Social identities, place, mobility, and belonging: Intersectional experiences of college-educated youth

Abstract

Youth are commonly understood to be a crucial population for the future viability and vibrancy of rural communities. Thus, researchers often focus on the migration intentions and patterns of youth to better understand rural community sustainability and well-being. However, the role of social identities in young people's relationship to place and the perspectives of college students are not well-represented in the literature. This paper addresses these gaps by highlighting the intersectional qualities of social identities and place and how these intersections relate to college-educated young adults' perspectives on mobility. The paper is based on data from focus groups with college students and interviews with college-educated young adults living in the Appalachian region of the United States where many communities are in economic transition following long-term declines in the coal industry. The sample was purposefully built to include a diverse representation of genders, sexual orientations, and racial identities, and the data were analyzed through an intersectional lens in order to access information about the connections among social identities, place, mobility, and belonging. The data show that the navigation of mobility and social identities has the potential to strengthen young people's relationship with place despite limiting factors. Furthermore, experiences of mobility along with institutional support can help foster this connection. Overall, this paper argues that social identities are essential components for understanding the potentially limiting and liberating aspects of the mobility imperative in the context of metronormativity.