Indicators for the Study of LGBTQ+ Student Experiences on the University Campus

Abstract

This systematic review identifies and examines the indicators used to collect, organize, and interpret the experiences of LGBTQ+ students on university campus. Following the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, 17 studies were selected from the Scopus, Web of Science, SciELO, and Google Scholar databases. The analysis was relational and interpretive, without statistical or predictive procedures. The results show that LGBTQ+ experiences on university campus were extracted, organized, and studied through indicators of violence: harassment, discrimination, micro aggressions, physical violence, symbolic violence, sexual violence, and LGBTQ+ phobia. Indicators of institutional belonging, visibility, and LGBTQ+ identity management were also found, but in relation to the indicator of violence. The discussion reveals that indicators of violence are not neutral methodological tools; they determine the type of lived experience, the evidence to be collected, and influence both academic diagnosis and institutional response. Future research should use situated indicators capable of recognizing violence in relation to the evolution of the physical space of the university campus and generational differences among LGBTQ+ students. It should also use indicators that expand the evidence of LGBTQ+ students’ experiences on university campus.