Understanding nonbinary college students’ experiences on college campuses: An exploratory study of mental health, campus involvement, victimization, and safety.

Abstract

Limited research has explored the experiences of nonbinary college students. Using a national sample of college students from the American College Health Association-National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA), we compared experiences of college students in terms of their campus safety, mental health, and involvement in extracurricular activities. Results reveal complexities of nonbinary students' experiences. Nonbinary students reported feeling less safe on and around campus and were more likely to be verbally threatened, stalked, and sexually assaulted than their peers. In terms of mental health indicators, nonbinary students reported significantly worse outcomes than their peers. Nonbinary students were also significantly less likely to be involved in extracurricular activities. Among nonbinary students, Black nonbinary students reported less safety, higher stress, and greater suicidality than White nonbinary students, and multiracial nonbinary students were more likely to be stalked than their White nonbinary peers. In terms of campus involvement, multiracial nonbinary students were more likely to volunteer than White nonbinary students. On the whole, this study suggests that nonbinary college students' experiences differ from their peers' in terms of greater reports of victimization, poorer mental health, and less involvement on campus, with important racial differences. Those who work with college students should ensure that their services support and affirm nonbinary identities and should work to push back on superficial changes that do not address the racist, cis-heteropatriarchal conditions that give rise to such outcomes.

The modified gender minority stress measure: A psychometric validation study.

“…Prior research has noted that nonbinary individuals experience misgendering or the wrong pronoun use on a near if not daily basis given the binary nature of our current society (Goldberg et al, 2019; Matsuno et al, 2022; Puckett, Tornello, et al, 2022). Further, navigating this binary society places an unfair burden onto nonbinary individuals to teach others what it means to be nonbinary and how to use nonbinary pronouns (Marx et al, 2022). Therefore, the different understanding of this particular item between gender identity groups is likely reflective of the varying degrees and experiences of educational burdening they experience.…”

Differences in Test Anxiety Scores Among Baccalaureate Nursing Students and Nonnursing Students

“…In terms of mental health, nonbinary students tend to report significantly worse health outcomes than their peers. In addition to facing rejection and misunderstanding from peers, an increased risk of anxiety is commonly reported 33. While gender is an unmodifiable risk factor for test anxiety, recognition of at-risk students should become a priority for educators.…”

Safety strategies and the impact of misgendering among nonbinary college students: A minority stress perspective.

“…Anticipated rejection (sometimes referred to as expected rejection or anticipated stigma) may be another prominent stressor experienced by nonbinary college students. Nonbinary collegians have reported feeling less safe on campus than their cisgender peers, leading to poorer mental health outcomes (Marx et al, 2022). Goldberg and Kuvalanka (2018) found that nonbinary students described the mental labor of feeling the need to be prepared for other people’s reactions.…”

“…Research has identified the challenges experienced by TNB college students more broadly, and several scholars have recommended changes to university settings to make them more inclusive and supportive. However, very few studies have investigated stressors among nonbinary college students specifically (Goldberg & Kuvalanka, 2018; Marx et al, 2022). Research on nonbinary people suggests they experience unique, often chronic stressors influenced by binary normativity such as persistent misgendering (Matsuno et al, 2022).…”