LGBTQIA+ youth and emerging technology by Lindsay Melhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys A look at how the information community of LGBTQIA+ youth use emerging technologies to find information, create content, and build community. en-us 2022-04-23 16:18:05 UTC 2023-09-03 18:56:54 UTC hello@padlet.com Time online lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154665445 LGBTQIA+ youth spend more time online than non-LGBTQIA+ peers, according to GLSEN (2013), and 88.5% have participated in an LGBTQIA+ community online (McInroy et al., 2019b).

(Image from giphy)]]> 2022-04-23 16:31:28 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154665445 Online behavior lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154669952 Research indicates some of the main information needs of LGBTQIA+ youth online surround sexual health (Flanders et al., 2017), community building (Fish et al., 2022), building identity (GLSEN, 2013), and civic participation (McInroy et al., 2019b).]]> 2022-04-23 16:39:57 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154669952 Favored technologies and platforms lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154712679 LGBTQIA+ youth prefer to use platforms and applications that allow them to engage in micro-blogging, media sharing, and fandom communities (McInroy et al., 2019a). The micro-blogging platform Tumblr, for example, is very popular with LGBTQIA+ youth as a space for community building (McInroy et al., 2019a).]]> 2022-04-23 16:53:08 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154712679 Community building online lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154777185 Emerging technologies and platforms like Q Chat Space have allowed LGBTQIA+ teens to build community and friendships online, which many cite as a key need that guides their online behavior (Fish et al., 2022). LGBTQIA+ teens are more likely to have online friends, and see those friends as more supportive than their in-person peers (Ybarra et al., 2014).

]]> 2022-04-23 17:08:59 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154777185 Technology bridges gaps lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154886064 Multiple studies indicate that technology is increasingly important for LGBTQIA+ youth in rural areas in particular (Fish et al., 2022; McInroy et al., 2019a), as these platforms serve as a way to overcome potential barriers to needed resources or a lack of in-person resources.]]> 2022-04-23 21:28:52 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154886064 Youth and device use lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154887892 73% of young people (age 14-29) in the United States have access to an internet-enabled smart phone (McInroy et al., 2019a).

(Image from giphy)]]> 2022-04-23 21:34:33 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154887892 The internet as a safe place lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154896162 Many LGBTQIA+ youth utilize the internet, social media, and emerging technologies as a way to protect their identities and seek information safely, without the risk of outing themselves (Hamer, 2003). Tumblr, then, may be a significant platform then for LGBTQIA+ youth, as it requires very little personal information to join (Wargo, 2017). Check out the blog from MPL Chameleon, LGBTQIA+ teens from the Medford Public Library!]]> 2022-04-23 21:56:04 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154896162 YouTube as a space to create and share content, and get support from an online community lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154906083 YouTube has become a significant space for LGBTQIA+ youth to connect with others, similar to an online youth center (Green et al., 2015). In particular, the It Gets Better Project on YouTube has emerged as a space for providing support to this community through encouraging videos and allowing users to add their own content (Michaelsen, 2017).]]> 2022-04-23 22:26:37 UTC https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154906083 References lindsaymelhus https://padlet.com/lindsaymelhus/1ueylrhonnua3hys/wish/2154910971 Fish, J. N., Williams, N. D., McInroy, L. B., Paceley, M. S., Edsall, R. N., Devadas, J., Henderson, S. B., & Levine, D. S.  (2022). Q chat space: Assessing the feasibility and acceptability of an internet-based support program for LGBTQ youth. Prevention Science, 23, 130–141. https://doi-org.libaccess.sjlibrary.org/10.1007/s11121-021-01291-y

Flanders, C. E., Pragg, L., Dobinson, C., & Logie, C. (2017). Young sexual minority women's use of the internet and other digital technologies for sexual health information seeking. The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 26(1), 17-25. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A591041703/AONE?u=csusj&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=98f1baa4

GLSEN (2013). Out online: The experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth on the internet. https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2020-01/Out_Online_Full_Report_2013.pdf

Green, M., Bobrowicz, A., & Ang, C. S. (2015). The lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community online: discussions of bullying and self-disclosure in YouTube videos. Behaviour & Information Technology, 34(7), 704–712. https://doi-org.libaccess.sjlibrary.org/10.1080/0144929X.2015.1012649

Hamer, J. S. (2003). Coming-out: Gay males' information seeking. School Libraries Worldwide, 9(2), 73-89.

It Gets Better Project (2021, October 11). Welcome, stay a while [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcpXoh629bs&t=1s

McInroy, L. B., Craig, S. L. & Leung, V. W. Y (2019a). Platforms and patterns for practice: LGBTQ+ youths’ use of information and communication technologies. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 36, 507–520. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-018-0577-x

McInroy, L. B., McCloskey, R. J., Craig, S. L., & Eaton, A. D. (2019b). LGBTQ+ youths’ community engagement and resource seeking online versus offline. Journal of Technology in Human Services, 37(4), 315–333. https://doi.org/10.1080/15228835.2019.1617823

Medford Public Library (2022, March 31). Chameleon @ MPL. Tumblr. https://mplchameleon.tumblr.com

Michaelsen, A. (2017). Feeling differently together: The It Gets Better Project as an unlikely intimate public of LGBT peers. Emotion, Space and Society, 25, 144-149. https://doi-org.libaccess.sjlibrary.org/10.1016/j.emospa.2017.07.008

Tumblr (2022, April 23). LGBTQIA+ Youth. https://www.tumblr.com/search/LGBTQIA%20youth

Wargo, J. M. (2017). #donttagyourhate: Reading   collecting and curating as genres of participation in LGBT youth activism on Tumblr. Digital Culture & Education, 9(1), 14–30.

Ybarra, M., Mitchell, K. J., Palmer, N. A., & Reisner, S. L. (2014). Online social support as a buffer against online and offline peer and sexual victimization among U.S. LGBT and non-LGBT youth. Child Abuse & Neglect, 39, 123–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2014.08.006

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