LGBTQ+ Studies

A critical theoretical framework that challenges fixed categories of sexual and gender identity, arguing that these categories are socially constructed and maintained through cultural norms and power structures rather than being natural or inevitable.

The assumption that heterosexuality is the default, normal, or preferred sexual orientation, embedded in social institutions such as marriage laws, media representation, and educational curricula.

Judith Butler's theory that gender is not an innate quality but is constituted through the repetition of stylized acts, gestures, and behaviors that create the appearance of a stable gender identity.

A framework for understanding how overlapping social identities such as race, gender, sexuality, class, and disability interact to create unique experiences of privilege and oppression that cannot be understood by examining each identity separately.

The societal assumption that all people identify with the gender they were assigned at birth, which renders transgender and nonbinary identities invisible or abnormal and structures social institutions around a binary gender model.

The process by which LGBTQ+ individuals disclose their sexual orientation or gender identity to others. Scholars study this as both a personal experience and a socially constructed event shaped by cultural norms, safety concerns, and community support.

A concept developed by Jasbir Puar describing how certain nations use their acceptance of LGBTQ+ rights to frame themselves as modern and progressive while simultaneously justifying xenophobic or imperialist policies against other nations or communities.

A person's enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and sexual attraction to others. Major recognized orientations include heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, pansexual, and asexual, though scholars emphasize that sexuality exists on a continuum.

A person's deeply held internal sense of their own gender, which may or may not correspond to the sex they were assigned at birth. Gender identity encompasses identities such as man, woman, nonbinary, genderqueer, agender, and many others.

A framework developed by Ilan Meyer explaining that LGBTQ+ individuals experience chronic stress resulting from stigma, prejudice, and discrimination, which contributes to higher rates of mental health challenges compared to the general population.