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Abstract

This study expands the literature on bisexual women by exploring their college experiences. Many people still question the existence of bisexuality, consider it to be a transitional phase, or hold negative stereotypes about bisexual individuals. As a result of mononormative campus environments, bisexual students may feel that their campus environments are unwelcoming. Through this phenomenological study, a queer theory lens was used to examine the lived college experiences of 11 bisexual women. Participants were recruited nationally and data collected between August and October 2016. Seidmans (2013) structure for in-depth, phenomenological interviewing was applied in the conduct of two interviews with each participant, the first focused on life history and campus experiences and the second focused on perceptions of bisexual community. In between the two interviews, participants were asked to draw a conceptual map of bisexual community based on Rusts (2000c) work with bisexual men, which was used to guide the second set of interviews. Data were analyzed using Seidmans (2013) recommendations for reducing and analyzing phenomenological interview text. Results indicated that participants went through a lengthy process of understanding their sexuality, marked by confusion and a lack of bisexual role models. Participants gradually learned about the availability of nonmonosexual options and labeled their sexuality, although labels changed over time and context. College represented a time of independence, providing exposure to new ideas and new people. However, participants struggled between a desire for authenticity and a desire for support in the face of dual marginalization within heterosexual and lesbian/gay communities. Participants reported varied experiences in LGBT environments and often found a sense of belonging in other contexts, most notably the performing arts and social justice activism. They identified factors critical to creating supportive campus environments for bisexual students, including dedicated spaces and resources, intersectional approaches, and visible bisexual leadership. These findings make clear that student affairs administrators must recognize that current resources are insufficient to meet the needs of many queer students, in particular those with nonbinary identities who struggle within binary and mononormative campus environments, and that targeted and intersectional efforts are needed to support communities of difference.

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