The Unique Lived Experiences of LGBQ Athletes: A Collegiate Women’s Rugby Club Team as an Inclusive & Empowering Community

Policing Gender and Sexuality in High School Sports: The Mediating Impact of Hearing Anti-LGBTQ + Language on High School Athletes’ Self-Esteem Across Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation, and Race

“…Nevertheless, this result of hearing a higher frequency of anti-LGBTQ + language in sport aligns with earlier research on the hyper-surveillance and policing of gender norms, specifically masculinity, in sport (Adams & Govender, 2008; Butler, 1990; Connell, 2008; Kimmel, 2008; Martino, 2000; McCreary, 1994; Metcalfe, 2018; Oransky & Fisher, 2009; Pascoe, 2005; Phoenix et al, 2003; Poteat, 2007; Poteat et al, 2007; Reigeluth & Addis, 2016, 2021; Renold, 2002). Further, this finding may speak to the necessity of promoting critical consciousness and other similar social justice life skills, namely healthy masculinity (Newman et al, 2023) and LGBTQ + allyship (Robinson et al, 2022), as they are both known to promote an inclusive and welcoming environment.…”

“…Traditional to social justice education (Tien, 2019), the ability to critically reflect and become self-reflexive regarding one's own intersectional identities and positionality are viewed as necessary processes in becoming critically conscious (Freire, 1970). Through ongoing and dynamic critical reflection and reflexivity, the researcher not only facilitates their own understanding of how their worldview may impact the research process, but this transparency also provides information to others who wish to critically interpret the study and its findings (Brodsky, 2008; Robinson et al, 2022). Although individuals on the research team hold differing ontological (e.g., postpositivism, constructivist) and epistemological (e.g., subjectivist, interpretivist) perspectives (Guba & Lincoln, 1994), the research team holistically grounded themselves in critical theory(s) (e.g., critical pedagogy, Critical Race Theory, Critical Feminist Theory, Critical Queer Theory, etc.).…”

“…Traditional to social justice education (Tien, 2019), the ability to critically reflect and become self-reflexive regarding one's own intersectional identities and positionality are viewed as necessary processes in becoming critically conscious (Freire, 1970). Through ongoing and dynamic critical reflection and reflexivity, the researcher not only facilitates their own understanding of how their worldview may impact the research process, but this transparency also provides information to others who wish to critically interpret the study and its findings (Brodsky, 2008;Robinson et al, 2022).…”