Distinguishing but not defining: How ambivalence affects contemporary identity disclosures

Ghaziani, Amin; Holmes, Andy

doi:10.1007/s11186-023-09521-8

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 117 publications

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“…The twenty-first century has seen the rise of new sexual identity subcultures, the growth of which has been attributed at least in part to the emergence of social technologies which allow new sexual stories to circulate wider and impact a broader population (Hammack & Manago, 2024;Hammack & Wignall, 2023;Wignall, 2022). This rise has occurred concurrently with an expansion in sexual identity labels and a lessening attachment to lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) identity labels as core or necessarily primary elements of sexual identity (Ghaziani & Holmes, 2023;Savin-Williams, 2005). A rise in visibility of kink identities and subcultures has been part of this larger process and resulted in a flourishing of new understandings of the way in which individuals form communities to play with roles and power in both sexual and nonsexual ways (e.g., Wignall & McCormack, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Be Dog Have Fun”: Narratives of Discovery, Meaning, and Motivation among Members of the Pup Subculture

Hammack,

Wignall

2024

Sexuality & Culture

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The twenty-first century has seen the proliferation of new sexual identity subcultures rooted in creative role-play dynamics, expanding our cultural and scientific understanding of diversity in sexuality and intimacy. In an international sample of 568 people who identified with the kink subculture of pup play, we analyzed responses to open-ended questions about the discovery of pup play and communities, definitions of pup play, and motivations for engagement. Four themes were identified: (1) social technologies as central to discovery of the subculture; (2) constructionist accounts of pup identity development emerging from relationships and exposure to other kink communities; (3) individual psychological benefits of subculture participation, including stress relief, relaxation, and pleasure; and (4) social psychological benefits in identity and community building. We situate these findings in relation to the expansion of diversity in sexual identity and intimacy in the twenty-first century, facilitated by the heightened visibility and opportunities for social and intimate creativity which have accompanied the growth of social media and exposure to new sexual stories.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Be Dog Have Fun”: Narratives of Discovery, Meaning, and Motivation among Members of the Pup Subculture

Hammack,

Wignall

2024

Sexuality & Culture

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“…Hence, several studies identify a desire to avoid discrimination, concerns regarding acceptance, fear of rejection, anxious anticipation of stigmatic reactions, and the risk of "heterosexual hostility toward homosexuality" as motivations for being closeted (Bry et al, 2017;Feinstein et al, 2020;Jackson & Mohr, 2016;Meidlinger & Hope, 2014;Ponse, 1976, p. 315). However, recent sexuality scholarship finds that queer people feel ambivalent about identity disclosure (Ghaziani & Holmes, 2023) and, if safe, may even intervene in antagonistic reactions to educate others (Orne, 2013). Thus, preventing hostility less commonly motivates concealment for younger generations.…”

Section: The Closetmentioning

confidence: 99%

Theorizing a denial reaction to coming out: Revising Goffman's stigma through a sexual identity process model

Patel

2024

Sociology Compass

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Erving Goffman's seminal theorization of stigma is at the heart of social scientific conceptualizations of identity management. Using data from qualitative interviews with queer South Asian women in Canada, this article proposes revisions of Goffman's Stigma theory. Intervening his supposition of acceptance and hostility as the two possible reactions to stigma revelation, I establish denial as an additional reaction to identity disclosure. A denial reaction has four key characteristics: (1) resistance to queer sexuality, (2) prescriptive enforcement of heterosexuality, (3) refusal to accept lesbian relationships, and (4) avoidance of conversation about queerness. I argue that disclosure to parents does not always translate to outness; rather, it can force the individual back into the closet. I refer to this non‐linear process as the culturally expansive closet. The article presents a sexual identity management process model that accounts for these culturally collectivist experiences. The results are significant for rethinking and affirming non‐Western ways of managing stigmatized identities.

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Distinguishing but not defining: How ambivalence affects contemporary identity disclosures

Cited by 2 publications

References 117 publications

“Be Dog Have Fun”: Narratives of Discovery, Meaning, and Motivation among Members of the Pup Subculture

“Be Dog Have Fun”: Narratives of Discovery, Meaning, and Motivation among Members of the Pup Subculture

Theorizing a denial reaction to coming out: Revising Goffman's stigma through a sexual identity process model

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