Discussing homosexuality on association football fan message boards: A changing cultural context

Cleland, Jamie

doi:10.1177/1012690213475437

Cited by 71 publications

(75 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Using in‐depth interviews and observational data with young straight men, they demonstrated this use of language was not intended to marginalize or wound another person, and that it occurred in settings with little or no homophobia. While the history of these words means that these different interpretations may intersect (Butler ), cautioning against any simplistic understanding of gay discourse as necessarily having socially positive effects, the shift in young heterosexual men's use of language is nonetheless evidence of a broader change in how these words are used and understood (Cleland ; Lalor and Rendle‐Short ).…”

Section: From Homophobic To Homosexually Themed Languagementioning

confidence: 99%

Gay guys using gay language: friendship, shared values and the intent‐context‐effect matrix

McCormack

Wignall

Morris

2016

British Journal of Sociology

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Use policyThe full-text may be used and/or reproduced, and given to third parties in any format or medium, without prior permission or charge, for personal research or study, educational, or not-for-prot purposes provided that:• a full bibliographic reference is made to the original source • a link is made to the metadata record in DRO • the full-text is not changed in any way The full-text must not be sold in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders.Please consult the full DRO policy for further details. Gay guys using gay discourse: Friendship, shared values and the intent-context-effect matrixIn this article, we use in-depth interviews with 35 openly gay male undergraduates from four universities in England to develop an understanding of the changing nature of language related to homosexuality. In addition to finding a diminution in the prevalence ofhomophobic language, we demonstrate that participants maintain complex and nuanced understandings of phrases that do not use homophobic pejoratives, such as 'that's so gay'.The majority of participants rejected the notion that these phrases are inherently homophobic, instead arguing that the intent with which they are said and the context in which they are used are vital in understanding their meaning and effect. We conceptualize an intent-context-effect matrix to understand the interdependency of these variables. Highlighting the situated nature of this matrix, we also demonstrate the importance of the existence of shared norms between those saying and hearing the phrase when interpreting such language. 1996). This has focused on the gendered nature of homophobic language, and argued that homophobic language primarily regulates gendered behaviours rather than sexual identities (Kiesling 2007). Given the centrality of homophobia to constructions of masculinity, the regulatory use of such language has been particularly prevalent among adolescent males (Mac an Ghaill 1994).However, there has been a liberalization in attitudes toward homosexuality in the UK over the past thirty years ( In this article, we use in-depth interviews with 35 openly gay male undergraduates from four universities in England to develop an understanding of the contemporary dynamics of homosexually themed language that is rooted in the attitudes and experiences of gay men.In addition to finding a diminution in the prevalence of homophobic language, we demonstrate that participants maintain complex and nuanced understandings of homosexually themed language. The majority of participants rejected the notion that 'that's so gay' and similar phrases were inherently homophobic, instead arguing that the intent with which they are said and the context in which they are used are vital in understanding their meaning and effect. The interdependency of intent and context with effect was so strong that we reject using them as distinct variables, instead conceptualizing an intent-context-effect matrix.Highlighting the situated nature of this matrix, participants emphasiz...

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Section: From Homophobic To Homosexually Themed Languagementioning

confidence: 99%

Gay guys using gay language: friendship, shared values and the intent‐context‐effect matrix

McCormack

Wignall

Morris

2016

British Journal of Sociology

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“…Wilcox, 2012). This leaves open an interesting avenue for further research into MMA fans' own online articulations of gender and sexuality, following recent studies of homophobia in fan postings within other, traditionally 'masculine' sports (Cleland, 2013;Kian, Clavio, Vincent & Shaw, 2011).…”

Section: Concluding Thoughtsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“It Is What It Is”: Masculinity, Homosexuality, and Inclusive Discourse in Mixed Martial Arts

Channon

Matthews

2015

Journal of Homosexuality

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In this paper we make use of inclusive masculinity theory to explore online media representations of male homosexuality and masculinity within the increasingly popular combat sport of mixed martial arts (MMA). Adopting a case-study approach, we discuss narratives constructed around one aspirational male MMA fighter, Dakota Cochrane, whose history of having participated in gay pornography became a major talking point on a number of MMA 'fanzine'/'community' websites during early 2012. While these narratives attempted to discursively 'rescue' Cochrane's supposedly threatened masculinity, highlighting both his 'true' heterosexuality and his prodigious fighting abilities, they also simultaneously celebrated the acceptance of homosexual men within the sport which Cochrane's case implied. Thus, we suggest that these media representations of homosexuality and masculinity within MMA are indicative of declining cultural homophobia and homohysteria, and an inclusive vision of masculinity, as previously described by proponents of inclusive masculinity theory.

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“…Cleland's (2011, 2012) research, for example, illustrates a significant decline of homophobia in British sports fandom. Their large-scale survey research revealed that 93% of 3500 soccer fans were acceptant of the presence of homosexuality in football -as well as on internet fan forums (Cleland, 2015;Cleland, Magrath, & Kian, 2016).…”

Section: Eric Andersonmentioning

confidence: 99%

Generational masculinities

Anderson

2017

Journal of Gender Studies

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Discussing homosexuality on association football fan message boards: A changing cultural context

Abstract: Abstract

Cited by 71 publications

References 31 publications

Gay guys using gay language: friendship, shared values and the intent‐context‐effect matrix

Gay guys using gay language: friendship, shared values and the intent‐context‐effect matrix

“It Is What It Is”: Masculinity, Homosexuality, and Inclusive Discourse in Mixed Martial Arts

Generational masculinities

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