Surfacing and Applying Meaning: Supporting Hermeneutical Autonomy for LGBTQ+ People in Taiwan

Abstract

After Taiwan's legalization of same-sex marriage in 2019, LGBTQ+ communities continue to face hostility on social media. Using the lens of hermeneutical injustice and autonomy, we examine how technological conditions affect LGBTQ+ individuals' identity exploration, narrative seeking, and community resilience. We conducted a multi-stage study with Taiwanese LGBTQ+ individuals, including in-depth interviews, participatory design workshops, and evaluation sessions. Participants described fragile yet creative strategies such as seeking validation in online interactions, reframing hostile content through theory, and relying on allies. Building on these insights, we designed and evaluated a retrieval-augmented, LLM-powered chatbot with four modes of interaction: reflection, validation, discussion, and allyship. Findings show that the system fosters hermeneutical autonomy by helping participants reframe hostile narratives, validate lived experiences, and scaffold identity exploration, while reducing the hermeneutical labor of navigating social media hostility. We conclude by outlining design implications for AI systems that advance hermeneutical autonomy through fluid self-representation, contextualized dialogue, and inclusive community participation.

Figures (7)

• Figure 1: The role of epistemic infrastructure in supporting the sharing and comparing of experiences, enabling the formation, uptake, and application of interpretive resources, as identified by Milano & Prunkl MilanoPrunkl-2025.
• Figure 2: Sections of workshop whiteboard captured from D3.
• Figure 3: Identified themes (rectangles), latent desires (ovals), and design directions along with the design goals they inform (rounded rectangles) from the findings of design workshops.
• Figure 4: Mapping of design goals (rounded rectangles) to the feature & functionalities of Queerbot (rectangles)
• Figure 5: User knowledge displayed by Queerbot