Heteronormative Society Research Articles

Creating a homoparental family in a heteronormative society: Quebec lesbian couples’ apprehension of parenthood.

Creating a homoparental family in a heteronormative society: Quebec lesbian couples’ apprehension of parenthood.

Words, Characters and Messages in the Queer Romance of Generation Z

Abstract: This article presents an attempt to analyze the structural elements and characters that make Casey McQuiston's debut novel Red, White & Royal Blue so popular with readers, as well as the challenges posed to viewers by director Matthew Lopez and the creative team of the eponymous film, which immediately became a cultural phenomenon with many fans among viewers. The novel and its film adaptation follow the relationship between two young men from prominent families against the constraints of a heteronormative society. The article investigates a pertinent and contemporary issue from a social and intercultural perspective. The primary objective is to identify and examine linguistic and communicative characteristics, including the contextual use of words and expressions, within a specific socio-cultural framework as depicted in two distinct art forms: literature and cinema. The analysis incorporates comparative elements by referencing well-known works that address similar themes related to cultural differences, behavioral patterns, stereotypes, prejudices concerning LGBTQ+, queer, cultural dynamics of Generation Z, and the influence of heteronormative societal structures. This text seeks to delineate the boundaries of a new interdisciplinary research field focused on the concept of difference. It aims to propose potential research methodologies that contribute to the development of a comprehensive methodological framework, free from bias. In accordance with the principles of academic correctness, the novel and the film Red, White & Royal Blue are analyzed. Keywords: Red, White & Royal Blue, RW&RB, new adult fiction, Casey McQuiston, Matthew López, Generation Z, rom-com, LGBTQ+, queer.

Was Anna Freud a “friend of Dorothy”? A queer phenomenological historiography of Anna Freud and Dorothy Burlingham's personal and professional relationship

AbstractThe nature of Anna Freud and Dorothy Burlingham's 5‐decade‐long personal and professional relationship has always been subject to speculation. This paper considers the historiography of this important and enigmatic relationship from 1920s Vienna to today. Drawing on Sara Ahmed's Queer Phenomenology, which theorises sexual orientation and whiteness in spatial terms, I illustrate how the relationship was seen as deviating from the ‘straight lines’ of mid‐20th century heteronormative society. I extend this queer phenomenological approach to think about cultural orientations to the relationship through an examination of its depiction in biographies published in the 1980s, the collections at the Freud Museums in London and Vienna, and a fictionalised account of Anna Freud's life published in 2014. Extending Ahmed's queer phenomenological vocabulary, I identify examples of ‘straightening up’, ‘straightening devices’ and ‘straightening up by queering’. The possibility of finding ‘queer angles’ in Anna Freud's early clinical writings, in contrast to the normative tendencies of her later writing on ego psychology, is explored as a counterbalance to discussions about non‐normative sexuality and gender in psychotherapy which typically position these as something new. The relevance for clinical practice today is considered through the lens of an ethical imperative to find space for queer angles in the history of psychoanalysis.

The Couples Coping Enhancement Training – Sexual Minority Stress (CCET-SMS) Relationship Education Program: Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary Evidence of Effectiveness

Individuals with diverse and traditionally underrepresented sexual orientations – those who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) – experience compounded stress due to their marginalized identity in a heteronormative society. Such stressors, which include but are not limited to discrimination and internalized heterosexism, increase risks for various affective disorders and negatively impact relationship functioning. Empirically supported relationship education programs, including the Couples Coping Enhancement Training (CCET), have been found efficacious in increasing psychological and relationship well-being; however, the original CCET and related education programs do not specifically target how couples can identify, communicate, and cope with sexual minority stressors. The purpose of this pilot study was to test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary evidence of effectiveness of the Couples Coping Enhancement Training – Sexual Minority Stress (CCET-SMS) relationship education program. Results from nine couples showed trends in decreased reports of sexual minority stress and general distress, and significant increases in reports of positive dyadic coping and relationship satisfaction. Additional results based on the program feasibility and acceptability along with limitations and suggestions for future directions are presented.

Beyond Translation: Exploring the Stigmatization of Rainbow Works Translation Under Frame Theory

ABSTRACT Drawing on Goffman’s frame theory, this study examines the attitudes of nine Chinese university teacher translators in translating rainbow works, ranging from hesitancy to resistance. The primary objective is to uncover the frames of stigmatization inherent in their negative attitudes toward rainbow works translation. The research clarifies the identities of perpetrators and victims in these frames leading to stigmatization. Findings indicate that various stigmatization events in rainbow works translation share a common feature—an unfavorable depiction of rainbow culture and related elements, encompassing the rainbow community, works, and translators. Perpetrators and victims vary across events, demonstrating diversity. The research interprets stigmatization in rainbow works translation at individual, institutional, and sociocultural levels. Providing a unique Chinese perspective, the study contributes to international understanding of stigmatization in a heteronormative society. It challenges traditional Chinese norms, advocates reevaluating identity labels for the rainbow community, and underscores the importance of addressing translators’ circumstances in translating rainbow works within specific societal contexts.

Spacial Choices of Queer Urban Space: A Look into Queer Nightlife Establishments in China

This study examines the dynamics of queer public space in Chengdu, a major Chinese city. Considering the availability of access to different queer public spaces in China, we focus on Chengdu's night venue, entertainment, and digital public space and investigate their significance in creating queer community and sense of belonging. Observation, interviews, case studies, and document review is used to explore the queer space in Chengdu and reveal the obstacles queer community face when constituting safe queer space under the relatively oppressive ideology of the country. Investigating the problems through the lens of multi-disciplines such as urban sociology and gender studies, we take a view of the queer public space itself from an urban planning perspective which examines its design rationality as pure space constitution and analyzes the driving force for such design in gender studies perspective which involves discussion of intersectionality and analysis of patriarchal society. The queer urban space serves a critical function for the queer community by gathering the scattered population and providing a safe space to express their identities. By investigating the contemporary queer public space in Chengdu and making comparisons with that in other countries, this study uncovers the struggle and efforts of the queer community to establish their safe public space in combat with the heteronormative society.

Ostracism Experiences of Sexual Minorities: Investigating Targets' Experiences and Perceptions by Others.

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people face frequent discrimination, maltreatment, and violence for transgressing gender roles upheld in heteronormative societies. Ostracism (i.e., being excluded and ignored) is likely another, understudied form of discrimination against sexual minorities. In a multi-method approach using a nationally representative panel (N = 4104) and experience sampling data (N = 467, 14 days, k = 926 ostracism experiences), we find that LGB individuals report more ostracism experiences than straight individuals. In line with the idea that ostracism toward sexual minorities occurs as a function of gender role nonconformity, lesbians and gay men are rated by an independent rater sample as more likely to be ostracized (k = 10,760 ratings) when they are also rated as more lesbian/gay and less gender role conforming. Our findings speak in favor of ostracism as a discriminatory experience of LGB individuals that is driven by transgressions of heteronormativity.

Sexual Attraction and Non-Suicidal Self-Harm: The Role of Stressors and Psychological Mediators.

Non-suicidal self-harm (NSSH) is a serious concern for the well-being of youth. Stressors relate to greater NSSH risk, such as being non-heterosexual in a heteronormative society. Other stressors may include traumatic experiences. These relationships may be mediated by psychological factors (depressed mood, anxiety, anger, and self-esteem) as well as contextual factors (support from parents and peers). The purpose of this study was to examine NSHH ideation and behavior among Icelandic youth, as well as relationships with stressors and mediators. Students in Icelandic high schools (N = 8921, 50.8% female) completed an in-class survey in the year 2016. Results showed an elevated risk of NSSH ideation and behavior among bisexual and homosexual youth. Mediation analyses showed that, for girls, being bisexual related to greater NSSH ideation and behavior, and these relationships were mediated by depressed mood, anger, and self-esteem, as well as by support from parents and peers. For boys, however, both homosexual and bisexual attraction related to greater risk for NSSH ideation and behavior, which was mediated by depressed mood, anger, and self-esteem. These results suggest that NSSH risk factors vary by gender and, therefore, they may benefit from different interventions to stop and prevent this behavior. This is the first study of its kind in Iceland, where sexual minority stress may need further study within the Nordic context.

We are family: Taiwanese gay fathers’ strategic normalisation decision-making in transnational reproduction

ABSTRACT Taiwanese gay men have been seeking transnational assisted reproductive technologies and surrogacy to become fathers. Due to legal restrictions in Taiwan, overseas reproduction is the only legal way for them to have children. This study explores gay fathers’ reproductive strategies and rationales. The data came from in-depth interviews with 53 gay fathers and participant observation with an LGBTQ + family association. I analysed data thematically with the sociological approach ‘reproduction as a lens’ to elucidate how social norms influence gay men’s reproductive perceptions and practices and what social changes they brought to the understanding of family-making. The results show that gay fathers were aware of the ideal family model in heteronormative society, and they established strategies to justify their decision-making and make sense of their family-making. They shaped their gay fatherhood by affirming their decision to use third-party reproduction, deciding who would be the sperm provider, and selecting ovum donors with specific attributes. They also reconsidered the meaning of relatedness by embodying innovative ways of making kinship. This article argues that Taiwanese gay men became fathers through the dynamic processes of ‘strategic normalisation’ and ‘selective differentiation’, which secured their social acceptance and demonstrated diverse pathways of queer family-making.

“I saw! I know! You disgust me…”: Manifestation of Homophobia and Patriarchal Oppression in Tennessee Williams’s Play, A Streetcar Named Desire

A Western heteronormative society hints at its homophobia in diverse manners, but one of the most ubiquitous internalized notions is that of disgust and rejection. This sort of biased sexism fuels the gradual accretion of suicidal rates among LGBTQ youths. Generating homophobic discourses is one of the ways through which a hetero-patriarchal society demonstrates and maintains its power and oppression against sexual minorities and gender subalterns. Hetero-gender-based violence against women and homosexuals is also not uncommon in any society. The present paper aims to explore the manifestations of homophobia and hetero-patriarchal oppression against homosexuals and women in Tennessee William’s play, A Streetcar Named Desire. By delving into the principles of Gender Studies and Queer theories, this paper seeks to investigate the role of compulsory heterosexual and patriarchal norms in the lives of Allan, Blanche, and Stella in victimizing and silencing them violently.

Digital Heterotopias in the Metaverse

At a time when the umbrella term “metaverse” seems to have monopolised the discourse on online social presence, this paper aims to explore the possibility of constructing interactive online spaces that challenge the hegemonic structures of heteronormative society. Before describing the metaverse as a futuristic scenario that catalyses technophobic fears, perhaps we can turn our attention to existing metaverses: one example is the sandbox video game Minecraft, which is characterised by great interactivity and manipulability. Therefore, by analysing the immersive and interactive artwork g(Ender Gallery) by artist Cat Haines, which was created entirely on Minecraft in 2021, I will explore how the platform can be used to build a playful ground and at the same time a critical arena of gender norms and a deep reflection on trans experience.

Reading Border through Desire: Queer Indigenous Theory, Nordic Settler Colonialism, and Trans Aesthetics

Abstract This article examines the Swedish fantasy-horror-romance film Gräns (Border, dir. Ali Abbasi, 2018) through queer Indigenous thought and the notion of trans aesthetics, exploring how the film may sensitize its viewers to seeing and feeling with gender variance, queer desire, and the trauma of settler colonialism. Drawing on Eve Tuck's call for desire-based research, the article asks what is at stake in queer, trans, and decolonial readings of films that are not necessarily identifiable as such at the surface level. Border centers on a love story between two gender-fluid trolls who pass as human and whose kin have been subjected to genocide, dislocation, and mutilation, but the film's reception largely misses the connection to the treatment of Indigenous Sámi people and transgender people within Nordic settler states. The article argues that Border's ecstatic depiction of gender-fluid desires, bodies, and sex, alongside its examination of the psychic consequences of settler colonial violence, make it a thus far unique film in the Nordic context — even though this examination happens through the distancing effect of trolls as metaphorical Natives. The main characters embody wrongness in the settler nation-state, in heteronormative society, and ultimately in the delimiting category of the human, but the film imagines rightness in nature as a queer, gender-fluid space where all creatures can just be. Through employing notions of trans aesthetics, the (non)sovereign erotic, refusal, and haunting, the article proposes desire-based readings of cinema that envision ways of feeling and existing beyond humancentric, settler, binary notions of gender and sexuality.

Discrimination and normalization as an effortful social practice: An analysis of LGBTQ+ families in Germany

While legal recognition of same-sex relationships and families has increased in many democratic countries, discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation, both open and subtle, still exists. Drawing on qualitative interviews from Germany, this study uses the grounded theory methodology to analyse LGBTQ+ families’ normalization practices in response to experienced and anticipated discrimination. We show that normalization practices are not merely an assimilation to a neoliberal heteronormative family ideal, as criticised in debates on homonormativity, but require arduous efforts within heteronormative societies. Furthermore, normalization practices simultaneously challenge (traditional) family norms, through both overt political struggles and sub-politically within everyday practices.

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) People in Adult Education Journals: A Literature Review 2010–2022

This article reviews LGBTQ literature in US-based adult education journals and proceedings. Categories focused on workplace issues, identity, health, learning climate, educational methods, and research. Key themes included (1) harassment, isolation, and discrimination, (2) meaning-making in a heteronormative society, (3) a call for inclusion, and (4) education, training, and inclusive policies and acts. Based on the findings, implications for research and practice will be provided.

A Progressive Reading of Customary and Religious Norms Associated with Heteronormativity in South Africa

Customs that enforce heteronormativity, generally also safeguard the interests of society’s vulnerable, for instance orphans and widows, to name two examples. The recognition that non-heterosexual people is a minority group with legitimate concerns is important, as they could contribute to family support while maintaining their identity and mental well-being. Non-heterosexual individuals’ interests are protected in the current Constitution; however, their protection must transform social support structures beyond written laws. Social structures tend to accept change at a slower pace than progressive laws. In South Africa the gender-normative and heteronormative are generally being overridden by a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ code, where sexual minorities are gradually gaining acceptance in a dominantly heteronormative society. In this article, the authors argue against the customs of spousal inheritance and ukuthwala, which, among others, are being imposed on non-heterosexual people, because they suggest a person’s sexuality belongs to a clan. These cultural practices may serve a purpose in society but could be interpreted to support constitutional values. For instance, traditional healers as custodians of culture have documented instances of being gender-fluid, when a female could be possessed by a male spirit, thus requiring a female sexual partner. Indigenous culture as it is known, has been tainted by capitalism, patriarchy, foreign religion, and the absolute opinions of a few elders. Which begs the question whether heteronormativity truly is a South African construct.

“I am who I am”

Abstract The study examined how LGBTQ individuals negotiate their identities in the Malaysian heteronormative society using the Discourse-Historical Approach. In-depth interviews were carried out with 13 LGBTQ individuals to find out the discursive strategies they used in describing the triggers for coming out, their experiences, and the reasons for their struggles. The analysis of the interview data showed that the participants used the “destiny” and “rights” arguments to counter the “legal”, “religious” and “traditional values” arguments used by heterosexuals to reject them. Referents and personal pronouns were selectively used by LGBTQ participants to present different perspectives, “us” versus “them” (heterosexuals), “I” and other LGBTQ individuals, and “I” versus “they” or “you” (other sexual orientations). The findings have implications that are relevant to mitigation of LGBTQ identities in contexts which have strong heteronormative norms due to legal, religion and traditional values.

Narratives of Asexuality

In this paper, I utilize the lens of narrative power to argue that stories of asexuality have been employed to pathologize and separate people from heteronormative societies but can (and are) amplified to connect and mobilize people to resist dominant narratives and norms regarding sexuality. I apply this lens to two case studies. The historical and modern pathologizing of asexuality and the creation of online communities for asexual people and experiences. By exploring the power and hierarchy of narratives, I expose more people to non-normative sexualities and thus reduce the isolation and marginalization of asexual peoples and stories.

‘Sissy that walk’: the queer kinaesthetics of mobility-through-difference

ABSTRACT This article advances the idea of ‘queer kinaesthetics’ to show how moving through difference can enable disaggregated individuals to realize a new sense of becoming. Doing so involves rejecting the categories of identity that lead to disaggregation in the first place, and reorienting the self by developing a distinctly and radically (dis)embodied subject position. I illustrate these ideas by exploring the queer kinaesthetics of drag. Drag is most commonly associated with queer, cisgender males embodying otherness in order to come to terms with the disaggregation that many experience in heteronormative society, and through the heterological norms of representation. By learning how to ‘sissy that walk’ they transcend the cultural codes of social life by embracing a process-oriented ontology that involves moving through difference in search of a more autonomous sense of self-realization.

Heteronormativity and Counselor Self-Efficacy Working with Sexual and Gender Minority Youth

ABSTRACT Sexual and gender minority (SGM) youth face increased harassment, discrimination, and mental health challenges as they navigate heteronormative society, which treats them as abnormal, outcast, or immoral. SGM youth may rely on mental health counselors to help them navigate these unique challenges. There is no research on the relationship between mental health counselors’ levels of heteronormativity and their self-efficacy in working with SGM youth. Using the Heteronormative Attitudes and Beliefs Scale and a self-efficacy scale created for this study, the researchers explored the relationship between mental health counselors’ levels of heteronormativity and their levels of self-efficacy in working with SGM youth. The results showed that heteronormativity and self-efficacy in counseling SGM youth were negatively correlated. The researchers explore the implications of these findings for mental health counselors and discuss the research limitations.

Poe, Queerness, and the End of Time

Poe, Queerness, and the End of Time