published_or_final_version / abstract / toc / Clinical Psychology / Master / Master of Social Sciences

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

published_or_final_version / Social Work / Master / Master of Social Work

羅立敏. / "2004年8月". / 論文(哲學碩士)--香港中文大學, 2004. / 附參考文獻. / 附中英文摘要. / "2004 nian 8 yue". / Luo Limin. / Lun wen (zhe xue shuo shi)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 2004. / Fu can kao wen xian. / Fu Zhong Ying wen zhai yao. / Chapter 第一章- --- 引言 --- p.1 / Chapter 甲. --- 「網際網絡」的特色 --- p.2 / Chapter 乙. --- 「網絡虚擬空間」與同志社群的凝聚 --- p.13 / Chapter 丙. --- 研究背景 --- p.17 / Chapter 第二章 - --- 「網絡虚擬空間」的發展與應用 --- p.27 / Chapter 甲. --- 「網絡虚擬空間」的發展歷史 --- p.29 / Chapter 乙. --- 「網絡虚擬空間」在香港的發展與應用 --- p.51 / Chapter 丙. --- 本章小結 --- p.57 / Chapter 第三章 - --- 「網絡虛擬空間」對性小眾組織的作用 --- p.63 / Chapter 甲. --- 南韓組織的經驗 --- p.66 / Chapter 乙. --- 香港女同志組織的經驗 --- p.77 / Chapter 丙. --- 本章小結 --- p.88 / Chapter 第四章- --- 女同志個人在「網絡虚擬空間」的參與 --- p.90 / Chapter 甲. --- 筆者的個人經驗 --- p.90 / Chapter 乙. --- 香港女同志網絡空間的概況 --- p.98 / Chapter 丙. --- 本章小結 --- p.108 / Chapter 第五章- --- 如何在香港利用「網絡虚擬空間」推動女同志運動 --- p.110 / Chapter 甲. --- 香港女同志運動的現況 --- p.110 / Chapter 乙. --- 利用「網絡虚擬空間」推動女同志運動的優勢與限制 --- p.121 / Chapter 丙. --- 本章小結 --- p.142 / Chapter 第六章 - --- 總結與展望 --- p.145 / Chapter 甲. --- 總結部份 --- p.146 / Chapter 乙. --- 展望部份 --- p.152 / 後記 / 附件 / 參考書目

Purpose - Previous research has explored the information needs of homosexual people for identity development and connecting to others, but neglected to study how they find information in response to their situations. Research has also indicated that gay people suffer from social marginalization and psychological distress, but failed to explore how they seek information to cope with these challenges. Moreover, no study has been conducted regarding lesbians in Hong Kong, a heterosexual-dominated Chinese society that emphasizes traditional family values and conformity to social norms. This study aims to pat1ially fill this research gap. Methodology - Synthesizing sense-making and phenomenological approach. The present study examines Hong Kong lesbians ' information needs, seeking, and use in identity formation, psychological and social well-being. Live experiences of participants are collected through face-to-face in-depth interviews for analysis, followed by triangulation with data collected via pal1icipant observation and document analysis. Findings - Results show that unlike findings indicated by previous study, informants of this study do not perceive virtual communication to be as secure and comfortable as their western counterparts do. As depicted in the thesis, informants in different situations have unique needs and different information behavior, e.g. whether they are single or in relationships; whether they are openly gay, completely in the closet, or half-way out; whether they have religious beliefs or focus on personal growth; whether they are advocators, participants, or bystanders of gay movements. Results also indicate that although intertwined, psychological needs should be dealt with before needs in identity formation and social well-being, in order to boost exploration efficiency as well as receptivity of information sought. The relationships between trustworthiness, variety and reception of information are discussed based on informants' live experiences. Another finding worth noting is that affordance of the internet and abundance of data/information has been slowing down and interrupting information seeking, implying the importance of information literacy. Recommendation - Recommendations are made to information providers based on informants' feedback. Specifically, the public libraries of Hong Kong should establish a discrete LGBT section with a wider variety of materials and convenient circulation policies to better serve the LGBT population in Hong Kong. Additionally, the Hong Kong LGBT community is suggested to establish an information centre for message dissemination, resource sharing, and mass mobilization. Furthermore, Lesbians are advised on how to improve the effectiveness of their information seeking. Further research - Further research is suggested to investigate how lesbians of different socio-economic backgrounds seek information to fulfill their respective needs. It would be also interesting to study what settings and environment might provide rewarding information seeking experiences for sexual minorities. Value - This study improves understandings of the thoughts, behavior, and attitudes of Hong Kong lesbians during their information seeking process to meet their needs. Life experiences of 5 Hong Kong lesbians are portrayed in detail by interactively presenting their questions asked and answers found. The findings are useful for people and professionals who have contact or work with this social group for better understanding, communication, and services. / published_or_final_version / Library and Information Management / Master / Master of Science in Library and Information Management

In this research, face-to-face in-depth interviews and extensive participant observations were conducted. There are twenty-five major informants, aged from early 20s to mid 40s, and a small number of supplementary ones. They were either Shanghai residents or were active in the city's lala communities. / In this thesis, I will look into the conflict between public inauguration and the private dilemma of lalas in contemporary urban China and the strategies they employed to cope with this conflict. Also, I will theorize lalas' existences in both ideological public and private domains, and the implication of the dominant community politics of "public correctness" to their symbolic existence and survival. / Since the economic reform period (1978 onwards), Shanghai has become one of the most vibrant sites of lala (the local identity for women with same-sex desires) communities in China. During my field visits from 2005 to 2007, I interviewed twenty-five self-identified lalas in Shanghai. One recurring theme that always came up in the interviews is the conflicts between the informants' desire to have same-sex relationship and the familial expectation of them to get married, or for those who have married, the pressure to maintain the heterosexual family. / The newly acquired economic freedom and geographical mobility in the reform era do not automatically translate into a breakaway from family control. The existence of rapidly developing and widely accessible tongzhi communities in both online and offline spaces, together with a paradigmatic change of the official treatment of homosexual subjects in the legal and medical domains, and the increasingly visible and organized involvements of state experts in the new normalization project of the homosexual population in the country, the exposure and discussion of homosexuality and its subjects have never been so public (in spatial and ideological senses) and diverse as compared to the past decades. Homosexual desire is going more and more public, yet the majority of homosexual population remains to be closeted subjects who are forced to keep their desires and presence as invisible as possible in non-public contexts such as family and more specifically, the heterosexual home space. / Kam, Yip Lo Lucetta. / Advisers: Kit Wai Eric Ma; Hon Ming Yip. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 70-09, Section: A, page: . / Thesis submitted in: December 2008. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 200-214). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / School code: 1307.

Lai Yuen-ki. / Thesis submitted in: October 2003. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves p. 144-146). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Chapter Chapter One - --- Introduction --- p.1 / "What is a ""TB""?" --- p.2 / The cultural context of Hong Kong --- p.6 / Research question --- p.8 / Literature review --- p.9 / Background of the study --- p.16 / Persistent display of masculinities --- p.16 / Fluidity of TB/TBG role-play --- p.23 / Methodology --- p.29 / Chapter Chapter Two - --- The lesbian community --- p.33 / "Identity change from ""tomboy"" to ""TB""" --- p.34 / The lesbian community in Hong Kong --- p.39 / Ethnicity --- p.40 / Lesbian pubs --- p.41 / Lesbian service groups --- p.48 / Lesbian websites --- p.51 / Influence of the lesbian community on TBs´ةmasculinities --- p.56 / Common features of TBs' bodies --- p.56 / Identifying as a TB --- p.62 / Diversity within the lesbian community --- p.71 / Identity --- p.71 / Sexuality --- p.73 / Summary --- p.80 / Chapter Chapter Three - --- Negotiation between TBs and the society --- p.83 / The mini-society: the workplace --- p.84 / Insisting masculinity in the workplace --- p.84 / Femininity in the workplace --- p.91 / Naturalization of TBs´ةmasculinities --- p.102 / Negotiation between TBs and the society --- p.102 / The lesbian community as buffer --- p.104 / Summary --- p.106 / Chapter Chapter Four - --- Negotiation between TBs and the lesbian community --- p.108 / The discourse of sex in Hong Kong --- p.109 / Expectations imposed on TBs --- p.111 / TBs' sexual pleasures --- p.112 / Power dynamics in sex --- p.113 / Negotiation between TBs and the lesbian community --- p.116 / Interchanging sex roles --- p.116 / Role conflict --- p.118 / Role-segregation and audience-segregation --- p.121 / Negotiation process: resistance and conformity --- p.122 / Fluid sexual relationship --- p.123 / Using the sex service --- p.124 / Casual sex with a man --- p.128 / Masturbation --- p.130 / Summary --- p.132 / Chapter Chapter Five - --- Conclusion --- p.134 / Personal reflections --- p.134 / An overview --- p.137 / Limitations --- p.139 / Further implications --- p.141 / Bibliography --- p.144

Li, Ming. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2010. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 74-76). / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter Section I: --- Literature Review --- p.5 / Homosexuals in China --- p.5 / The Invisible Lesbians --- p.6 / Minority Stress --- p.9 / Minority Stress Model --- p.10 / Understanding Lesbians' Stresses in the Chinese Context --- p.13 / Chapter Section II: --- Methodology --- p.17 / Sampling --- p.17 / Data Collection --- p.20 / Data Analysis --- p.22 / Sample Description --- p.23 / Limitations --- p.24 / Chapter Section III: --- Stresses among Lesbians --- p.26 / Family --- p.27 / Labor Market and Workplace --- p.33 / Intimate Relationship --- p.37 / Chapter Section IV: --- Different Identities under the Same Name --- p.46 / Gendered Understanding of Lesbian Identity --- p.46 / Components of Lesbian Identity --- p.58 / Relating Minority Identity to Stress --- p.63 / Chapter Section V: --- Conclusion --- p.69 / References --- p.74

[Truncated abstract] Since the late 1970s, the phrase that has captured the imagination of China's enormous socio-economic change is kaifang (opening up). This phrase signals not only a series of state-directed projects to make China a 'modern' nation, but also a self-conscious desire to find a new sense of national importance and 'Chineseness'. This nationalist self-consciousness is not new, but it indicates a desire to leave China's socialist past behind and become a world power in the new millennium. This thesis explores the complex and heightened manifestations of national pride and identity that have emerged since the era of opening up. Its central question examines how a renewed form of Chineseness, with a specific focus on a fresh form of Chinese same-sex identity, is articulated in both nationalist and globalist terms, with particular reference to China's opening up. This thesis thus contributes to an understanding of how Chinese same-sex identity in urban China is variously constructed and celebrated; how it is transformed; and how it presents its resistances in the context of China's opening up to the mighty flux of globalisation. In doing so, the research illuminates how seemingly modern and authentic Chinese gay and lesbian identities in urban China come into being at the intersection of certain competing discourses. These discourses are predominantly represented in the contexts of 1) an increasingly globalised gay culture, 2) the ongoing construction of an indigenous Chinese identity, 3) a hybridised transnational/Chinese identity, and 4) the emergence of a gay space in Chinese cyberspace. By indicating how these discourses are simultaneously globalised, localised and deterritorialised, and are necessarily entangled with global power relations, I demonstrate how an essentialised notion of Chinese same-sex identity is continuously transformed by the imaginary power of China's opening up to broader contexts. I conclude that it is within the paradigm of China's opening up to the current globalising world that same-sex identity in urban China, as a rapidly changing notion, can best be understood. ... To an extent, the articulation of seemingly modern and authentic Chinese gay and lesbian identities in urban China is in a state of continuous tension between opening up to a global identity and preserving a local authenticity. Furthermore, the development of these gay and lesbian identities is conditioned and regulated by political thought and action. In this way, political conditioning ensures control and conformity in the articulation of Chinese (same-sex) identity in a self-censored (or ziwo shencha) manner. Most fundamentally, self-censorship is practised more effectively at an individual level than at a state level. Against this background, I argue that the articulation of same-sex identity in urban China is paradoxical: open and decentred, but at the same time, nationalist and conforming to state control.

The present thesis explored the experiences and correlates of victimization among Chinese gay men and lesbians in Hong Kong with the aim at reducing their victimization experiences in future. This thesis had two studies. Study One was a cross-sectional study to examine correlates of victimization experiences. Based on the stress and coping paradigm, an integrated model on victimization experiences was developed. The model composed of three predicting factors of victimization experiences: predispositional stressors including gender role atypicality and internalized homophobia, cognitive appraisal variables including perceived discrimination and gay/lesbian community involvement, and sexual identity management strategies including counterfeiting, integration, and confrontation. A total of 645 Chinese gay men and lesbians in Hong Kong participated in this study. Results of path analyses showed that sexual identity management strategy of confrontation was the immediate correlate of victimization. Cognitive appraisal variables, including perceived discrimination and gay/lesbian community involvement, were also directly related to victimization experiences. Predisposition stressors, including gender role atypicality and internalized homophobia, were related to cognitive appraisal variables and sexual identity management strategies, which in turn predicted victimization experiences. The cross-sectional model was examined with four types of victimization experiences, including verbal insults, physical attacks, sexual assaults, and unfair treatment; and with gay men and lesbians separately. Results showed that the model was more predictive of physical attacks and sexual assaults of gay men. Based on the final cross-sectional model, a longitudinal model on victimization experiences and a psychoeducational program on sexual identity management strategies were developed. Study Two was a three-month follow-up study to examine the longitudinal model and to evaluate the effectiveness of the psychoeducational program on reducing future victimization experiences. A random sample of 392 participants from Study One was recruited to Study Two. Results of path analyses showed that victimization experiences at T2 (Time Two) were predicted by three longitudinal paths. Confrontation at T1 (Time One) had direct impact on confrontation at T2, which was linked to victimization experiences at T2. Victimization experiences at T1 predicted confrontation at T2, which was related to victimization experiences at T2. Victimization experiences at T1 had direct effects on victimization experiences at T2. Similar to the cross-sectional model, the longitudinal model was more predictive of physical attacks and sexual assaults of gay men. Results also showed that the psychoeducational program was effective in reducing participants' victimization experiences in future. Compared with the control group, participants of the psychoeducational program used less confrontation strategy, more counterfeiting and integration strategies from T1 to T2. Participants showed greater reduction in victimization experiences than the control group from T1 to T2. Compared with lesbians, gay men demonstrated greater reduction in victimization experiences after the psychoeducational program. Limitations and service implications of the studies were discussed. / Wong Chi Yan. / "August 2005." / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-01, Section: B, page: 0566. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 262-291). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / School code: 1307.