The purpose of this study was to identify and describe the current campus climate for gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons at Texas A&M University as perceived by the faculty, professional staff, and administration at the institution. Specifically, the study looked at differences in perceptions and behaviors based on university position, race/ethnicity, gender, sexual identity, age, and interaction with members of the sexual orientation minority. The population for the survey consisted of 5,863 individuals at Texas A&M University, including 513 administrators, 1,992 faculty members, and 3,358 professional staff members. Based on the work of Krejcie and Morgan, a random sample of each of the three employment categories was taken, which resulted in a sample of 1,020 individuals. The survey instrument used was the Assessment of Campus Climate for Underrepresented Groups, developed by Susan R. Rankin, Ph.D. A selected group of questions from the survey were analyzed in order to conduct this research. The usable response rate was 47.9%. Overall, the data supported the finding that the University does not provide a campus environment that is welcoming to all members of the community, especially those individuals who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender. Several statistically significant differences were found to exist among the positions of the participants, as well as race/ethnicity, age, gender and sexual identity. The research also confirmed that an individual's attitudes and behaviors toward gay men, lesbians, bisexual men and women or transgender persons were influenced in a positive manner in relation to the frequency of contact that the person had previously had with members of this population. When compared to the norms established by a similar study across the United States, Texas A&M University was found to have a more negative campus climate. Implications for practice suggest ways in which the university can work toward improving the campus climate for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students. Among the suggestions are the development of new policies that create a more supportive environment and new programs to serve the needs of the sexual orientation minority and to educate the campus community. Suggestions for future research are also discussed.

Thesis (Ph. D. in Religion)--Vanderbilt University, May 2002. / Title from title screen. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Texas, 2000. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Dec. 9, 2004). Includes bibliographical references (p. 93-98).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2002. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references. Available also from UMI Company.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Oklahoma, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 183-196).

Cooperative marriage is a heterosexual marriage negotiated and performed by a lala (a woman with same-sex desire) and a gay man. Building on growing debates on cooperative marriage within the tongzhi community and on intensifying media and academic attention, this thesis presents an empirical investigation of how gay men and lalas understand their experiences while in cooperative marriage. The study is based on in-depth interviews, participant observation and focus group interviews of twenty-two gay men and lalas in cooperative marriage distributed across five cities in China: Beijing, Shenyang, Hangzhou, Guangzhou and Foshan. Among the questions addressed are: Why do gay men and lalas opt for this particular type of marriage? What are the lived experiences of sexual minorities facing cultural and institutional discrimination in China? What are the main living strategies and styles they adopt to cope with such discrimination? The study also explores different ways of relating to others and some novel intimate practices emerging. It is shown that, in general, these are not in harmony with the heteronormative values that are dominating society today. The new ways and practices are therefore challenging criticism from liberal rights activists, particularly with regard to issues such as coming out. I identify four types of orientations of gay men and lalas towards cooperative marriage: familial, individual, pragmatic, and idealistic. These reveal how gay men and lalas understand their relations to other main players in their lives and strategize accordingly. Among the characteristics playing key roles in their decision making are gender, being the single child of the family and co-residence with the parents in the same city (local vs. non-local). It is shown that the lives of gay men and lalas in cooperative marriage are being complicated by the need to negotiate multiple relationships, e.g., with the marital partner, the same-sex partner, the marital partner’s partner, the natal family, the in-laws, and the gay community around. I also theorize on the major types of politics of intimate relationships engaged in by gay men and lalas as they craft their living spaces while in cooperative marriage. Finally, I demonstrate that cooperative marriage has led to a new sub-cultural tongzhi movement where gay men and lalas build on the rapport they have developed with each other; e.g., they share information and experiences while participating in semi-open public discussions and matchmaking events. This is leading to emergent types of new ethics within the community which have critically challenged the stereo types and dominant narratives on tongzhi strategizing. / published_or_final_version / Social Work and Social Administration / Master / Master of Philosophy

This thesis examines the representation of sexuality and identity in six novels written by Edmund White. Issues specifically related to gay male sexuality and homosexual/gay identity politics are discussed in Chapter One. These issues are developed in Chapter Two's exploration of sexuality, coming out, outing, and narrative. However, the first two chapters also facilitate the introduction and critical expansion of key contextual and theoretical concerns. On the one hand, White's output is shaped and informed by the cultural, historical and political circumstances which have conditioned how gay male sexuality has been discursively figured and represented over the last forty years. On the other hand, his work has been inflected by theorisations of sexuality which have called into question the very specificity of a homosexual and/or gay identity. Drawing principally on theorisations of sexuality and identity in the work of ludith Butler, Lee Edelman, and Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, the first two chapters propose that the relations between sexuality and identity are unstable and discontinuous. Chapter Three's examination of narrative strategies contends that White's Forgetting /;;lena (1973), and Nocturnes for the King (if Naples (1978), excite readings of same-sex desire which are unable to specify an essential or natural difference between heterosexual and homosexual identities. Alert, nevertheless, to the political contexts which compel all sexual identity claims, Chapter Four observes how White's deployment of fantasy enables his novel Caracole (1985) to consider why identities and communities are labelled gay or straight in the first instance. Critical essays on White's work rightly note his novels' apparent preoccupation with gay male self-representation. However, discussing A Boy's Own Story (1982), and The Beautiful Room is Empty (1988), Chapter Five aims to expose the limitations of homosexual and gender definition. Indeed, if the relations between sex, gender and identity are neither clear nor continuous, then perhaps White's novels bring out such gender trouble. The examination of gay sex, sexuality and AIDS in Ihe Farewell Symphony (1997) observes why acts of gay self-nomination are politically necessary in homophobic cultures. However, this final chapter discusses why White's work appears reluctant to determine the meaning of sexuality and identity in any resolute way. Such queer irresolution, this thesis contends, enables the fiction to critique the past. Nevertheless, simply to say farewell to this past is to ignore the conditions of a future.

This thesis reports on a small scale qualitative research project located in Aotearoa/New Zealand. The objective of the research was to understand how lesbian teachers disrupt heteronormativity in early childhood settings. The literature was reviewed nationally and internationally. It argues that heteronormativity is the main barrier preventing teachers speaking about lesbian and gay issues. Heteronormativity is a discourse that works to maintain heterosexual hegemony. As a result of this dominance, acceptance of lesbian and gay issues is still a contentious issue within Aotearoa/New Zealand early childhood settings. This study provided an opportunity for heteronormativity to be viewed solely from a lesbian teacher’s paradigm. My intention was to also examine the strategies that participants used to challenge heteronormative dominance. Participants negotiated risks to ensure that both children and adults were aware of the hegemonic view point enforced by heteronormativity. A feminist post-structuralist and queer theory paradigm was used to frame the analytical approach.

Domestic violence is considered a serious health and social problem in the United States and around the world. Annually, domestic violence costs in the U.S. are estimated at 8.3 billion dollars. Domestic violence issues first came to modern attention with the women’s movement of the 1970’s. Much of the literature focuses on domestic violence within heterosexual relationships. There has not been much attention directed towards domestic violence in the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. This report reviews information about domestic violence, its causes, theories, and how domestic violence affects individuals in the LGBT community. / text