Human Sexuality

Abstract: In this article, we examine definitions tied to the term heteronormativity. Taking a random sample of articles from Gender Studies and SociIndex, and a purposive sample of articles from various journals with the highest citation count and relevancy to the field, we analyze how meanings of heteronormativity transformed from the time of its conception until the present...

Abstract: The article focuses on Korean male make-up instructors on the social media platform YouTube.com and how they represent heteronormativity in South Korea. The authors discuss the concept of masculinity in East Asian mass media, including Korean boy bands known as K-pop groups and the influence of Japanese manga, examine these challenges to traditional masculinity, and explore notions of male beauty.

Abstract: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) youth face hostile and exclusionary learning environments. A qualitative phenomenographic method involving semistructured interviews of seven secondary school administrators was conducted to identify perceptions of experiences creating a safe and inclusive environment for students who identified as LGBTQ. The findings of the study were examined from a conceptual foundation that a heteronormative culture dominates the U.S. school system that perpetuates the marginalizing of nongender conforming students...

Abstract: Eight nonheterosexual (i.e., bisexual, lesbian, bi/pansexual) mothers with trans* children between 6 and 11 years of age participated in semistructured interviews in which they discussed the intersections of their own sexual minority identities with their children's gender identities or expressions. Transfamily theory was utilized to understand how heteronormativity and cisnormativity operated in these families' lives...

Abstract: Heteronormativity teaches that the only normal way to engage in sexual and romantic relationships is to be heterosexual, often erasing other possibilities. Externally prescribed heteronormativity (the idea that one must be heterosexual, heteroromantic, and monogamous) may contribute to the distress that nonheterosexual individuals experience when questioning their sexual orientation...

Abstract: In countries such as the USA, a substantial percentage of teenage pregnancies are intentional, and desire for pregnancy increases risk. Black US Americans have been found to be less accepting of homosexuality than their non-Black peers, which may result in minority ethnic teenagers demonstrating heterosexual orientation through attempting pregnancy...

Abstract: Many gender and sexually diverse students continue to view their schools as a hostile and oppressive environment. The focus in research has shifted more recently from individualizing this problem to understanding the complex systemic and institutional contributors to the ongoing marginalization of this population. As an integral part of the school system, school counsellors are uniquely positioned to offer important individual- and group-level supports to these students. Using narrative interviewing, this qualitative study provides an opportunity to visit the lived experiences of 6 current gender and sexually diverse high school students and their encounters with heteronormativity at school...

Abstract: Little is known about how gay fathers support their children as they navigate the challenges of heteronormativity. This article, based on phenomenological interviews with gay adoptive fathers from 20 families (one interview per family), discusses how gay fathers help their children manage the complexities of being adopted, not having a mother, and having gay fathers. Using a social constructionist lens, the article shows how fathers, in empathically responding to these challenges, nurture emotional connections with their children and deepen their sense of being parents...

Abstract: Using ethnographic data from 10 months of observations in nine preschool classrooms, I examine gendered sexual socialization children receive from teachers' practices and reproduce through peer interactions. I find heteronormativity permeates preschool classrooms, where teachers construct (and occasionally disrupt) gendered sexuality in a number of different ways, and children reproduce (and sometimes resist) these identities and norms in their daily play...

Abstract: Focusing on the relationship between same‐gender marriage and heteronormativity, my objectives in this paper are twofold. First, I examine the scholarly conversation examining same‐gender marriage as a practice that either reinforces or challenges heteronormativity...

Abstract: Homophobia is an enduring issue within schooling contexts internationally. This paper attempts to rethink homophobia from the perspective of heterosexual students' accounts of bearing witness to it. Within the existing literature it has been LGBTQ students who have held the responsibility for naming and recounting homophobia. This paper re-orients this conventional account by positioning heterosexual students as its narrators to see what this might reveal about homophobia's operation at school...

Abstract: The relative unresponsiveness of the news media to the racism and homophobia of the Orlando shootings was deeply disturbing to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. The focus on terrorism and gun control (major topics in the 2016 presidential campaign) neglected the fact that this massacre was a hate crime...

Abstract: This article addresses the topic of homophobia. Recent events might make it seem as though it is dying out. Hate crimes based on a person’s sexual orientation or gender presentation can now be prosecuted by the federal government, even when they occur in states lacking their own hate crime laws. Numerous states have changed their laws to permit same-sex couples to marry, some through the passage of legislation and others through ballot measures...

Abstract: A key challenge for gender theory and practice is to explain the circumstances in which homophobia either intensifies or declines. In addition to the important theoretical implications of such an explanation, being able to clearly delineate the mechanisms that drive the ebb and flow of homophobia raises the prospect that one day it might be possible to eradicate this important antisocial problem...

Abstract: Generations of scholars have examined the variety of correlates of attitudes and behaviors of heterosexual men toward gay men. There has also been substantial exploration of the impact of homophobia on gay men and its gendering of heterosexual men. However, less research exists into the effects of the liberalization of sexual attitudes on these groups...

Abstract: Previous studies have identified myriad negative consequences of internalized homophobia, or self-directed antigay prejudice, but few can speak to its developmental antecedents. This work explored whether parenting styles might affect the development of internalized homophobia and negative psychological health outcomes in sexual minority individuals. Specifically, we expected that perceiving parents as autonomy supportive during childhood would link to lower internalized homophobia and better psychological health, and that lower levels of shame would help to explain this effect...

Abstract: This study addresses the effect of narratives offering a positive depiction of gay men on the audience’s change in attitude towards homosexuality. Specifically, it analyzes the relationship of character identification, inter-group contact, religiosity and gender with homophobia reduction...

Abstract: Influenced by the industrial working classes in the nineteenth century, the emergence of regulated and professional association football became a symbol of masculinity for millions of boys and men that subsequently became engrained in future generations of male fans. One particular element of this was heightened sexism and homophobia and was illustrated by the dreadful reaction by fans, the media, team mates and opposition players to the decision by Justin Fashanu to come out in 1990 during a period of high cultural homophobia...

Abstract: Background: Measuring homophobia at country level is important to guide public health policy as reductions in stigma are associated with improved health outcomes among gay men and other men who have sex with men. Methods: We developed a Homophobic Climate Index incorporating institutional and social components of homophobia. Institutional homophobia was based on the level of enforcement of laws that criminalise, protect or recognise same-sex relations. Social homophobia was based on the level of acceptance and justifiability of homosexuality. We estimated the Index for 158 countries and assessed its robustness and validity...

Abstract: Objective: We examined whether high levels of internalized homophobia and low levels of openness about one’s sexual identity ('outness') were enduring vulnerabilities for same-sex couples’ relationship functioning...

Abstract: Social role theory proposed that the gendered division of labor leads to the development of gender stereotypes that are consistent with the social roles that men and women frequently occupy. According to ambivalent sexism, gender prejudices stem in part from an unequal distribution of power and status. These theories appear particularly relevant to nursing because (a) the majority of nurses in Canada are women, (b) many male nurses report stigmatizing experiences and gender-based occupational barriers, yet (c) men are overrepresented in the higher paying or more 'masculine' aspects of the job...

Abstract: Over centuries women have fought hard to obtain increasing gender equality, but despite these successes absolute equality remains an elusive goal. Theoretically, women’s numerical strength makes them well-placed to take effective collective action, and millions of women engage in feminist collective action every day. In this article, however, we argue that women also face barriers to engaging in feminist collective action; barriers that are associated with the social construction and experience of what it means to be a woman...

Abstract: Historically, adherence to traditional cultural expectations of masculinity in the workplace, displayed via competitive, aggressive, or controlling behaviors, has been rewarded with increased social influence and perceptions of professional capabilities. However, changing work environments increasingly emphasize teams that require competence in interpersonal interactions...

Abstract: Objective: The goal of this study is to understand how people experience sexism and sexual harassment in the workplace by discovering themes in 2,362 experiences posted on the Everyday Sexism Project’s website everydaysexism.com...

Abstract: Protecting men’s power is fundamental to understanding the origin, expression, and targets of hostile sexism, yet no prior theoretical or empirical work has specified how hostile sexism is related to experiences of power. In the current studies, we propose that the interdependence inherent in heterosexual relationships will lead men who more strongly endorse hostile sexism to perceive they have lower power in their relationship, and that these perceptions will be biased...

Abstract: The current research demonstrated that women’s adoption of benevolent sexism is influenced by their perceptions of their intimate partners’ agreement with benevolent sexism. In 2 dyadic longitudinal studies, committed heterosexual couples reported on their own sexism and perceptions of their partner’s sexism twice across 9 months (Study 1) and 5 times across 1 year (Study 2)...

Abstract: Although men’s parenting is often considered as a gender equality issue, we argue that it is also concerned with parent–child intergroup dynamics. Based on social dominance theory, we conducted two studies to investigate the roles of ambivalent sexism (i.e., hostile and benevolent sexism) and beliefs about children (i.e., paternalism and blatant dehumanization) in attitudes toward men’s parenting...

Abstract: Research suggests that women weigh the perceived costs and benefits when deciding whether to confront sexism on behalf of themselves or other women. Novel to the present research, we tested whether men similarly weigh the anticipated costs and benefits when deciding whether to confront sexism on behalf of women...

Abstract: While overt sexism has become less acceptable in recent years, sexism frequently goes unchallenged by observers for a variety of reasons. In the present investigation, we propose that people may excuse men’s sexist remarks when the remarks follow a manhood threat caused by a woman...

Abstract: We examined the association between playing sexist video games and sexist attitudes. Undergraduate students (61 men and 114 women) indicated the level of perceived sexism present in their most frequently played video games...