual-minority status. However, there is some evidence suggesting that environmental microaggressions have deleterious effects on all students, regardless of their sexual orientation. The aim of the current study was to examine how heterosexist environmental microaggressions on campus contributed to heterosexual and non-heterosexual students' negative perceptions of campus climate. We also analyzed whether the effect of microaggressions on campus climate was mediated by student social integration on campus. Data were collected in 2018 through an anonymous web-based survey that involved students from a large university of Southern Italy. The sample consisted of 471 students from 18 to 33 years old. Thirty-eight (8.1%) students self-identified as non-heterosexual. Measures included self-reported experiences of environmental microaggressions on campus, student degree of satisfaction with peer-group and student-faculty interactions, perceptions of faculty concern for student development, and of the overall campus climate. The structural equation model showed that heterosexist environmental microaggressions on campus were associated with negative perceptions of campus climate through lowered satisfaction with peer-group interactions and perceptions of faculty concern for student development, for both heterosexual and nonheterosexual students. Overall, the findings of this study suggest that heterosexist microaggressions within campus environments are negatively associated with students' perceptions of campus climate, regardless of their sexual orientation. Both faculty and peers play an important role in creating an environment that supports the inclusivity of diversity and fosters a greater sense of belonging to the campus community.

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