Bisexual men in marriage: is a positive homosexual identity and stable marriage possible?

The negative picture of mixed-orientation marriages portrayed in previous research is challenged by results from a study and two-year follow-up of a non-clinical sample of 41 spouses representing 30 marriages. Evidence suggests that more recent marriages involving a bisexual are made for positive reasons, rather than as an escape from homosexuality. A comparison of couples in which the homosexual behavior is acknowledged to those in which it is secretive suggests a positive homosexual identity can be developed in the acknowledged situation. Data from a two-year follow-up provide information on the factors which led to the stabilization of such marriages. A schema of developmental crises, decisions, and consequences is presented.     

Gender discrimination and efficiency in marriage: the bargaining family under scrutiny

We consider a repeated family bargaining model that links the topics of employment and households. A key aspect of the model is that marital bargaining power is determined endogenously. We show that: (1) the efficiency of household decisions is sometimes inversely related to the prevailing degree of gender discrimination in labor markets; (2) women who are discriminated against have difficulty enforcing cooperative household outcomes because they may be extremely limited to credibly punish opportunistic behavior by their male partners; (3) the likelihood that sharing rules such as “equal sharing” are maintained throughout a marriage relationship is highest when men and women face equal opportunities in labor markets. Responsible editor: Deborah Cobb-Clark     

Chicks with dicks, men in dresses: what it means to be a drag queen

One of the burning questions about drag queens among both scholars and audiences is whether they are more gender-revolutionaries than gender-conservatives. Do they primarily destabilize gender and sexual categories by making visible the social basis of femininity and masculinity, heterosexuality and homosexuality? Or are they more apt to reinforce the dominant binary and hierarchical gender and sexual systems by appropriating gender displays and expressing sexual desires associated with traditional femininity and institutionalized heterosexuality? We address this question through a case study of drag queens at the 801 Cabaret in Key West, Florida. On the basis of life histories, observations of their performances, and focus groups with audience members, we examine the role of gender and sexuality in the process of becoming a drag queen and in the personal identities of drag queens. We find that transgenderism, same-sex sexuality, and theatrical performance are central to the personal identities of these drag queens, who use drag to forge personal and collective identities that are neither masculine nor feminine, but rather their own complex genders.     

Psychotherapy with gay/lesbian couples and their children in "stepfamilies": a challenge for marriage and family therapists

As increasing numbers of gay/lesbian parents and their children enter into "stepfamily-like" relationships with a gay partner, they are beginning to seek therapy for difficulties peculiar to stepfamily living involving two same-sex partners. This paper focuses on the difficulties experienced by gay parents and children in a step-relationship, and seeks to sensitize mental health professionals to issues specific to intervention with such families. Effective therapy with these families requires that therapists be sensitive to their personal biases and prejudices with regard to gay men and women in general and as parents, and be aware that such attitudes can intrude and negatively affect the therapeutic process and its outcomes. Guidelines for therapy are offered.     

"Barebacking": intentional condomless anal sex in HIV-risk contexts. Reasons for and against it

Intentional condomless anal sex in HIV-risk contexts ("barebacking") has been heatedly debated in gay circles, the gay media, and, to a lesser degree, the mainstream media. Yet it has received little attention in the scientific literature. In order to better understand the reasons behind this behavior, we conducted a content analysis of messages posted on an Internet message board following Gay.com's decision to close a company-sponsored bareback chat room. Individuals posting messages self-identified in their online profiles as being mostly White/ European gay men residing in the US, with an average age of 35 years. Out of 130 messages, 62 (48%) were pro-barebacking, 55 (42%) were against barebacking, and 13 (10%) referred to other topics. The content analysis of the messages showed that both those in favor of and against barebacking felt well-informed about HIV/AIDS and the risks of HIV transmission. Those in favor considered condomless sex more enjoyable than sex with condoms (both in actual experience and in erotic imagery), felt that condomless sex conferred a sense of freedom, minimized the risks involved in barebacking (assuming that practitioners were already HIV infected and that the risk of superinfection was small), and ultimately believed that barebacking was a personal decision and responsibility. Those against barebacking believed the behavior was dangerous, advocated for condom use and personal and social responsibility, and felt barebackers needed to be sensitized to the burdens of HIV disease. Implications of these results are discussed, pointing out the need for further scientific inquiry in this area.     

Getting out in the "real world": young men, queer and theories of gay community

A recent opinion piece published in the Sydney Morning Herald expresses a widely held perception that, among young same-sex attracted men in Australia, "queer" has well and truly supplanted "gay" as the language and lens through which self and practice is generated. In this article, I discuss findings from a qualitative research project that studied notions of community among young gay men, and argue that this assumption should not be taken for granted. The article explores participants' understandings of the concept of "gay community," arguing that the young men studied share a common definition of community: one based on a conventional liberal model which prioritizes sameness and the cooperation of individuals to achieve common goals. This is of particular importance in that problems around "fitting in" with these understandings are also raised. In examining the potential place for queer alternatives to these formulations, however, the article finds that queer attracts little support among participants, raising questions about the bind young men may find themselves in if they prioritize sameness as fundamental to community, yet feel themselves to be excluded from community by their own or others' perceived difference.     

"The only dykey one": constructions of (in)authenticity in a lesbian community of practice

This article demonstrates how members of a lesbian community of practice make interactional moves that allow them to position themselves as "authentically lesbian." Through the use of discourse analysis and a sociocultural linguistics focus on indexicality, the speakers are shown to invoke broadly accessible stereotypes and ideologies and to rework them in order to create locally specific, meaningful identities. This is achieved via mutually negotiated stance taking toward group-constructed, oppositional personae. Specifically, the women in this group position styles deemed as "girly" as inauthentic and antithetical to their concept of a lesbian--the authentic "dyke."     

"He was treating me like trash, and I was loving it...": perspectives in gay male pornography

As the topic of gay male pornography has received limited attention from social scientists, little is known about how gay men perceive this medium. In the current study, a focus group methodology was used whereby participants examined specific scenes from commercially available gay pornography in terms of the messages they disseminate about the body and gay sexuality, in general. Findings suggest that discussants tended to view the medium from a utilitarian perspective. They saw pornography as a masturbatory aid, and did not believe that it possessed much significance vis-à-vis gay men's attitudes and behaviours. Those who identified potentially negative influences of this medium saw them as transitory and most likely to occur among gay men other than themselves.     

人口“乡-城”流动下城镇失业保险基金支出预测：以西安市为例

本文运用人口发展方程与回归预测方法建立了人口“乡-城”流动规模测算模型。根据社会保障精算原理构建了人口“乡-城”流动下的失业保险基金支出测算模型;在此基础上,对2009—2020年西安市失业保险基金支出额进行了预测,结果表明,西安市失业保险基金支出总量年均递增12．93％,由2．67亿元增长到10．19亿元,其中,由“乡-城”人口流动引发的失业保险基金支出额从1232．75万元增长到2．58亿元。年均递增31．85％。     

"硬制度"与"软环境"下的农村低保对象的识别

现行的农村低保制度尽管已经逐步覆盖农村的贫困人口,但这并非完全意味着中国农村贫困人口的消失,因为"硬制度"的完善,同时也需要"软环境"下的低保对象的识别机制,由于目前农村低保对象的复杂性--所需要解决的不仅是其温饱问题,还包括因疾病、教育等支出而导致的"选择性"贫困群体.因此作者试图在现有农村低保识别机制的基础上,建立一套识别低保群体的指标体系;并结合二者的各自优势提出农村低保对象的识别方法.     

灾后重建过程中受灾群众的社区融入与适应——以“一村两地”居住模式下的羌村为个案

在灾后重建过程中,受灾群众的社区融入与适应问题是一个急需解决的问题。我们抽取了因地震而成为灾民社区的北川张坪村和黄坪坝村进行走访和调查．分析了他们的生存现状、社区融入与适应方面存在的问题及其影响．并就此提出了相应的对策与措施。