Roles of Music Making in the Lives of Sexual and Gender Minority Youth by Erin M
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Roles of Music Making in the Lives of Sexual and Gender Minority Youth by Erin M. Hansen A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Music Education) in the University of Michigan 2016 Doctoral Committee: Professor Colleen M. Conway, Chair Associate Professor Naomi André Associate Professor Kate Fitzpatrick Professor Marie McCarthy Lecturer Terence McGinn © Erin M. Hansen 2016 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS My professors at the University of Michigan regularly likened research to a process and a journey. As I complete this project, I am reminded of their words and want to pay thanks to those who have travelled alongside me. First, to my committee chair and mentor, Dr. Colleen Conway: I cannot thank you enough for your guidance and support. You have been a constant source of encouragement from my undergraduate student teaching placement, through the ups and downs of public school teaching, to the last-minute read-throughs of dissertation chapters – I am incredibly grateful for your mentorship. I also want to thank my committee members for their insightful suggestions and thought- provoking questions: Dr. Colleen Conway, Dr. Kate Fitzpatrick, Dr. Marie McCarthy, Dr. Naomi André, and Professor Terence McGinn. To my professors at the University of Michigan, Dr. Mark Clague, Professor Anthony Elliott, Dr. Colleen Conway, Professor Robert Culver, Dr. Kate Fitzpatrick, Dr. Michael Hopkins, Dr. Marie McCarthy, Dr. Carlos Rodriguez, Dr. Julie Skadsem, and Dr. Betty Anne Younker: thank you for your time, energy, and expertise. There are so many colleagues and friends who helped me laugh, kept me sane, challenged my thoughts, and helped make this journey possible. Thank you, Kristi Bishop, Carol Palms, David Bertman, Julie Kastner, Robert Mayes, David White, Ben and Brooke Allen, Scott and Stephanie Edgar, John Eros, Lisa Furman, Shannan Hibbard, Ryan Hourigan, Andy McGuire, Michael and Sarah Palmer, Kristen Pellegrino, Christine Sherrod, Ann Marie Stanley, and Chad and Amy West. I want to say a special “thank you” to my participants, without whom this would not be possible: Andres, Emily, Katie, Matt, and Sam. To my family, I love you all, so much. To my Mom, thank you for being my cheerleader, advocate, and constant grammar monitor. To my Dad, thank you for supporting me and editing all of my papers – you have been my greatest writing mentor. To Lauren, thank you for your support, laughter, and musical collaborations. To my grandparents, thank you for teaching me the value of hard work, inspiring the love of teaching, and providing a quiet place to write. To ii Uncle Mark and Jenny, thank you for the bad jokes, good food, and laughter. To Shari, thank you for being my family away from home. Lastly, I especially want to express my love and gratitude to Alicia, Aidan, Meredith, and our furry family members. To my kitty and hedgehog children, thank you for the snuggles, typos, and purrs; more scritches are soon to come your way. To Meredith, thank you for always being there to give me a hug and for the drawings of encouragement - I cannot wait to have more time to play with you! To Aidan, thank you for helping out at home and for knowing just when I needed a funny meme to brighten my day. And finally, to Alicia, thank you for all of your support. I cannot begin to express how much it meant to me when you stayed awake (almost) with me in solidarity; proof read my writing; encouraged me to write; took care of the kids, cats, and home; drove me to work after long nights of writing; and cheered me on. I love you. P.S. I am sorry for finishing the Torchy’s chips and salsa…twice. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ii LIST OF TABLES vi LIST OF FIGURES vii LIST OF APPENDICES viii GLOSSARY ix ABSTRACT xiii CHAPTER I. Introduction 1 Rationale 1 Evolution of Study 3 Purpose Statement and Research Questions 5 Approach to Study 5 Developing a Case 6 Conceptual Framework 7 Historical Perspectives 8 Chapter Summary 9 II. Review of Literature 10 Roles and Meanings of Music 10 The Construction of Musical Meaning 11 Roles and Meanings of Music Making for Young Persons 16 Identity Development 19 A Social Construction of Meaning and Identity 19 Theories of Identity Development 21 Theories of Sexual Orientation 23 Theories of Gender Identity Development 30 Experiences of LGBTQ Youth 32 ii School Experiences for LGBTQ Youth 32 Studies of LGBTQ Youth in Music Education 34 III. Research Design and Methodology 38 Purpose Statement and Research Questions 38 Research Design 38 Approaches to Case Studies 38 Dimensions of This Case Study 40 Recruitment 43 Participants 47 Ethical Considerations 50 Data Collection 51 Analysis 55 Trustworthiness 56 Organization of Findings 57 IV. Participant Profiles 58 Andres 59 Moving 59 Starting Music 59 Family Dynamics 60 Coming Out 61 Aftermath 61 Music Making as Refuge 62 High School 63 Emily 63 It’s All in the Family 64 In the Beginning 64 On Being Gay 65 Identifying as _______ 66 Katie 67 Starting Instruments 67 Musical Challenges 68 iii If I Had a Choice 69 Coming Out 70 Matt 71 Gender is Fluid 71 Middle School (is a Hellhole) 72 A School’s Reaction 73 Beginning Music 74 A Welcoming Environment = More Music Making 75 Sam 76 It’s All in the Family 76 Elementary Music Instruction 76 The Social Norms of Junior High 77 Searching for Answers 78 Support Systems 79 Musical Escapes 80 Discussion 80 V. Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity 83 Childhood 83 Noticing 84 Feeling Different 84 Physical Changes 85 Questioning 85 Searching for an Explanation 86 Gender Identity is Separate from Sexual Orientation 87 Physical Indicators of Trouble 88 Summary of Questioning 89 Identifying 90 Labels 90 Coming Out 91 Reactions to Coming Out 92 Summary of Identifying 94 iv Discussion 94 VI. The Roles of Music Making 96 Music Making to Negotiate Feelings 96 Music Making to Negotiate Identity 104 Discussion 108 Coda: Happiness as a Result of Identity and Community Integration 112 VII. Summary and Conclusion 115 Purpose Statement and Research Questions 115 Overview of Related Literature 115 Research Design and Methodology 116 Data Collection 117 Findings 118 Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity 118 Roles of Music Making 119 Suggestions for Future Research 120 Recommendations for Practice 121 Curriculum-Focused Recommendations 121 Pedagogy-Focused Recommendations 122 Final Thoughts 130 APPENDICES 132 REFERENCES 156 v LIST OF TABLES TABLE 1. Frequency and Proportion of Students’ Reports of Sexual Orientation 27 2. Demographic Information About Participants’ Cities During High School 48 3. Demographic Information About Participants’ High Schools 48 4. Overview of Study Participants 49 5. Types and Purposes of Technology Used in Study 52 6. Music Making Experiences 81 7. Participants’ Methods of Coming Out 93 vi LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1. Flow Theory Visually Depicted 16 2. Percentage of LGBT Students Who Feel Unsafe at School 33 3. Visual Representation of This Study 40 4. Kinds of Case Studies 42 5. Roles of Music Making 97 6. Differences Between Schools That Have and Do Not Have a GSA 128 vii LIST OF APPENDICES APPENDIX A. IRB Requested Changes 133 B. Recruitment Flier 134 C. Ideal Breakdown of Participants 135 D. Letters of Informed Consent 136 Letter of Informed Consent: Under 18 Years 136 Letter of Informed Consent: Guardian 139 Letter of Informed Consent: 18 Years and Older 142 E. First Interview Protocol 145 F. IRB Study Approval 146 G. Focus Group Interview Protocol 148 H. Initial Coding Structure 149 I. Final Coding Structure 150 J. Andres Mind Map 151 K. Emily Mind Map 152 L. Katie Mind Map 153 M. Matt Mind Map 154 N. Sam Mind Map 155 viii Glossary Within music education, research concerning the experiences of sexual minorities is just emerging. As is often the case for new fields of study, terminology is inconsistent. Coupled with the rapidly changing political and legal landscape for LGBTQ people around the world, the language used to discuss this population is wrought with confusion, disagreement, and a general fear of discourse. In discussing marginalized populations, Carter (2014) says: “I recognize the inherent problems associated with established social categories yet acknowledge the relevance of utilizing the categories to begin the process of examining our complex Western social ecology” (p. 538). For the purposes of clarification, I will define expressions and terms used throughout this study with the acknowledgement that these terms will change or may not be consistent with other areas of research. Unless noted, all definitions will be gathered from the Media Reference Guide (2014) provided by GLAAD1. The Media Reference Guide was created for members of the media for the purpose of providing an online guide of appropriate terminology to use when discussing matters pertaining to the gay and transgender community. Asexual2 – The lack of a sexual attraction or desire for other people. Biphobia – Fear of bisexuals, often based on stereotypes, including inaccurate associations with infidelity, promiscuity, and transmission of sexually transmitted dises. Bisexual, Bi - A person who has the capacity to form enduring physical, romantic and/or emotional attractions to those of the same gender or to those of another gender. People may experience this attraction in differing ways and degrees over their lifetime. Bisexual people need not have had specific sexual experiences to be bisexual; in fact, they need not have had any sexual experience at all to identify as bisexual. Cisgender - A term used by some to describe people who are not transgender. “Cis-” is a Latin prefix meaning “on the same side as,” and is therefore an antonym of “trans-.” A more widely understood way to describe people who are not transgender is simply to say non- transgender people.