Lesbian studies in Thailand

This piece provides an overview of the state of Lesbian Studies and women who love women in Thailand. It reflects on the cross-cultural limitations of the term 'lesbian' and Thai ambivalence towards Western sex and gender categorizations.     

Melancholia,Ambivalent Presence and the Cost of Gender Commentary on Paper by Meg Jay

I would like to engage three aspects of Jay's argument: first, I want to suggest that there is an important distinction to be made between melancholia and depression, and that Butler's melancholy gender depends on this distinction, which emphasizes the social and political dimensions of melancholia. Second, Jay diagnoses the theory of melancholy gender with a troubling ambivalence; I contend that this ambivalence is central to the logic of Butler's argument, and to the processes of melancholia and gendered identification, and that this ambivalence is also purposefully manifest in Freud's text. Third, Jay's piece makes a call for conceptual disarticulation in the register of foreclosure as it relates to prohibited homosexual object choice. This desire for disarticulation and anxiety about homosexual undecidability leads to the collapse of gender, sex and sexual orientation, and the result of this collapse is an ambiguous subject who emerges as reheterosexualized and normatively gendered.     

Ambivalence in Older Parent–Adult Child Relationships: Mixed Feelings,Mixed Measures

This research compared direct and indirect measures of ambivalence, 2 commonly used strategies for measuring intergenerational ambivalence between older parents and their adult children. Directly and indirectly measured ambivalence, corresponding to felt and potential manifestations of the construct, were contrasted with each other and across generations. Data were derived from 253 older parent–adult child dyads participating in the Longitudinal Study of Generations in 2005. Direct and indirect measures of ambivalence were moderately correlated with each other within each generation. Children expressed greater indirect ambivalence than their parents but were no different than their mothers or fathers in their levels of direct ambivalence. Multivariate regression analyses examining the relationship between each type of ambivalence with individual and relationship characteristics found differences in associations across equations. The results suggest that direct and indirect measures are related but represent 2 distinct conceptions of ambivalence. This research highlights the challenges in understanding the full complexity of intergenerational relations and suggests that both generational perspectives be considered in future research.     

Navigating Ambivalence: How Heterosexual Young Adults Make Sense of Desire Differences

The miscommunication hypothesis is the assumption that many incidents of acquaintance rape and coercive sex follow from miscommunication between men and women. This hypothesis is entrenched in popular, academic, and judicial understandings of sexual relationships. Recently some evidence has suggested that there is little miscommunication between sexual partners and that the hypothesis does not explain acquaintance rape or other forms of sexual violence. The present study used qualitative methodology in which men and women were asked to imagine themselves in a particular heterosexual dating situation and write what they think happened between the beginning (when sex was refused by one partner) and the end (when sex happened). Thematic analysis of the data found no evidence for miscommunication between partners under conditions of differences in desire. Instead, ambivalence about sexual activity was commonly described by women and men and was most often resolved to both parties’ satisfaction. Coercion by men was present in a minority of narratives under conditions of clear understanding of women's refusals. The study thus provides a rich, experience-based representation of heterosexual sexual activity, with considerable potential for the development of effective education campaigns.     

Ambivalence in Gay and Lesbian Family Relationships

Intergenerational ambivalence—the simultaneous presence of both positive and negative dimensions of a parent–child tie—is a concept widely used in family studies. Scholars have clarified the measurement of psychological ambivalence, or an individual's own feelings of ambivalence toward others. Yet research has yet to demonstrate whether—and, if so, how—individuals characterize others as ambivalent. Moreover, relatively little is known about ambivalence in gay and lesbian families. In the present study 60 in‐depth interviews were analyzed to identify what the author calls perceived ambivalence in the parent, sibling, extended kin, and “in‐law” relationships of gay and lesbian adults. Perceived ambivalence is revealed through gay and lesbian adults' characterizations of family members' simultaneous positive and negative overt and covert beliefs and behavior. In addition, the author refines the concept of collective ambivalence, wherein perceived ambivalence typifies an entire family unit. The findings further revealed the importance of broader sociological factors, such as homophobia, in structuring perceived ambivalence.     

Engaged or Disengaged? Examining the Relationship Between Electoral Ambivalence and Indicators of Political Engagement in the 2012 U.S. Election

This study uses uncertainty theories to examine the relationship between presidential electoral ambivalence and three political belief variables: internal efficacy, skepticism, and apathy. We propose that the relationship between ambivalence, which is an indicator of uncertainty, and information-seeking intentions should be mediated by our political belief variables. Our proposed model suggests that presidential electoral ambivalence is characteristic of a disengaged citizenry, with ambivalence correlating with lower levels of internal efficacy and skepticism in a cross-sectional analysis. We also found ambivalence associated with higher levels of apathy in this same analysis. Moreover, we found an over-time indirect effect of ambivalence on information seeking through internal efficacy.     

Spirituality,Sacrifice, and Relationship Quality for Expectant Cohabitors

Given negative effects of cohabitation, we examine negative (ambivalence, conflict) and positive (commitment, satisfaction) relationship quality, as explained by perceptions of ease of relational sacrifices and spirituality, for unmarried cohabitors expecting their first child (46 individuals). Controlling for race/ethnicity and education, perceived ease of relational sacrifice was associated with greater satisfaction and lower ambivalence and conflict, whereas spirituality was not associated with any of the relationship quality variables. Examined together, greater ease of relational sacrifice and higher spirituality were associated with greater commitment and satisfaction and lower ambivalence and conflict. Given that many studies of cohabitation focus on demographic factors and that many studies of spirituality focus on married couples, the current study expands knowledge regarding relationship quality for nontraditional couples.     

Community Organization and the Oppressed

There is sexist bias in social work education, as teaching materials for the courses Human Growth and Development and Family Casework exemplify. Two leading authorities on adolescence, for example, accept a stereotypic view of female development. Family treatment writers reveal their ambivalence about male dominance within family structures, as they invoke such concepts as the “male head of the house,” and “sex role reversal,” while simultaniously encouraging independent development of each partner. In addition, the Women's Liberation Movement has created complex reactions among student practitioners.     

Process of Intergenerational Ambivalence: A Qualitative Inquiry

The phenomena of intergenerational ambivalence are often explained in terms of autonomy versus dependency, conflicting norms between generation regarding role expectation in intergenerational relations, and there has been a tendency to believe these factors lead to intergenerational ambivalence. This article intends to explain the family interaction processes that leads to the ambivalence type of relationships. A purposive sample of 185 respondents from 48 families was randomly selected from urban and rural area. The sample comprised father, son, mother-in-law, and daughter-in-law within the joint family. Data were collected through a narrative method and analyzed with a structure model analysis. The data reveal that in the process of interaction, generations have similarities in functional process (physical, economic, and emotional support) but have differences in normative (fulfillment of familial obligation, role, and responsibility) and consensual processes (differences in values and attitude). These differences can lead to negative subjective experiences in terms of stress and strain. Thus, to avoid such situations, participants often used emotion-focused coping approaches also maintaining ambivalence with respect to their intergenerational relationships.     

Conceptualizing Childbearing Ambivalence: A Social and Dynamic Perspective

Childbearing ambivalence is often conceptualized as a state of conflicting desires about having a child that is characteristic of particular individuals or life stages. This study proposes that childbearing ambivalence is dynamic and situational, resulting from the multiple sociocultural frames surrounding childbearing. Using eight waves of prospective data from a population‐based sample of young adults in Malawi, results show that 41% of women and 48% of men are ambivalent about childbearing at some point in the 2.5‐year study. There is limited evidence that ambivalence is related to individual sociodemographic or psychosocial characteristics aside from gender; rather, ambivalence is tied to life course markers such as school enrollment and age. In addition, life course transitions and changes in relationships, health, and economic factors are associated with the onset of ambivalence, supporting the theory that ambivalence is a dynamic state that men and women frequently pass through as their lives and circumstances change.     

Do Positive Feelings Hurt? Disaggregating Positive and Negative Components of Intergenerational Ambivalence

Ambivalence has become an important conceptual development in the study of parent–adult child relations, with evidence highlighting that intergenerational relationships are characterized by a mix of positive and negative components. Recent studies have shown that ambivalence has detrimental consequences for both parents' and adult children's psychological well‐being. The underlying assumption of this line of research is that psychological distress results from holding simultaneous positive and negative feelings toward a parent or child. The authors question this assumption and explore alternative interpretations by disaggregating the positive and negative dimensions commonly used to create indirect measures of intergenerational ambivalence. Data for the analyses were collected from 254 older mothers and a randomly selected adult child from each of the families. The findings suggest that the negative component is primarily responsible for the association between indirect measures of ambivalence and psychological well‐being. Implications of these findings for the study of intergenerational ambivalence are discussed.     

Boys' thoughts and talk about sex in a working class locality of Glasgow

This paper analyses data on sexuality from ethnographic research and from group discussions and in-depth interviews with 58 14–16 year old males in two schools. The research was carried out in a working class locality (Brockhill) in Glasgow, Scotland. Fourteen to sixteen year old boys in Brockhill lead homosocial lives and learn about sex and develop their sexual identities almost entirely from males. Hetero-sexuality is taken-for-granted as the cultural norm. There is considerable ambivalence about heterosexual sex, however, because of the gulf between male and female worlds, the inconsistencies between the dominant norm of teenage male sexuality and the boys' own personal experiences and emotions, and the vulnerability of their sexual identities. Although most boys conform to the convention of talking about sex in a way that objectifies women and focuses on male gratification, this discourse does not always reflect their more private views, particularly amongst those most familiar with girls. Several of these latter respondents expressed frustration with the passive role to which girls usually conform. There is a strong sense of the social construction of sexuality, but resignation to the idea that existing norms are inevitable.     

The affective politics of hatred: implications for education

This paper argues that using the notion of ambivalence in understanding ethnic hatred can be helpful to educators who struggle to address the pedagogical implications of students’ feelings of hatred. It is suggested that, although hate feelings are difficult to change, unraveling the ambivalence in the affective politics of hatred creates possibilities for enriching educators and students’ perspectives on mutual understanding and solidarity with others. Drawing on insights from an action research project conducted in a higher education institution in the ethnically‐divided Cyprus, the author shows how the notion of hatred as ambivalence constitutes an important step in initiating a subversive analysis.     

Explaining Mothers' Ambivalence Toward Their Adult Children

Interest in applying the concept of ambivalence to the study of intergenerational relations has increased in recent years. However, few empirical studies of this issue have been conducted. Using data from a study of 189 mothers aged 60 and over, the authors examine sources of ambivalence regarding the quality of their relationships with adult children. They hypothesized that adult children's failure to achieve and maintain normative adult statuses and financial independence and mother's developmental stage will predict ambivalent assessments of the relationship. Regression analyses supported these hypotheses and also revealed that the variables predicting ambivalence differed from those that predicted closeness and interpersonal stress.     

“I Felt Guilty for Being So Happy”: Narrative Expressions and Management of Postdivorce Ambivalence

Scholars have highlighted ambivalence as a central feature of experiences of divorce and its aftermath and discussed ambivalence as an important issue for divorcees in adjusting to their new status. While most of this scholarship assesses postdivorce ambivalence as a psychological phenomenon to be addressed therapeutically, this study analyzes postdivorce ambivalence as an interpretive problem to be addressed sociologically. Following Merton’s (1976) insight that ambivalence be viewed as rooted in culture and social structure as well as individual psyche, we use a narrative analytic perspective to examine how divorcees both discursively express and interpretively manage their ambivalence. We then consider some of the more general cultural discourses—such as images of marriage and divorce—that shape or condition these narratives. Ultimately, we argue that conflicting stances toward marriage in the wider U.S. culture are at once important sources of postdivorce ambivalence and significant interpretive resources for its discursive management.     

The Best of Ties,the Worst of Ties: Close,Problematic, and Ambivalent Social Relationships

This study builds on research addressing intergenerational ambivalence by considering emotional ambivalence toward the wider social network. Men and women ages 13 to 99 (N = 187) completed diagrams of their close and problematic social relationships. Social ties were classified as solely close, solely problematic, or ambivalent, based on network placement (n = 3,392 social contacts). Multilevel models revealed that individuals viewed certain close familial ties (e.g., spouse, son or daughter, parent, sibling) with greater ambivalence than they viewed more distal family ties, friendships, or acquaintances. Participants classified more acquaintances than other relationships as solely problematic. Feeling closer to a social partner was associated with increased ambivalence. Older adults were more likely to classify their relationships as solely close than as ambivalent, in comparison with younger adults. Discussion focuses on tension and closeness in familial and nonfamilial relationships.     

Ambivalence Toward Adult Children: Differences Between Mothers and Fathers

The authors examined how ambivalence toward adult children within the same family differs between mothers and fathers and whether patterns of maternal and paternal ambivalence can be explained by the same set of predictors. Using data collected in the Within‐Family Differences Study, they compared older married mothers' and fathers' (N = 129) assessments of ambivalence toward each of their adult children (N = 444). Fathers reported higher levels of ambivalence overall. Both mothers and fathers reported lower ambivalence toward children who were married, better educated, and who they perceived to hold similar values; however, the effects of marital status and education were more pronounced for fathers, whereas the effect of children's value congruence was more pronounced for mothers. Fathers reported lower ambivalence toward daughters than sons, whereas mothers reported less ambivalence toward sons than daughters.     

Long‐Term Influences of Intergenerational Ambivalence on Midlife Parents' Psychological Well‐being

We investigated changes in midlife parents' intergenerational ambivalence toward a focal child and its influence on their psychological well‐being over 14 years, as the focal child moved from adolescence into young adulthood. We estimated growth curve models using three waves of data from the National Survey of Families and Households (N = 1,510 parents aged 35–54 years at Time 1). Parental ambivalence declined over time, equally among mothers and fathers. The prediction from ambivalence theory that children's attainment of adult statuses reduces parental ambivalence received only modest support. Only the focal child's marriage reduced parental ambivalence. The focal child's lifestyle–behavioral problems during adolescence still elevated ambivalence 14 years later, albeit less so. For its part, intergenerational ambivalence counteracted trends toward declining depressive symptoms and greater happiness for mothers and fathers alike, and its effects remained constant over time.     

Melancholy Hope and Other Psychic Remainders Afterthoughts on Love the Sin

In this essay the coauthors of Love the Sin consider connections between moral and psychic ambivalence around sex and sexual pleasures; what tolerance “feels” like; and melancholia as both block to and resource for democratic social relations. In the final section of their essay, they suggest rethinking tolerance as a kind of melancholic reaction, or defense, that protects the agents of tolerance from knowing just how far short that they have fallen from their own professed commitments to being fair and doing good.