As contribuições das relações dialógicas para a prevenção da LGBTfobia no ensino superior

Abstract

Violence based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression is a global problem, and since universities are embedded in society, this form of violence also manifests itself within them. Recent studies point to the effectiveness of actions aimed at preventing LGBTphobia in these institutions, highlighting the role of university administrations, the provision of training on sexual and gender diversity, as well as friendships and support networks as central factors in preventing and overcoming this violence. Based on research conducted between 2024 and 2025 at a Brazilian public university located in the interior of the state of São Paulo, this study aimed to understand how friendships and support networks, built from dialogical relationships, can act as factors in preventing violence against LGBT+ people in the university context, as well as to identify actions that higher education institutions can promote for this purpose. The research is based on dialogical learning and communicative methodology, articulated with contributions from critical pedagogy, social psychology, phenomenology, and gender and sexuality studies. Data was collected through an online questionnaire, communicative accounts of daily life, and communicative focus groups. Through dialogue with participants, exclusionary and transformative dimensions that tend to contribute to, or not contribute to, the prevention and overcoming of LGBTphobic violence were analyzed. The results indicated that actions centered on the preventive role of friendships and support networks, constituted by LGBT+ and cis-heterosexual people, as evidenced by international literature, produce transformative impacts also in the Brazilian context. As a result of these findings and the dialogue established throughout the investigation, proposals and practical actions aimed at preventing and overcoming LGBTphobia in higher education were developed, highlighting empathy as a central element for the constitution of dialogical relationships and for sensitization processes between socially distinct groups.