Navigating the Network: An Exploratory Study of LGBTQIA+ Information Practices at Two Single-Sex HBCUs

Abstract

Using focus groups and interviews, this study investigates the information practices of 23 LGBTQIA+ students attending Morehouse College and Spelman College in Atlanta, GA. Responses suggest that students rely heavily on peer support and word of mouth for information seeking and sharing. Social media seems to play a large role in sharing information on campus, even for students who are not active on social media platforms. And students’ personalities (such as level of extroversion) may indirectly impact the amount of information they receive. Overall, these students seemed to face the challenge of being accepted for who they were on campus, which may have negatively impacted their information exchanges.