The number of young adults participating in international learning opportunities has increased dramatically over the past 50 years. Nearly three-quarters of a million students from other nations study in the United States annually, one-fifth of which are from China. International students are challenged with developmental tasks above and beyond typical domestic students, as they learn to accommodate dual and conflicting cultural ideologies relating to identity development. This is particularly true for international students from China, who are socialized with the values of filial piety, which include obedience to and respect for one's parents and engagement in conduct to avoid shaming one's family. Moreover, family needs, obligations, and honor come before personal desires. Thus, sexual identity development is of particular importance for Chinese international students, as a gay, lesbian, or bisexual (GLB) identity may not align with family responsibilities and expectations. Yet, missing from the literature is an empirical understanding of the influence of family values on the process of sexual identity development for this population. This theory-building article reviews current models of general and sexual identity development and the complications with their potential use with international students from China, as well as implications for potential research and clinical practice in this area.

This paper speaks to the potential for simulation and experience-based educational programs in delivering changes in knowledge, attitudes and behaviors, as well as the utility of mixedmethods approaches to program evaluation. The authors discuss a mixed-methods study which evaluates the impact of a poverty simulation program on college students at three Midwestern universities. Findings suggest multiple benefits of the experience, including changes in attitudes and beliefs about how serious the experience of poverty can be, an understanding that poverty is complex and can be caused by multiple factors, and a decrease in their biases and stereotypes about people in poverty. Qualitative findings corroborate these data.

No abstract

No abstract

On August 22, 2013, Bradley Manning released a statement requesting to be referred to as female. In the following days, the news media discussed whether language should shift toward a female representation. Using quantitative content analysis and qualitative contextual analysis, this study analyzed whether U.S. and international newspapers (N = 197) acknowledged Manning's request to be referred to as "Chelsea" in the two weeks after the statement. Results suggest that the mainstream press was hesitant in shifting toward a female representation. A comparison of international and U.S. newspapers suggests that the U.S. press lagged behind international coverage using a female depiction.

No abstract

Using Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological systems theory as an organizing framework, the research closely examines the text of the Amazon Studios hit show Transparent and, by extension, the evolution of public opinion toward transgender individuals. By examining the Pfefferman family in detail and their related microsystem and macrosystem, we are able to closely unpack the transition of Jeffrey Tambor's character from Mort to Maura and the show's connections with broader developments in the Los Angeles LGBT community and the Jewish diaspora in postwar and contemporary Los Angeles. In addition, by focusing on the influence of the chronosystem, we are able to examine how both opinions toward Maura and public opinion toward transgender issues more generally have evolved within the family system and the larger American community over time.

No abstract