This diploma thesis discusses the issue of registered partnership and the Czech public´s opinion of it from the social and legal aspect of a new establishment. The theoretical section characterises the basic terms applying to this issue. The purpose of this work is to establish the predominant attitudes in Czech society towards homosexuality and homosexual orientation as such, including attitudes towards registered partnership. Three hypotheses have been determined. H 1: A greater part of the Czech public perceives introduction of the registered Partnership Act to be a positive step for homosexually orientated citizens. H 2: more than half of respondents do not have enough information about the issue of registered partnership. H 3: More than half of respondents are chiefly influenced by the media in their attitudes. The research section contains processing and evaluation of data obtained by the quantitative method of inquiries made through a questionnaire, when an anonymous questionnaire investigation established the general public´s attitudes towards homosexuality and registered partnership. The obtained data implies that the Czech public is aware of the establishment of registered partnership as such, but knowledge of specific aspects, which are significant from the social or legal aspect, are not on the required level. A pleasing discovery is that the Czech public has an open approach to the establishment of registered partnership and agrees with its introduction to practice by means of approval of Act number 115/2006 Coll.

Background: The 'coming out' literature reveals there is a high degree of selectivity and fear of rejection around disclosure of sexual identity to others. It is suggested this distress can be particularly elevated around disclosure of sexual identity to the family. Recent research suggests that the age of disclosure around sexual identity within the family is shifting, but even with the recent growth of research within the lesbian, gay and bisexual community, researchers still do not fully understand the complexities of the 'coming out' process. Aim: This narrative study aimed to collect 'coming out' stories to better understand the process an adolescent goes through in disclosing their sexual identity to family. Participants: Seven participants were recruited through snowball sampling, four adolescents (one female and three male) who self-identified as lesbian or gay and three parents (three mothers) who had children that self-identified as lesbian or gay. Method: Participant stories were audio recorded in one semi-structured narrative interview, lasting up to 90 minutes. A narrative analysis was carried out drawing upon Labov's (1972) structural analysis and an adaption of Polkinghorne's (1995) narrative 'plots' to develop Thematic Concepts from the participant stories. Analysis: The structural analysis showed that participants did not restrict their stories to a single event of 'coming out' to the family. They spoke about 'coming out' experiences based around numerous chronological events across their life to date, and included evaluations of these. Five Thematic Concepts were developed from the seven participant stories - (1) the influence of self - a sense of knowing something; (2) the influence of the school environment; (3) the influence of culture and religion; (4) the influence of the digital age/new media; and (5) the influence of the family. Conclusions and Implications: Research literature suggests that 'coming out' should not be viewed as a one-time event, but an on-going process evolving across the lifespan. Historical and socio-political factors must also be considered in understanding the process of 'coming out'. With regards to clinical practice, this study suggests counselling psychology should be pro-active in advancing educative interventions to address heteronormativity and discrimination within society, as well as considering systemic approaches when working therapeutically with sexual minorities.

This work dealt with the process of coming out and the use of addictive substances. The thesis has two parts, theoretical and practical. The theoretical part was created using the literature mentioned in the literature of this work. The theoretical part contains chapters and subchapters dealing with homosexuality, the process of coming out and the use of addictive substances. The practical part relates to the research itself. I used quantitative research strategy. Questionnaire method and questionnaire technique was used for the research. The questionnaire was rewritten as an internet link in Survio programme. The link to the questionnaire was distributed through social networks and gay communities.140 respondents were in survey. The aim of the thesis was to test the relationship between coming out and using addictive substances. The research question has been asked whether there is a relationship between coming out and using addictive substances. Six working hypotheses have been formulated. All hypothesis were invalidated. The answer is taht there was no statistically significant relationship between coming out and substance abuse.

Doctor of Philosophy / School of Family Studies and Human Services / Karen Myers-Bowman / The overarching research question addressed by this qualitative dissertation is “What are the meanings, structures, and essences of the lived experiences of the coming out process for professional women who are African American lesbians (PAALs)?” The study was designed to 1) fill an existing gap in the literature by examining the coming out processes of PAALs, 2) gain an understanding of the challenges and stressors associated with the intersection of gender, race, and sexual orientation, and 3) explore the diversity of experiences that PAALs may have when coming out to family, friends, and colleagues. Purposeful sampling was used to recruit 10 women between the ages of 25 and 65. Each participant completed a face-to-face interview. Data analysis yielded 21 codes that were then aggregated into five themes and several subthemes that serve as the basis of a 5-level model for describing their coming out process: Confusion, Suppression, The Turning Point, Disclosure, and Proving Self. These levels are progressive but may overlap depending on where the individual is in the coming out process. The findings show that the experiences of PAALs demonstrated the influences of culture, race, and gender in the personal and professional lives of lesbians who have come out, or who are in the process of disclosing their sexual orientation. Additionally, some PAALs are motivated to disclose their sexual identity in order to inspire other young lesbians to come out and express their true sexual orientation.

abstract: The meaning of sexuality is not only specific to particular time periods in history; it is also culturally specific. Informed by transnationalism, queer of color critique, postcolonial feminism, and public sphere theory, my dissertation investigates the complex dynamic between what I call "Chinese queer subjects" and their bio-genetic families in a time of queer globalization. By centering the life experiences of Chinese queer subjects through interviewing and rhetorical analysis, this project intervenes in the teleological discourse of "coming out" that is circulated both in transnational LGBT movements and within academia. Through a materialist analysis of the "coming out" discourse in mainland China, I reveal why and how the discourse of "coming out" is prioritized in Chinese LGBT movements in order to foster a domestic queer market in mainland China. Of most significance to this project are the two non-confrontational strategies that some Chinese queer subjects employ to navigate the tension between family and sexuality: first, the reticent "coming with" strategy that engages the home space with queer desires, transforming the heteronormative family institution from within, toward a more livable queer life; second, the xinghun strategy, a marriage arrangement that many Chinese gay men and lesbian women partake in as a means of being gay or lesbian without exiting the family kinship system. The practices of reticent "coming with" and xinghun challenge the binary between family and sexuality, suggesting that queerness can emerge and thrive without exiting the (heterosexual) family; they give us some concrete examples of what AnaLouise Keating calls "post-oppositional politics" among some Chinese queer subjects. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Communication Studies 2016

LGBT rights and situation have globally improved significantly, especially in the past few decades. However, being a gay employee is not always easy and though sexuality is a private matter, there is no shock in admitting that private matters are what define us along with our environments, both personal and professional. In addition, employees are at the core of firms’ business results and overall performances. Yet, the topic lacks interest from academics. Though studies focus on drivers on coming out, or a general link between good working environments and good performance, very limited papers research into what drives gay employees to come out in the workplace or what role they may play in firms let alone the relationship between the two. Therefore, this study, aims to shed some light onto the factors influencing gay employees to reveal their sexual orientation, and evaluate how this plays a role and impact an organisation’s operations. Based on the results of the study, it appears that Gay employees can be influenced to come out based on the firm’s environment and culture but also out of their own desires (wanting to keep their personal life private regardless of their sexuality) but surprisingly, a vast majority of the respondents involved considered themselves openly gay, hence providing valuable data. The research has demonstrated that gay employees’ coming-out seems to impact the firm on four levels: work quality, working conditions, work relations and perceived stress level.

This study aims to explore and describe the experiences of significant others during the coming out process of two lesbian individuals. The study gathered more detail regarding how various individuals experience the coming out process in the hope of contributing to the theoretical base of literature concerning lesbian studies in South Africa. The literature review provides a survey of the coming out process as well as a discussion regarding significant others (family and friends). Some factors and experiences involved in the coming out process are also discussed. The qualitative case study is approached from the interpretive paradigm and systems theory was utilised as a theoretical framework throughout the study. Data was generated primarily through unstructured interactive/in-depth interviews and secondarily through stories, field texts, photographs and a research diary. Six individuals participated in the research study, the two lesbian individuals and four significant others as identified by them - two mothers, a father and a close friend. The data analysis led to both commonalities in experiences and unique experiences identified by participants. The results of the study indicated that some form of suspicion or awareness was present in the significant others before the act of disclosure; emotional reactions from involved participants can be placed in a continuum ranging from positive to negative and the act of disclosure was viewed and experienced as both a crisis and as progressive by different participants. Various factors could influence the experience of the coming out process for significant others as well as the reactions to the act of disclosure. However more research is needed to investigate what these factors might be. Participants also mentioned various stages towards acceptance (individuals fall in a continuum and can move forward and backward). Both common and unique experiences were present and can assist others in understanding the coming out process from different perspectives. / Dissertation (MEd)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Educational Psychology / unrestricted

The thesis with the name "Children's book as a possible educational tool for the tolerance of homoparental families" is focused on gay parenting, prevention of homophobia and content analysis of children's books which contains the topic of gay parenting. The aim of the thesis is to let teachers and the public know about the topic of homoparental families and to show them books which can be useful in helping them understand them. The theoretical part of my thesis is divided into five main chapters which describe the main concepts connected with the thesis. The first chapter describes sexual orientation, the history of homosexuality and how a person becomes homosexual. There are many various opinions from many authors who focus on this topic. The second chapter describes the difference between registered partnership and marriage. There are different kinds of families and different opinions on normality and gender in the third chapter. The topics of homoparental families and raising children in gay families are included in the fourth chapter. And the last chapter is about children's books and why they are important for children and their development. The practical part is focused on content analysis of children's books whose topics include gay parenting and are available in the Czech Republic. The aim...

A decisão por revelar a orientação sexual, bem como em quais contextos fazê-lo, implica diretamente na trajetória de vida dos homossexuais. O objetivo deste estudo foi descrever a revelação da orientação sexual, segundo as características sociodemográficas, contextos e graus de revelação e episódios de discriminação e agressão entre 1217 homens de 18 a 77 anos, frequentadores de espaços de sociabilidade em dois distritos da capital paulista que aceitaram participar do estudo Sampacentro. Este estudo é um desdobramento de pesquisa maior cuja metodologia adotada foi à amostragem por tempo-espaço e os instrumentos de coleta foram: questionários de inclusão e estruturado com questões sociodemográficas, sociabilidade/práticas sexuais, atitudes e percepções sobre prevenção, estigma e discriminação. As variáveis foram descritas por frequências e proporções. Os testes de hipótese utilizados foram qui-quadrado de Pearson e Exato de Fischer para as diferenças entre as proporções e qui-quadrado de tendência para as variáveis ordinais. O nível de significância adotado foi 5 por cento . Predominou raça/cor de pele branca (59 por cento ), alta escolaridade, 43 por cento com graduação concluída; elevada proporção de atividade remunerada (90 por cento ); prevaleceu padrão socioeconômico B (57 por cento ); elevada proporção de não praticantes de religião (51 por cento ); 55 por cento solteiros e 82 por cento homossexuais. Foram estatisticamente significantes a revelação da orientação entre os jovens, os de raça/cor branca, os que estavam namorando e entre os homossexuais. 52 por cento dos participantes compartilharam a orientação sexual em todos os contextos sociais e em ordem crescente a distribuição da revelação entre os domínios da vida se deu nos contextos de amizade, dos serviços de saúde, familiar, trabalho e escolar. Em relação à experiência de discriminação observamos tendência crescente a maior exposição à medida que a orientação era compartilhada em número maior de contextos sociais. Para agressão também verificamos tendência crescente à medida que a orientação estava compartilhada em mais contextos sociais nos subitens: agressão física, verbal e ameaça de agressão, chantagem e constrangimento no trabalho. Concluímos que a revelação da orientação sexual é ainda um desafio na trajetória de homens homossexuais, acentuada por barreiras sociais, e que quanto mais contextos sociais compartilham a informação acerca da orientação sexual maior é a possibilidade da pessoa homossexual ser submetida a atos de discriminação e agressão. / The decision to reveal ones sexual orientation, and in what contexts to do it has a direct impact on the trajectory of homosexuals lives. The objective of this study was to describe the development of sexual orientation according to sociodemographic characteristics, contexts and degrees of development and episodes of discrimination and aggression among 1217 men aged 18 to 77 years frequenting social spaces in two areas of São Paulos State capital who agreed to participate in the Sampacentro study. This study is an outgrowth of a larger research whose methodology was the time-space sampling and whose data collection instruments were: questionnaires about inclusion structured around questions about sociodemographic data, sociability and sexual practices, attitudes and perceptions about prevention, stigma and discrimination. The variables were described as frequencies and proportions. The hypothesis tests used were chi-square test and Fisher\'s Exact test for differences between proportions and chi-square test for trends for ordinal variables. The level of significance was set at 5 per cent . Predominant among the sample were the white race/color (59 per cent ), high level of education, (43 per cent university graduates), high employment rate (90 per cent ), high socioeconomic standard (57 per cent in Class B), high proportion of not practicing any religion (51 per cent ); 55 per cent declared themselves as single and 82 per cent as gay. The revelation of their status as gay was statistically significant among young people, the white race/skin color, among those who were dating and among homosexuals. Fifty-two percent of participants shared information about their sexual orientation in all social scenarios; the distribution is given in ascending order in the scenarios of friendship, health services, family, school and work. Regarding the experience of all kinds of discrimination there was tendency to greater discrimination as the sexual orientation was shared in more scenarios. There was in increasing trend for suffering aggression as the orientation was shared in more scenarios, regarding physical aggression, verbal abuse and threats, beatings, the scam of lacing drinks with hypnotic drugs, blackmail and harassment at work. We conclude that the development of sexual orientation is still a challenge in the trajectory of homosexual men marked by social barriers, and that in the greater number of social scenarios the information about gay sexual orientation is shared, the bigger are the chances to suffer discrimination and aggression.

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