ERIC Number: EJ1444014
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0954-0253
EISSN: EISSN-1360-0516
'They Trusted Me, Even if I'm a "Tom" Like This': Exploring Sexual-Professional Identity Communication of LGBTQ+ Primary Schoolteachers
Gender and Education, v36 n7 p730-746 2024
This study investigates the communication strategies employed by Thai LGBTQ+ primary school teachers to negotiate their identities. The Communication Theory of Identity was used to examine the interplay between sexual-professional identity gaps and societal expectations at school. The study involved semi-structured, in-depth interviews with ten participants. The teachers' internal recognition process leads to compromising overlapping identities and the delineation of spaces within the school. This process has been achieved by varying communication styles, some of which are influenced by Thai cultural norms -- avoiding confrontation and mis-expectation compensating -- that enable the teachers to keep their teacherly positionality intact. Considering overlapping identities, one has to employ a culturally and professionally sensitive communicative strategy, which enables teachers to advance professionally, ascend the social ladder, and secure greater career prospects. These strategies contribute to the establishment of mutually beneficial relationships in the workplace by reducing the power disparity between LGBTQ+ teachers and dominant hetero-others.
Descriptors: Interpersonal Communication, Elementary School Teachers, LGBTQ People, Educational Environment, Cultural Influences, Teaching Conditions, Foreign Countries, Sexual Identity, Social Bias, Well Being, Professional Identity, Self Disclosure (Individuals), Teacher Attitudes
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Thailand
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A