A Systematic Literature Review on LGBT+ U.S. Students Studying Abroad

Abstract

Little focus has been afforded to LGBT+ students’ study abroad experiences. We conducted a systematic literature search and synthesis which identified 13 articles either with a focus on or inclusion of participants who were LGBT+ studying abroad. We coded included articles’ key information, including participant demographics; program duration, location, and academic focus; study methodology; and study results. The majority of studies used qualitative methods, and we note that gay and bisexual male students are severely underrepresented. Key findings also include issues of homophobia/transphobia, race and ethnicity disparities, community policing, sexual assualt and rape, and methodology. We suggest that researchers on LGBT+ abroad focus on gay and bisexual male participation and focus on how queer community is formed abroad and regulated by its members. Furthermore, we recommend future research include demographic questions inclusive of LGBT+, employ more mixed methods or quantitative approaches, and measures emphasizing intercultural and academic gains for LGBT+ students.

Queer students in international higher education: a review of distinct motivations, considerations, and challenges

“…Our intention was to set criteria that included literature from across multiple disciplines to develop a comprehensive review. This differs from other targeted reviews of US LGBT + students in study abroad (Bingham et al, 2023) and international LGBQ students (Nguyen et al, 2017) which employed narrower search criteria.…”