Sexual Minority Identity Research Articles

Reflections from University Students in a South African Gay and Lesbian Society

This exploratory study examines the experiences of 20 gay and lesbian students and their involvement in a gay and lesbian Society at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. This study occurred under the theoretical framework of McCarn and Fassinger’s (1996) model of sexual minority identity formation. Participants ranged in age from 20–31 years old and included 17 men and three women. Eighteen were White, 1 was Colored, and 1 was Euro-Asian. Participants discussed positive and negative effects of belonging to the Society, counseling services available on campus, patterns of victimization, and cultural norms regarding gay men and lesbians in South Africa. Recommendations for counselors, staff, educators, and administrators are provided.

Sexuality and the city: exploring the experience of minority sexual identity through storytelling

This article explores the discursive construction of sexual identity through organizational storytelling, in the London office of a global investment bank, InvestCo. Work on the identity of sexual minorities in work organizations is rare, and even more so in the context of an institution such as a bank. Minority sexual identities have largely been ignored by the organizational studies and diversity literatures, but organizations and the researchers who study them, are starting to turn their attention to this previously silenced population. A major difficulty for researchers in this area, and one which has been well researched and documented in other areas of identity construction, is how to access and research this area. This article puts forward the idea that storytelling is an effective way of exploring this still sensitive topic. The results of the research are presented according to different ways in which minority sexual identity is constructed in organizations. This includes a discussion of social identities, displayed and hidden identities, changing identities, accepted and castigated identities and finally congruent and incongruent identities. The article also identifies themes which emerge from the stories about the stories themselves; themes of hidden identities, mistakes, victimhood and resistance. Although of relevance to those interested in the experience of sexual minorities in organizations, the storytelling discursive approach opens up the subject's experiences to a wider audience interested in diversity, discourse theory, ethnography and organizational life in general. The level of access is unusual and the double level story telling research approach could be of use in other areas.

Sexual Minority Identity Formation in an Adult Population

ABSTRACT This study reflects an initial empirical attempt to assess the validity of a widely accepted model of sexual identity formation proposed by Cass (1979). Using a cross-sectional sample of 143 sexual minority participants, factor analytic and multidimensional scaling results suggest that sexual minorities view the identity formation process as occurring in two phases, rather than multiple discrete linear stages. These two phases can be best characterized by individuals having either an “unintegrated” or “fully integrated” sense of sexual orientation into one's self-identity. Future research is suggested utilizing a longitudinal design in order to conduct a more rigorous test of this model.

Sexual identity development in the context of compulsory heterosexuality.

This study analyzed the implications of sexual identity development for global, political, religious, and occupational identity development in 358 college students. Participants completed a written survey packet including the Extended Objective Measure of Ego Identity Status (EOM-EIS) and measures of sexual identity, physical/sexual preference, and emotional/affective preference. Data from the EOM-EIS suggest that having a sexual minority identity (lesbian, gay, bisexual, or "other" nonheterosexual identity) and reporting strong same-sex sexual or physical preferences are linked with more advanced global, political, religious, and occupational identity development. Heterosexual-identified participants were more likely to score high on identity foreclosure, moratorium, and diffusion, while sexual-minority-identified individuals scored higher on identity achievement. Individuals with strong same-sex physical/sexual preferences showed a pattern of results similar to those of sexual-minority-identified participants. Themes coded from a free-response question highlighted the finding that sexual-minority-identified participants more often viewed their sexual identity as salient and involving an effortful process. These individuals also stressed the importance of having support or modeling for their sexual identity.

The Absent Presence: Negative Space within Discourse and the Construction of Minority Sexual Identity in the Workplace

Sexuality and the experience of sexual minorities in the workplace are under-researched areas. The research reported here - a case study in one government department in the UK - utilizes a discursive research method to uncover a theme that is at the centre of this experience - silence. In-depth semi-structured interviews were carried out with individuals eliciting their stories on their experience as lesbians and gay men in the workplace, and these stories were then used to promote more general discussion within focus groups. Understanding silence in the research process with relation to both the researcher and the respondent was found to be vital for research in this area, and the article raises issues to do with uncovering previously silenced voices. Silence also emerged as a recurrent theme in the research and found that there were many ways in which this silence can play an integral role in organizational discourse and the creation of social identity. We have therefore suggested that silence could be referred to metaphorically as ‘negative space’, as this term helps to emphasize the multifaceted nature of silence. The research highlighted reactive silence and the absence of response, silence as a form of suppression, of censorship and of self-protection and resistance. It also concludes that silence, in all its changing forms, influences and contributes to the creation of social reality and gay identity for lesbians and gay men in the workplace.

The Ripple Effect of the Matthew Shepard Murder

This research investigated the psychological impact of the Shepard murder, a widely publicized antigay hate crime in 1998, on nonvictims who were members of the targeted group, through the lens of assumptive world theory. Nine people with minority sexual identities who indicated that they were deeply affected by this murder participated in semistructured interviews of 60 to 90 minutes, and verbatim transcripts were coded and analyzed using qualitative data analysis software. Participants were five men and four women ranging in age from 17 to 51. Results illustrate a vicarious traumatization effect; that is, this event challenged participant fundamental assumptions of benevolence and meaningfulness of the world and worthiness of self. Findings also reflect positive aftereffects. Strengths and limitations of the study, as well as future research possibilities, are discussed.

Sexual identity, attractions, and behavior among young sexual-minority women over a 2-year period.

Previous research suggests that the sexual identities, attractions, and behaviors of sexual-minority (i.e., nonheterosexual) women change over time, yet there have been few longitudinal studies addressing this question, and no longitudinal studies of sexual-minority youths. The results of 2-year follow-up interviews with 80 lesbian, bisexual, and women who were first interviewed at 16-23 years of age are reported. Half of the participants changed sexual-minority identities more than once, and one third changed identities since the first interview. Changes in sexual attractions were generally small but were larger among bisexuals and unlabeled women. Most women pursued sexual behavior consistent with their attractions, but one fourth of lesbians had sexual contact with men between the two interviews. These findings suggest that there is more fluidity in women's sexual identities and behaviors than in their attractions. This fluidity may stem from the prevalence of nonexclusive attractions among sexual-minority women.

Sexual identity, attractions, and behavior among young sexual-minority women over a 2-year period.

Previous research suggests that the sexual identities, attractions, and behaviors of sexual-minority (i.e., nonheterosexual) women change over time, yet there have been few longitudinal studies addressing this question, and no longitudinal studies of sexual-minority youths. The results of 2-year follow-up interviews with 80 lesbian, bisexual, and "unlabeled" women who were first interviewed at 16-23 years of age are reported. Half of the participants changed sexual-minority identities more than once, and one third changed identities since the first interview. Changes in sexual attractions were generally small but were larger among bisexuals and unlabeled women. Most women pursued sexual behavior consistent with their attractions, but one fourth of lesbians had sexual contact with men between the two interviews. These findings suggest that there is more fluidity in women's sexual identities and behaviors than in their attractions. This fluidity may stem from the prevalence of nonexclusive attractions among sexual-minority women.

Sexual Identities in ESL: Queer Theory and Classroom Inquiry

Within ESL, interest has been growing in the pedagogical implications of poststructuralist theories of identity and in the need for gay-friendly teaching practices. However, research on identity has largely neglected the domain of sexual identity, and efforts to develop gay-friendly pedagogies have not yet engaged with poststructuralism. This article introduces some of the key concepts of queer theory, which draws on poststructuralism, and suggests implications for teaching. The central argument is that a queer theoretical framework may be more useful pedagogically than a lesbian and gay one because it shifts the focus from inclusion to inquiry, that is, from including minority sexual identities to examining how language and culture work with regard to all sexual identities. This article then comments on an ESL class discussion in the United States that focused on lesbian and gay identities.

Validation of an Inclusive Modelof Sexual Minority Identity Formation on a Sample of Gay Men

This article outlines the preliminary validation of a new, inclusive model of sexual minority identity formation (McCarn & Fassinger, 1996) on a sample of gay men. The model hypothesizes two separate but reciprocal processes of individual sexual identity development and group membership identity development in a fourphase developmental sequence. The model was developed and successfully validated on a sample of lesbians (briefly described here), and the present study replicates and extends this work, using a modified Q-sort methodology, on a sample of 34 diverse gay men. Results indicated support for the model, in terms of both individual and group processes as well as phases, and suggested that the model is applicable to gay men. Implications of the study for theory, research, and practice are discussed.

The Politics of Sexual Identity: Sexual Attraction and Behavior among Lesbian and Bisexual Women

In the lesbian community, one which based upon a shared sexual minority identity, recent attempts to add the category to the prevailing dichotomous conceptualization of sexuality have led to various popular conceptualizations of sexuality. Lesbian-identified women disagree among themselves and with bisexual-identified women over whether bisexuality exists, and if so, what it is. As a result, individuals develop lesbian and bisexual identities based on differing conceptions of sexuality, thereby undermining the basis for affiliation among women with a shared sexual identity. This paper, based upon data from 365 lesbian- and bisexual-identified women who were questioned about their sexual identity histories, behaviors, and feelings of sexual attraction, demonstrates that while there are aggregate differences between the experiences of lesbian and bisexual women, there is also a wide range of sexual experience common to both groups. The paper argues that the tension which characterizes relations between lesbian- and bisexual-identified women is not the result of failure to recognize these similarities in experience. Instead, historical circumstances have led to a situation in which bisexuality poses a personal and political threat to lesbians and lesbian politics; the similarity between lesbians' and bisexuals' experiences aggravates rather than mitigates this threat. The existential question Who am I? has proved troubling to generations because it is paradoxical. The question ostensibly asks for a description of one's essence, a quality discovered only through the evidence of personal experience. Social constructionist theory points out, however, that individuals interpret their personal experiences through the framework provided by the social world. From the viewpoint of the individual, identity is discovered by introspection. But from the viewpoint of the social constructionist, identity is a construct reflecting the conceptual structure of the surrounding social world. While the production of identity is a social-psychological process, the consequences of identity are both social and political. This is especially true when identity reflects membership in a disadvantaged or stigmatized group such as a racial, gender, or sexual minority. Members of these minorities form sociopolitical communities based upon shared identity. Feelings of belonging and solidarity arise within minority communities, based upon the belief that members share a common experience which leads to shared interests and values. Eventually, minority communities become politicized and build social change movements that are also based upon the belief that shared identity reflects shared experiences and interests. The belief in common experience underlying the formation of minority communities hinges on the assumption that all individuals have interpreted their experiences through the same conceptual structure. If different individuals interpreted their experiences through different conceptual structures, shared identity would not reflect shared experience. Communities based upon shared identity would include individuals with a wide range of experiences, and the experiences of community members would overlap the experiences of nonmembers. The original purpose of establishing a minority community-bringing together individuals with similar experiences and interests-would be undermined.