“That's So Gay!”: Examining the Covariates of Hearing This Expression Among Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual College Students

Abstract

College professionals and student leaders must acknowledge that the phrase is a form of heterosexist harassment. As such, policies addressing diversity and harassment should address students' use of this phrase, aiming to reduce its use. Additionally, colleges and universities should develop practices that counteract poorer well-being associated with hearing the phrase.

Victimization and Microaggressions Targeting LGBTQ College Students: Gender Identity As a Moderator of Psychological Distress

“…At the bivariate level, significant moderate correlations (not reported) were found between each form of discrimination and each outcome in the anticipated direction; the regression models similarly demonstrated that victimization and microaggressions related to greater forms of psychological distress (lower self-esteem; greater perceived stress and anxiety symptoms). These findings are in line with previous research looking at multivariate relationships between victimization and/or microaggressions and well-being (Silverschanz et al, 2008;Woodford et al, 2012;Woodford, Han et al, 2014;Woodford, Kulick et al, 2014). The documented significant positive relationships between microaggressions, self-esteem, perceived stress, and anxiety likely reflect the stressors inherent within microaggressions.…”

“…Past studies have documented forms of subtle heterosexist behaviors, including gay jokes and other slurs (Silverschanz, Cortina, Kornik, & Magley, 2008) and the microaggression "that's so gay" (Woodford et al, 2012). While not always labeled as microaggressions, recent work has documented examples of subtle discrimination affecting trans* people in college, such as facing unreasonable barriers to changing one's name or gender on campus records (Seelman, 2013) and witnessing others minimize the need for changing policies to protect trans* people (Case, Kanenberg, Erich, & Tittsworth, 2012).…”

“…This model has been usually applied to sexual minorities, including college students (e.g., Woodford et al, 2012;Woodford Kulick, et al, 2014). Several recent studies have used this lens to understand health disparities for trans* individuals (Hendricks & Testa, 2012;Herman, 2013).…”

“…Emerging research indicates that subtle heterosexism can have a negative impact on sexual minority college students (Silverschanz et al, 2008;Woodford et al, 2012;Woodford, Han et al, 2014). In terms of microaggressions, overhearing others use the phrase "that's so gay" as a negative descriptor has been associated with headaches, poor appetite, and feelings of isolation among emerging adult sexual minority students (Woodford et al, 2012).…”

“…Despite the increasing visibility of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) people, LGBTQ students frequently experience discrimination and a hostile climate on college campuses (Nicolazzo, 2015;Rankin, Weber, Blumenfeld, & Frazer, 2010;Woodford, Howell, Silverschanz, & Yu, 2012;Woodford, Kulick, Sinco, & Hong, 2014).…”