LGBTQ communication studies
LGBTQ+ communication studies is a field of research and teaching in the discipline of communication studies that examines the communication interactions, experiences, and organizing of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other queer, two-spirit, gender non-conforming, intersex, and asexual people.
While queer and trans communication research is presented across all division and interests groups at the National Communication Association, two sections are dedicated to LGBTQ+ communication studies scholarship, teaching, and advocacy: the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Communication Studies Division, which focuses on queer and trans communication research across the discipline and globe, and the Caucus on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Concerns, which focuses on LGBTQ+ advocacy, inclusion, and community at the national conference and beyond.
In 2001, the first bibliography that reviewed early histories of the field of LGBTQ+ communication studies was presented by Frederick C. Corey, Ralph R. Smith, and Thomas K. Nakayama in November 2021 at the National Communication Association in Atlanta, GA. In 2003, Gust A. Yep, Karen E. Lovaas, and John P. Elia edited a book providing a historical overview of queer theory in communication studies, and they published a history of queer communication studies and a vision for the field. In 2024, a comprehensive, international, peer-reviewed encyclopedia edited by Isaac West called The Oxford Encyclopedia of Queer Studies and Communication was published that provides 72 essays on areas of LGBTQ+ communication studies across areas, topics, regions, and frameworks.
LGBTQ+ communication studies histories and foundations
History of LGBTQ+ communication studies
LGBTQ+ communication studies began as an area of research in communication studies in the mid 1970s and has continued to develop into a field of study that connects multiple areas of the discipline. At the time this research began, LGBTQ+ communities were misunderstood by broader heterosexual society as access to credible information in regards to communication was hard to come by. According to a systemic historical review of the field, prior to the mid 1970s, sexuality was not a main focal point to study within the communication discipline, but emerging scholars slowly began to research this topic, especially as the education system sought to understand diverse communication experiences in addition to combating misinformation. Queer communication studies started out small, but the field has grown exponentially over the past four decades.History of gay and lesbian communication studies
The earliest LGBTQ+ communication studies research focused primarily on gay and lesbian communication studies. Researchers focused on how gay and lesbian people faced many forms of discrimination and lacked rights. With changing laws, identities, and terminology, communication remains the focus used to display challenges of nonacceptance. In the 1980s and 1990s, researchers investigated statistics, health, and national movements to study how the queer community fought in the past.In the 1980s, communication research by groups like the Institute for Sex Research found that many people believed homosexuality would ruin society. Statistics from this research helped jumpstart many organizations and communities that would eventually help increase better understanding of LGBTQ+ people. For example, in the 1990s, scholarship on Queer Nation focused on how the organization recorded numbers of individuals who took notice of the community's struggles, including violence and discrimination. News presses helped in sharing LGBTQ+ communication by using images, topics of interests, and even discussions or stories.
History of queer communication studies
In 1976, one of the main journals of the communication studies discipline, The Quarterly Journal of Speech, released one of the first essays on homosexuality. Joseph Hayes wrote the first communication essay that analyzed gay communication and analyzed the language used by LGBTQ+ communities known as "gayspeak." Also during the 1970s, scholars like Barry Brummett aimed to analyze pro and anti gay rights rhetoric in order to gain a better understanding of how rhetoric affected public opinion. Another early publication that expanded this field was called Gayspeak: Gay male and lesbian communication edited by James Chesebro in 1981, which was one of the first books that explained how LGBTQ+ individuals communicate with one another and how they communicate with heterosexual people. The goal of this research was to find out how communication processes affected public opinion about gay and lesbians. One of the earliest research topics of the time focused on how LGBTQ+ individuals used identity deception or pretended to act a certain way in order create impressions and self-representations that allowed them to blend into society safely. Using verbal and nonverbal communication, identity deception allowed for LGBTQ+ individuals to avoid any societal disapproval as they could follow the verbal and nonverbal norms of heterosexual communication and was used by the LGBTQ+ community out of fear for their safety.Early queer communication studies also researched the HIV/AIDS epidemic, especially as news coverage perpetuated the stereotype that only gay men were at risk of contracting the deadly disease. This false claim allowed for many heterosexual people to believe that they were completely immune to the virus. Not only was misinformation being spread, but it was also negatively affecting societal attitudes towards LGBTQ+ communities, including educational system misinformation. In response to misinformation, multiple organizations formed in order to expand the research and advocacy on queer communication. A few examples include the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network which was created in 1990 with the goal of improving the relationship between heterosexual and LGBTQ+ students, and CLAGS: The Center for LGBTQ Studies, which was the first university-based research center in the United States to study the cultural and political issues of the LGBTQ+ community.
Queer communication studies foundations
Queer communication studies as a field in the broader communication studies discipline are rooted in histories of feminism and gay and lesbian studies. Queer communication studies seeks to destigmatize LGBTQ+ people's societal experiences and create new ways to examine their social interactions in their communication. Queer theory relates to how people are assumed to be heterosexual unless otherwise stated and seeks to reconstruct ideas of difference. Queer methods takes aspects of queer theory and applies it to research and analysis to create new research possibilities beyond traditional methods. Researchers today are moving towards a more inclusive use of the LGBTQ+ acronym and being more aware of tokenism and its effects on not just the community but also societies perspectives.Queer theory in communication studies
surfaces heteronormative ideals and reconstructs ideas of difference. It offers a new way to view and evaluate sexualities and social interactions and challenge strict identity categories. In communication studies research, queer theory is rooted in ideas of feminism and gay and lesbian studies and investigates the normative, e.g., how people are assumed to be heterosexual unless they say otherwise and that people fit into only two genders when there are a spectrum of genders. There are discussions between communication queer theorists of how queer theory should be practiced in communication studies and other disciplinary fields, such as questioning: should it be only about queer people and their lives, or should it focused on breaking all ideals of the normative.There are some challenges that communication research using queer theory faces like how scholars include race, gender, and class. Much of the research being conducted on the LGBTQ+ community revolves around white gays and lesbians. Some of this scholarship has also overlooked gender, including transgender identities and lesbian identities. Middle class ideals are overrepresented in queer theory while working-class ideals are overlooked. One response to queer theory critiques in communication studies is to look at transnational queer studies, which is the study of queer theory around the world and how the discussions of queer theory differs between countries. Looking at queer theory from a globalized view can help change the research on predominantly white heterosexual populations in the communication field by including different cultures especially non-westernized cultures and LGBTQ+ people of color's experiences.
Closeting communication
Closeting communication refers to how people disclose information regarding their identities, such as sexuality, gender, or other non-visible identities, to others. Queer communication studies research theorizes closeting communication as a practice workers utilize to avoid hiring biases online, in job interviews, or in person for a variety of identities. LGBTQ+ identities are seen as stigmatized because of the heteronormative society that assumes people have a heterosexual and cisgender identity, leading to closeting communication to be used by queer and trans people. For LGBTQ+ people, coming out is a form of self-disclosure where they communicate their identity or identities to someone they trust. Closeting communication is not limited to in-person interactions, as researchers have also examined how queer people present themselves online through social media and from future viewers of their profile.Queer methods in communication studies
Queer methods explore data by applying queer theory to research methods and findings. Queer methods also consists of finding new types of data, using queer theory to adapt research methods, and pushing back against methods assumptions of generalizations and data being reliable. To examine data differently, communication researchers look into people's interconnecting identities, belonging, and differences. Big data adds to the discussion of queer methods as it involves much larger datasets than most scholars use in communication studies. These large datasets allow for the data to be analyzed in a new way to find other commonalities connecting groups of people.Queer methods also reviews existing research to see how gender identities and sexual identities are not accounted for in research. Queering research methods is not about creating a new standard of research, but about challenging the traditional approaches to research and creating new methods that do not include any strict categories to label participants. These methods use queer theory to critique traditional research and find different ways to conduct, categorize, and evaluate research, such as quantitative researchers finding new ways to count people to include a wider variety of genders.