Keywords

College, Dating Violence, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Students, Social Norms

Abstract

There is minimal research on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (GBTQ) dating violence on college campuses. This qualitative study was facilitated using focus groups that included students that identified as being GBTQ at the University of Central Florida (UCF). The focus group questions were open ended in a discussion format. Participants were recruited from student organizations like the Gay Lesbian Bisexual Student Union (GLBSU) and Knight Allies on campus. There were a total of 10 students that participated in 2 different focus group sessions. Student's attitudes, thoughts and opinions about dating violence on college campuses in GBTQ relationships were collected. Additionally, participants provided their own definitions of the term dating violence. The students were most comfortable discussing dating violence among heterosexual couples, but did provide their thoughts about this issue in the GBTQ community. The results show that students had differing ideas on what constitutes a dating relationship, and behaviors that are positive and acceptable in GBTQ relationships, but are not considered socially acceptable. One example of this was public displays of affection. In addition, students identified negative behaviors in violent relationships that seem to follow some of the common themes that were found in the current literature. Participants were not aware of current efforts at UCF to address college campus dating violence from a prevention standpoint, but were familiar with intervention services offered on campus. They provided ideas on social messages that would be effective on campus to raise awareness about dating violence in the GBTQ community.

Notes

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Graduation Date

2009

Advisor

Jasinski, Jana

Degree

Master of Arts (M.A.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

Sociology

Degree Program

Applied Sociology

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

CFE0002937

URL

http://purl.fcla.edu/fcla/etd/CFE0002937

Language

English

Release Date

February 2010

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Access Status

Masters Thesis (Open Access)

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Sociology Commons

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