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An TL, Waling A, Bourne A. Body Image Perceptions and Visualization of Vietnamese Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM). JOURNAL OF HOMOSEXUALITY 2024; 71:2686-2709. [PMID: 37756385 DOI: 10.1080/00918369.2023.2253953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/29/2023]
Abstract
Research on body image among men who have sex with men (MSM) has predominantly been approached with the assumption that all MSM conform to a culturally preferred body, and have a high risk of body image concerns leading to risky behaviors and negative health outcomes. Scholars have called for a more nuanced understanding of how MSM engage with their body images. In response, we conducted 30 semi-structured interviews with Vietnamese MSM to explore their perceptions and feelings of their bodies, including their current body, idealized body, and sexually desired body. Inductive thematic analysis was utilized. The findings highlight the diversity and complexity in Vietnamese MSM's perceptions and feelings about their bodies, which Western measurements of body image and body dissatisfaction might not fully capture. The participants also acknowledge the pressure of physical appearance; however, they do not always conform to the dominant body ideals and have a high risk of body dissatisfaction. We conclude with a call for reframing the approach to gay and bisexual men's body image to understand better how they navigate complex pressures and make sense of their body image instead of assuming they are at risk of body dissatisfaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thanh Ly An
- Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
- Department of Global Health, School of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Hanoi Medical University, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Andrea Waling
- Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Adam Bourne
- Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Australia
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Amodu AD. Where Exactly Are the Nigerian Men Who Have Sex With Men? Insights from the 2023 Grindr Report. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2024; 53:2427-2430. [PMID: 38831235 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-024-02913-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2024] [Revised: 05/20/2024] [Accepted: 05/21/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- Abideen David Amodu
- Department of English and Literary Studies, Federal University Oye-Ekiti, Oye-Ekiti, 371104, Ekiti State, Nigeria.
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Silva T. Subcultural Identification, Penetration Practices, Masculinity, and Gender Labels within a Nationally Representative Sample of Three Cohorts of American Black, White, and Latina/o LGBQ People. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2022; 51:3467-3483. [PMID: 35997907 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-022-02285-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Most quantitative research about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) people's sexual subcultures and sexual practices has used non-probability samples due to data limitations. This paper used the Generations study, a national probability sample of LGBQ Americans in three age cohorts, 18-25 (n = 510), 34-41 (n = 294), and 52-59 (n = 425), who also identified as Black, white, or Latina/o. This paper analyzed men (n = 590) and women (n = 639) to answer the following sets of research questions: (1) What is the prevalence of subcultural identification as bear, leather/kink, twink, and jock among men, and how does it differ by cohort, race/ethnicity, and sexual identity? (2) What is the prevalence of men who describe themselves as a top, versatile top, versatile, versatile bottom, and bottom? What is the relationship between penetration practices and masculinity? (3) What is the prevalence of gender labels among women as femme, androgynous, and butch? How does the prevalence differ by cohort, race/ethnicity, and sexual identity? (4) What is the relationship between women's gender labels and masculinity? Penetration practices were fairly evenly distributed among men, and there were few differences in masculinity based on penetration practices after controlling for demographics and subcultural identification. Most women did not use gender labels, but butch identities were more common among lesbians and femme labels were more common among Black women and Latinas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tony Silva
- Department of Sociology, University of British Columbia, 6303 NW Marine Drive, Vancouver, BC, V6T 1Z1, Canada.
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Schnarrs PW, Jones SS, Parsons JT, Baldwin A, Rosenberger JG, Lunn MR, Rendina HJ. Sexual Subcultures and HIV Prevention Methods: An Assessment of Condom Use, PrEP, and TasP Among Gay, Bisexual, and Other Men Who Have Sex with Men Using a Social and Sexual Networking Smartphone Application. ARCHIVES OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR 2021; 50:1781-1792. [PMID: 32728870 PMCID: PMC10388693 DOI: 10.1007/s10508-020-01784-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2018] [Revised: 06/22/2020] [Accepted: 06/25/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Despite being grouped together in epidemiological risk categories, gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBM) are not a homogenous group. In addition to traditional segmentation along race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, many GBM also identify with sexual subcultural communities. Previous research has shown differences across a variety of health outcomes between these sexual subcultural communities. The purpose of this study was to determine whether HIV prevention practices among GBM differed according to sexual subcultural community. The study was conducted in collaboration with a popular social and sexual networking smartphone application company. A total of 23,577 GBM responded to the survey. A latent class analysis identified 6 distinct classes related to sexual subcultural community identification. We found significant differences across sociodemographic characteristics, HIV prevention practices, and condomless anal sex in the past 6 months related to sexual subculture identification. Findings suggest that sexual subcultural identity is related to decision-making around HIV prevention among GBM. Differences in HIV prevention strategies are likely a function of group norms, unique shared experiences among GBM identifying with a particular sexual subculture community, and sociodemographic characteristics associated with these groups. As such, sexual subculture identity should be considered in developing interventions and social marketing campaigns to increase uptake of biomedical HIV prevention tools among GBM. Identifying group norms and shared experiences related to HIV prevention practices among sexual subcultures is necessary to understand the role these identities play in lives of GBM, especially as it relates to their sexual health and well-being.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip W Schnarrs
- Division of Community Engagement and Health Equity, Department of Population Health, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Health Discovery Building 4.814, 1601 Trinity Street, Austin, TX, 78712, USA.
- The Population Research Center, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA.
| | - Stephen Scott Jones
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College of the City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jeffrey T Parsons
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College of the City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
| | - Aleta Baldwin
- Department of Public Health, California State University at Sacramento, Sacramento, CA, USA
| | - Joshua G Rosenberger
- Department of Biobehavioral Health, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, USA
| | - Mitchell R Lunn
- Division of Nephrology, Department of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- The PRIDE Study/PRIDEnet, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - H Jonathon Rendina
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College of the City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
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Waling A, Lyons A, Alba B, Minichiello V, Hughes M, Barrett C, Fredriksen-Goldsen K, Edmonds S. Older lesbian and gay men's perceptions on lesbian and gay youth in Australia. CULTURE, HEALTH & SEXUALITY 2021; 23:143-158. [PMID: 32073354 DOI: 10.1080/13691058.2019.1696984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2019] [Accepted: 11/20/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Older lesbian and gay people are increasingly open about their sexuality but have also experienced a lifetime of discrimination. These groups have experienced a long history of changes to lesbian and gay rights, and many were also at the forefront of activist movements during the latter half of the 20th century. A deeper knowledge is needed of the life experiences of these groups, including how they view their lives in relation to younger lesbian and gay people. This would assist agencies working with older lesbian and gay people, such as health and support services, to provide more informed engagement, support, understanding, and culturally safe services. Drawing on 33 qualitative interviews with older (60+ years) lesbian and gay people, we explored their experiences during their younger years and their perspectives on how these experiences compare with those of younger lesbian and gay people today. Our findings note that older lesbian and gay people feel life is, in some ways, easier, and in others, still challenging for young lesbian and gay people, and they articulate a need for mutual respect across age groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Waling
- Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Anthony Lyons
- Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Beatrice Alba
- Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Victor Minichiello
- Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health & Society, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- School of Justice, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Mark Hughes
- School of Arts and Social Sciences, Southern Cross University, Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia
| | | | | | - Samantha Edmonds
- The National LGBTI Health Alliance, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
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Zarwell M, Robinson WT. Network Properties Among Gay, Bisexual and Other Men Who Have Sex with Men Vary by Race. AIDS Behav 2019; 23:1315-1325. [PMID: 30725398 DOI: 10.1007/s/10461-019-02416-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
The HIV burden among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBM) may be related to variations in network characteristics of the individual's social and sexual network. This study investigates variations in network properties among 188 Black and 295 White GBM recruited in New Orleans during the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance in 2014. Participants described up to five people who provided social support and five sex partners in the past 3 months. Network properties and network dissimilarity indicators were aggregated to the participant level as means or proportions and examined using PROC GLM. White participants reported larger networks (p = 0.0027), had known network members longer (p = 0.0033), and reported more substance use (p < 0.0001) within networks. Black participants reported networks with fewer men (p = 0.0056) and younger members (p = 0.0110) than those of White GBM. Network properties among GBM differ by race in New Orleans which may inform prevention interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meagan Zarwell
- Center for AIDS Intervention Research, Medical College of Wisconsin, 2071 N Summit Ave, Milwaukee, WI, 53202, USA.
- School of Public Health, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA, USA.
| | - William T Robinson
- School of Public Health, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, LA, USA
- Louisiana Office of Public Health STD/HIV Program, New Orleans, LA, USA
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Abstract
The HIV burden among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (GBM) may be related to variations in network characteristics of the individual's social and sexual network. This study investigates variations in network properties among 188 Black and 295 White GBM recruited in New Orleans during the National HIV Behavioral Surveillance in 2014. Participants described up to five people who provided social support and five sex partners in the past 3 months. Network properties and network dissimilarity indicators were aggregated to the participant level as means or proportions and examined using PROC GLM. White participants reported larger networks (p = 0.0027), had known network members longer (p = 0.0033), and reported more substance use (p < 0.0001) within networks. Black participants reported networks with fewer men (p = 0.0056) and younger members (p = 0.0110) than those of White GBM. Network properties among GBM differ by race in New Orleans which may inform prevention interventions.
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