ERIC Number: EJ1386973
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 15
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0897-5264
EISSN: EISSN-1543-3382
Available Date: N/A
Mirrors and Witnesses: Understanding Nonbinary College Students' Sense of Belonging
Dolan, C. V.
Journal of College Student Development, v64 n1 p16-30 Jan-Feb 2023
Nonbinary college students are an underresearched and often misinterpreted and misunderstood population. These students face compulsory heterogenderism (Nicolazzo, 2017), institutional cisgenderism (Seelman, 2014), and other structural barriers to belonging and student success. Through qualitative interviews (N = 6), this phenomenological study explored nonbinary undergraduates' experiences of belonging on campus with regard to their gender identities. The study was grounded in an interwoven theoretical framework of Rendón's (1994) validation theory, Strayhorn's (2019) sense of belongingness, and Devor's (2004) concepts of witnesses and mirrors in an effort to understand sense of belonging as a construct in college impact research. Findings depict what belonging feels like for nonbinary students, lack of belonging, and sites of belonging during college. Implications for improving research and practice in order to understand and build capacity for a sense of belonging for nonbinary students follow.
Descriptors: Sexual Identity, LGBTQ People, Sense of Community, Undergraduate Students, Student Attitudes, Educational Facilities
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A