Experiences Of Gay Men Research Articles

Life Beyond Depression: The Experience of Gays and Lesbians Who Self-Identify as Depressed

The purpose of this research was to compare differences in the experiences of gay men and lesbian women who describe experiences of depression or depressed mood. The 2 main research questions were how do descriptions of depression and daily life differ between gay males and lesbian females. To this end, Weblogs containing narratives of 19 gay men and 19 lesbian women were coded, analyzed, and compared using qualitative content analysis methods. Differences in described sources of depression and responses to depression, but not features of depression were found. Women and men also differed with respect to their main priorities; their descriptions of social interactions, social issues, reflections, and emotions; and a number of other daily life experiences. Findings were discussed with respect to implications for treatment and prevention of depression among sexual minorities.

Lifting the Veil: Experiences of Gay Men in a Therapy Group

Group psychotherapy remains an under-utilised treatment modality in South Africa. Similarly, there is paucity of local research on sexual orientation and psychological well-being. This article attempts to make sense of the potential contribution of therapy groups not only to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) sector, but also to South African society more generally. Informed by a longitudinal study conducted between 1995 and 2003, this article evaluates whether a Gauteng-based therapy group that has been in existence since 1995 indeed meets the needs of its predominantly gay male members, has an impact on their well-being, and can be considered effective in empowering members to deal with various issues in their lives. The study employed a triangulation approach and combined both quantitative and qualitative methodologies. Results indicate that the therapy group, hosted under the auspices of the non-profit organisation, OUT LGBT Well-being, received high positive ratings from a purposive sample of 40 members who previously participated in the group. This study confirmed earlier findings that indicated that, due to marginalisation and the threat of discrimination, many gay individuals are prone to experiencing perceived rejection by society, self-devaluation, identity confusion, hiddenness and isolation, excessive self-reliance, lack of trust, control issues, and difficulties in familial interactions. Positive changes reported by participants as a result of their therapy group experience include increased self-acceptance and self-confidence, a heightened sense of identity, increased tolerance in relation to others, increased honesty including disclosure of sexual orientation, and social integration.

Coming out online: Interpretations of young men’s stories

How do young gay men experience the coming-out process by participating in Internet chat rooms? This qualitative study examined the experiences of young gay men who participated in chat rooms as they were coming out. Between December 2000 and March 2001, 13 self-identified gay men (ages 19–26) residing in an urban southern coastal community participated in face-to-face interviews. The researchers employed interpretive interactionism (Denzin, 1989) to analyze coming-out stories that captured epiphanies associated with participants’ chat room interactions with gay men. Online experiences led to manifestations of greater self-acceptance. The illumination of both positive and negative experiences that resulted from chat room participation may provide valuable insight to stakeholders who aim to support young gay men as they come out. Developmental, policy, and practice implications are discussed.

Those Speedos Become Them

Objectification Theory proposes that membership in sexually objectifying Western societies gradually socializes women to adopt an observer's perspective on their physical self. This leads to negative consequences, including body shame and restricted eating behavior. The authors extend this framework to investigate a subgroup of men, namely gay men, who also exist in a subculture that emphasizes and values physical appearance. Study 1 investigated trait differences in self-objectification and body image among gay and heterosexual men. Analyses indicated that gay men scored higher on self-objectification, body shame, body dissatisfaction, and drive for thinness. In Study 2, the authors experimentally manipulated state self-objectification and found that for gay men, increasing state self-objectification resulted in greater body shame and dissatisfaction and more restrained eating. Together, these results offer strong support to Objectification Theory as a useful framework from within which to view the experience of gay men.

Spiritual and Religious Experiences of Gay Men With HIV Illness

A total of 10 gay men with symptomatic HIV illness defined "religion" and "spirituality" and explored their experiences in a transcendental phenomenological study. Themes essential to participants' experiences were (A) spirituality was experienced as a dynamic, evolving, reciprocal relationship with oneself, God, or a universal spirit; (B) participants developed an identity of self in relation to church through the creative resolution of dissonance between institutionalized prejudice in the church and the lived gay Christian experience; (C) spirituality was expressed through religious practices; (D) experiences of religion and spirituality were intertwined with family relationships; (E) religious experiences were perceived as more important to spiritual satisfaction than experiences defined as spiritual but not religious; and (F) for African American participants, the traditions and practices of the Black church were the foundation of spiritual and religious experiences. A total of 8 participants identified others' negative responses to their homosexuality as social problems that affected their behavior in formal religious settings but not self-acceptance.

An investigation of gay men's experiences with HIV counselling and peer support services

Although the length and quality of life for people living with HIV/AIDS has improved dramatically in recent years because of antiretroviral medications, these individuals still need to make significant psychosocial adjustments in order to improve their quality of life and the HIV trajectory. Mental health professionals can play an important role in this process. The present study investigated the experiences of 12 gay men living with HIV or AIDS who received counselling and peer support services. The findings are drawn from a larger phenomenological study that explored participants' experiences of receiving counselling and peer support services. This paper offers a description of these services and the participants' reactions. The authors report several important considerations for mental health professionals in relation to counselling and peer support programs.

A narrative exploration of gay men's sexual practices as a dialectical dialogue

This study aims to attain a comprehensive understanding of gay male sexual practices by means of a narrative research approach. More specifically, the study explores the subjective experience of gay males regarding role and self-label during anal sexual intercourse. The findings suggest that the subjective experience of gay men during sexual intercourse is a result of a continuous and dynamic intra- and inter-personal dialectical dialogue that attributes meaning to both their role and their self-label in the sexual act. These findings are in accord with the post-modernist relational psychoanalytic perspective, suggesting that any type of intercourse, including sexual, is an intra- and inter-subjective experience that provides both intra- and inter-personal dialectical meaning. This meaning is dynamic and exists so long as the dialectic is initiated and maintained. In such a case, both partners acquire the freedom to construct and reconstruct their experience and its meaning. The collapse of the dialectic, however, is likely to signify an experience of unsatisfying, meaningless sexual intercourse.

HIV‐related stigma in England: experiences of gay men and heterosexual African migrants living with HIV

AbstractFocus group research was undertaken in three English cities among Gay and Bisexual men (British and non‐British), heterosexual African women and heterosexual African men, all with diagnosed HIV. It was found that prevalent social discourses of homophobia, racism and xenophobia underpin individuals' experiences of HIV‐related stigma. Members of marginalized communities themselves employ HIV‐related stigma as a governance mechanism to exclude positive people from tightly woven networks of support. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Sexual Orientation and Occupation: Gay Men and Women's Lived Experiences of Occupational Participation

The researcher's personal experience, combined with the identification of the occupational therapy profession's past and present lack of attention to the issue of sexual orientation, stimulated the decision to undertake this research, which aimed to explore and understand the lived occupational experiences of gay men and women. A qualitative approach was used, working within the tradition of phenomenology. Five gay men and women participated in unstructured interviews.This research generated five themes, which provided insight into how sexual orientation can affect the occupations and the environment that a person chooses to engage in through heterosexism and fear of discrimination, prejudice and even physical attack. In turn, this influenced where and to whom people ‘came out’ and where and with whom people socialised, and possibly prevented them from engaging in occupations that they might either wish or feel they biologically need to do. This could lead to increased stress, depression, reduced support and occupational deprivation and alienation (Wilcock 1998), which may have a further impact on occupational participation.Research into how sexual orientation affects all client groups in differing cultures is recommended. A focus on occupational deprivation and alienation in gay people's lives, including occupations such as parenting, could also be further investigated, as could issues about socialising, discrimination, prejudice, family dynamics and support. Therapists therefore need to have the awareness, the willingness and the opportunity to consider sexual orientation within the remit of occupational therapy theory and practice.

Treatment Experiences of Gays and Lesbians In Recovery from Addiction: A Qualitative Inquiry

The literature has suggested that addiction treatment programs are not addressing the unique recovery needs of gays and lesbians. This qualitative study examined gay men's and lesbian women's experiences with addiction treatment and recovery. Ten themes emerged to define their experiences. These themes are described, along with implications for mental health counselors working with this population.

Assessing Gay Men and Lesbian Women's Hotel Experiences: An Exploratory Study of Sexual Orientation in the Travel Industry

This study examines the hotel experiences of gay men and lesbians, using qualitative interviews of 54 self-identified lesbians and gay men in the United Kingdom and Israel. The findings show that participants are highly affected by the symbolic meanings they assign to specific elements of the hotel experience. Results indicate that it is important for gay men and lesbians to feel accepted and welcome when their sexual orientation is known. Specifically, they wish to be treated in the same way they believe heterosexuals are treated. Critical elements of the hotel experience focus on the behavior of hotel staff, hotel attributes, and the environment of the hotel. The findings may assist in shaping service provision for, and service delivery to, lesbians and gay men.

Social anxiety in young gay men

Based on the assumption that sexual minority individuals are particularly sensitive to the possible rejection of others, the present study examined the occurrence and correlates of social anxiety symptomatology in gay and heterosexual men. Eighty-seven heterosexual and 87 gay undergraduate men between the ages of 18 and 24 completed common measures of social anxiety, self-esteem, boyhood gender conformity, and a modified S-R Inventory of Anxiousness. Results reveal that gay men reported greater fear of negative evaluation and social interaction anxiety and lower self-esteem than heterosexual men. Gay men who are less open about their sexual orientation and those who are less comfortable with being gay were more likely to experience anxiety in social interactions. The modified S-R Inventory of Anxiousness was useful in revealing that relatively innocuous situations for heterosexual men can be anxiety-provoking for gay men. The hypothesis that gay men who were gender nonconforming as children would report a higher degree of social interaction anxiety was not supported. Results are discussed in terms of the socialization experiences of gay men and are explicated using a minority stress framework. Implications are offered for the treatment of social anxiety in this population.

Body Image Concerns of Gay Men: The Roles of Minority Stress and Conformity to Masculine Norms.

The authors hypothesized that gay men's experiences of minority stress and their conformity to masculine norms would be associated with increased body image dissatisfaction and masculine body ideal distress. For this cross-sectional study, 357 gay males completed a Web-based survey, and 2 multiple regression analyses indicated that minority stress factors (i.e., internalized homophobia, expected stigma for being gay, and experiences of physical attack) were associated with body image dissatisfaction and masculine body ideal distress, accounting for 5% and 13% of the variance, respectively. Gay men's conformity to masculine norms was not associated with body image dissatisfaction but did uniquely explain an additional 3% of variance in masculine body ideal distress scores. The utility of the minority stress model, how traditional masculinity may contribute to gender-related presenting concerns, suggestions for developing and evaluating remedial and preventive interventions, limitations, and future research issues are discussed.

Gay and Bisexual Married Men's Attitudes and Experiences

In this study, 20 gay or bisexual men's experiences of coming out to wives were explored. Specifically, their attitudes and behaviors before, during, and after marriage were examined. Findings were provided about upbringing, reasons for entering marriage, and the coming out process. Through semi-structured interviews information was obtained about the factors which led up to the revelation of homosexuality or bisexuality and about how these men experienced their relationships with their wives and family after coming out. The interviews revealed the fears which prevented these men from coming out earlier in their lives. The most common reason for entering marriage was due to social and family pressure and because of the desire to have a normal, healthy life. Attitudes toward gays and lesbians were negative before marriage and worsened following disclosure.

Exploring the implications for health professionals of men coming out as gay in healthcare settings

Coming out as gay is a social process which redefines the relationship between the persons who have decided to disclose their homosexuality and their listeners. This paper, drawing upon Bakhtin's (1984) theories of dialogue, the coming-out literature of gay men and lesbians and contemporary literature on doctor-patient communication, explores the coming-out experiences of gay men with their general practitioners and sexual health clinic staff. The findings are based upon a study of 38 gay men and 12 health service managers in London. The informants were recruited purposively to reflect some of the diversity of the London setting; recruitment was carried out through the channels of gay voluntary organisations and through snowballing. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and a grounded-theory approach was adopted. It was found that coming out in general practice was often/mostly followed by silence/noncommunication on the part of the practitioner; coming out could, however, result in an improvement in communication if the patients were well supported and assertive. If coming out in sexual health clinics did not result in improved communication, the informants in this study were likely to change clinics until they did find improved communication. This paper raises questions about the communication and training needs of general practitioners. It also raises questions about inequalities of access to 'respectful' sexual health clinics; while men who are articulate about the narratives of their lives as gay men are able to exercise informed choices, there were grounds for concern about the choice behaviours of men who are less articulate about their life narratives.

Different spaces, same faces: Perth gay men's experiences of sexuality, risk and HIV

This study investigated the experiences and behaviours of 25 gay, bisexual and queer identifying men in the context of their perceptions of sexuality, risk and HIV; how sex and relationships are negotiated; and the influence of the environments and community on living and loving in a small gay community. Purposive sampling techniques were used to recruit participants in Perth, Western Australia. Symbolic interactionist theory provided the analytic framework. The study found that the men brought with them a range of meanings related to venues, contexts, identity and community. The men weighed up a number of simultaneous risks and benefits in their relationship with others, of which HIV was one of many variables. Assumptions about the culture and size of the Perth gay community permeated many of the assumptions men made about both venues and spaces, but also the characteristics of the men in those spaces.

Ask and Tell: Gay Veterans, Identity, and Oral History on a Civil Rights Frontier

In 1993 the “don't ask, don't tell” policy legislated the silence of gay and lesbian soldiers on active duty and in the reserves. This silence about gays in the military has led to a collective amnesia about the patriotic service and courageous sacrifices of homosexual troops. If we forget that gay and lesbian Americans have served their country, then we as a nation are much less likely to view them as full citizens, deserving of civil rights and equal protection of the law. Oral history provides one way to break this silence, to “ask and tell” about the military careers of gay and lesbian soldiers and to allow these veterans to speak for themselves about the current military policy. Based on more than fifty interviews with gay and lesbian veterans, this article chronicles the evolution of military policy regarding homosexuality since World War II, and it explores the intersection of veterans' identities based on race, sexuality, and military service. As these interviews illustrate, gays and lesbians have served honorably in the military during times of war and peace. Far from undermining unit cohesion or morale, these troops have strengthened America's armed forces. Interviews with gay and lesbian veterans provide an opportunity to explore several themes underlying the debate about homosexuality and military service: 1) the relationship between racism and homophobia in the military; 2) varying attitudes about military service within gay communities; 3) contrasting experiences of gay men and lesbians in the military; and 4) the evolving nature of gay veterans' identities.

Gay Men Living with Chronic Illness or Disability

This paper examines the experiences of gay men living with disabilities or chronic illness from a social constructivist perspective. Emphasizing the sociocultural aspects of disability, such an approach recognizes that the questions asked and the answers given about disability are embedded in sociohistorical contexts, and that language both shapes and reveals underlying assumptions and behaviors related to disability. Using Kameny's (1971) concept of sociological minority, it is proposed that gay men and persons with disabilities constitute minority groups with experiences in common with those of other recognized minority groups. Implications for mental health practitioners providing services to gay men with disabilities are addressed.

Gay Men Living with Non-HIV Chronic Illnesses

For reasons embedded in historical, social, cultural and biological phenomena, the sociocultural experiences of gay men living with chronic illnesses other than HIV have remained unexamined within gay communities, within gay affirmative medical and social services, and within broader, heterosexually focused medical and social service systems. As a result, the specific needs of these men are largely undefined and potentially unmet. This article focuses a lens of inquiry on the psychosocial issues and social service needs of gay men living with chronic illnesses other than HIV, offers recommendations for providing services that respond proactively to the specific needs of these men, and advocates for more inclusive and comprehensive social service and health care systems.

Anticipatory and Actualized Identities: A Cultural Analysis of the Transition from AIDS Disability to Work

Throughout the course of their lives, many people living with HIV/AIDS have prematurely retired onto AIDS disability. A new trend, however, has swept across the nation. Where once people were getting sick, leaving work, and embracing inevitable death, now, with advances in medical technology, many people with HIV/AIDS are renewing their lease on life and discovering a desire to go back to work. To learn how gay men's identities are impacted as they transition from AIDS disability back to the labor market, I conducted three months of fieldwork at an employment placement agency in San Francisco. During fieldwork I distributed informal questionnaires to 120 gay men and then formally interviewed 10 additional gay men who had either transitioned or were considering transitioning from AIDS disability back to work. Analyses reveal that cultural, structural, and medical contradictions typify the return to work. As gay men experience and live through these contradictions, their identities split into anticipatory and actualized components. By facilitating a reassessment of meanings and values, anticipatory identities cognitively and emotionally prepare individuals as they brave the road back to work. This version of identity represents a romanticized confluence of worker (role) identity, gay (status/master) identity, and overall sense of self (self-concept). Personal experiences with stigma, shame, and discrimination along with complexities of the workplace and medical services, however, prevent the maturation of anticipatory identities when seeking reemployment. This results in loosely coupled and situationally informed actualized identities. The relationship between these two identities suggests that many people living with HIV/AIDS—and indeed others who experience stressful life transitions—face complex choices between quality-of-life issues and the ability to survive according to external cultural and structural constraints.