This article examines underexplored aspects of family imaginaries by examining lesbians’ ways of thinking and feeling about having children. Drawing on in-depth interviews with lesbians in Beijing, ...China, I illustrate their agency and difficulties in pursuing parenthood through assisted reproductive technology or other unconventional means and redrawing the boundaries of the family. Building on the concept of family imaginaries and insights into relational selfhood, I identify three types of ‘dialectical family imaginaries’ in lesbians’ accounts of reproductive decision making: imaginaries of bridging, bonding and self-fashioning. These imaginaries are dialectical in the sense that they reproduce cultural ideals of what it means to be related and simultaneously generate new ways of pursuing parenthood while lesbians juggle filial affection and personal, pragmatic goals. This article highlights the sociological utility of ‘dialectical family imaginaries’ for exploring different forms and meanings of relatedness negotiated between the self, family and intergenerational relations, and wider society.
This article examines the ways in which lesbians’ economic and intimate lives are closely intertwined amid neoliberal development in the urban landscape. Previous research on queer urban life has ...primarily drawn attention to commodified gay neighbourhoods and other sites for sexual consumption, which are often marketised as part of a liberal and queer-friendly urban landscape, in Euro-American contexts. Such a focus is not adequate, however, to capture the complex interplay between intimacy and commodification in contemporary societies. Drawing upon interviews with 35 lesbians in Beijing, this study shows how the market is experienced by lesbians as a site of queer agency and vulnerability under neoliberalism with Chinese characteristics. The findings reveal ‘commodified forms of intimacy’, through which lesbians actively engage in the labour market and (queer-targeted) pink market in order to develop their intimate relations. Meanwhile, ‘intimatised forms of commodification’ illustrate how women’s gendered and sexual expressions are closely policed and evaluated in the workplace as a site of both economic production and the reproduction of social norms. Participants were conscious of their vulnerable position as women and lesbians in the marketplace, but they were active in strategising ways to navigate urban landscapes of heteronormativity and gender inequalities. This article helps to develop a deeper understanding of the complicated and contradictory impacts of neoliberalism with Chinese characteristics on queer communities. It contributes to urban sociology and sexuality studies by mapping the multiple connections between commodified relations and intimate relations in the neoliberal city.
Engaging with visual methodology literature and the concept of ‘family display’, this article examines how visual methods can generate new ways of understanding the (in)visibility of queer family ...life. Engaging Chinese lesbians in image-making and photo-elicitation interviews, I illustrate how visual methods give access to different ways of making sense of ‘family’, including the ‘everyday’, the ‘imaginary’, and the ‘void’. By exploring the image-maker’s intentions, the presence or absence of the image-maker, and diverse ways of displaying family, I show how visual methods can facilitate the display of family ties, tensions, and ideals. Adopted in an open format that allows flexibility and creativity, visual methods generate space for participants to communicate the unrealisable and unseeable and for researchers to examine how dominant heteronormative representations and discourses around the ‘family’ restrict possibilities of displaying family. I highlight the importance of maintaining openness and sensitivity to cultural peculiarities when adopting visual methods.
This article explores the ways in which Chinese lesbians, who identify themselves as lalas, form their own families and navigate their relationships with families of origin. To date, there is a lack ...of research on families formed by same-sex couples in urban China, where homosexuality remains stigmatized. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with 35 lala-identified women in Beijing, this article shows that lalas' formation of families has been shaped by, but at the same time shaping, their relationships with their families of origin, who tend to embrace heteronormative family beliefs. Engaging with ongoing debates on choice and individualization, this study reveals the tensions between lalas' family aspirations and gendered, familial, material, and socio-political constraints imposed on female-led same-sex families. It contributes to sociological understanding of family change by revealing alternative paths to same-sex family formation in a context where the act of coming out is challenging and families formed by same-sex couples remain largely invisible.
Abstract This study explored the changing views of key stakeholders (peer support workers, their co-workers, and service users) about peer support services in a non-Western community, using a ...longitudinal qualitative approach. Five trainee peer support workers (PSWs), 15 service users, and 14 co-workers were interviewed over a 12-month period, under the auspices of the Peer Support Workers Project (also known as the Mindset project) in Hong Kong. A total of 77 interviews were transcribed and thematic analyses were conducted across the participant groups at three different time points (training, work placements, and employment). During the initial implementation of the services, uncertainty about the role of the PSWs were reported. However, trusting and beneficial relationships with service users were gradually built, showing growing resilience and confidence over time. The participants realized that PSWs’ experiences of mental illnesses were a unique asset that could help service users to alleviate their own somatic symptoms and improve their connections with others. Our findings highlight that the perceptions of peer support services changed from confusion to viewing PSWs as an asset, to an awareness of the importance of family support, and to the belief that implementing such a program will benefit both service users and PSWs.
The strengths model of case management (SMCM), which was developed by Rapp and Goscha through collaborative efforts at the University of Kansas, assists individuals with mental illness in their ...recovery by mobilizing individual and environmental resources. Increasing evidence has shown that the utilization of the SMCM improves outcomes, including increased employment/educational attainment, reduced hospitalization rates, higher self-efficacy, and hope. However, little is known about the processes through which the SMCM improves outcomes for mental health service users. This study explores the views of case workers and service users on their experience of providing or receiving the SMCM intervention.
A qualitative design was employed using individual interviews with service users and case workers drawn from two study conditions: the SMCM group and the control group (treatment as usual). For both study conditions, service users were recruited by either centres-in-charge or case workers from integrated community centres for mental wellness (ICCMWs) operated by three non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in different districts of Hong Kong. Through purposeful sampling, 24 service users and 14 case workers from the SMCM and control groups joined the study. We used an inductive approach to analyse the qualitative data.
We identified two overarching themes: service users' and case workers' (1) perceptions of the impacts of the interventions (SMCM and control group) and (2) experiences of the interventions, such as features of the interventions and the factors that facilitated the outcomes. The results showed that there were improvements in the functional recovery of the SMCM group in areas such as employment and family relationships, how self-identified goals were achieved, and how service users gained a better understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses. Regarding their experience of the interventions, participants in both the SMCM group and the control group reported that a good relationship between service users and case workers was vital. However, some concerns were raised about the use of SMCM tools, including the strengths assessment and the personal recovery plan (PRP) and the risk of case workers being subjective in the presentation of cases in group supervision sessions.
The results were promising in terms of supporting the use of the SMCM, with some refinements, in mental health services for Chinese clients.
The Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR), ACTRN12617001435370 , registered on 10/10/2017.
To assess the perceived importance of childbearing and attitudes toward assisted reproductive technology (ART) among Chinese lesbians and the impact on their psychological well-being.
Survey-based ...study using a 39-item questionnaire.
Not applicable.
A total of 438 Chinese lesbians between the ages of 18 and 35 years.
None.
Perceived importance of childbearing; attitudes toward ART; and levels of anxiety and depression.
Perceived importance of childbearing to Chinese lesbians was negatively associated with age (r = -0.23), relationship length (r = -0.18), and full-time employment (F = 4.29). Compared to heterosexual childless women, Chinese lesbians thought childbearing was significantly less important (3.30 vs. 6.00 on a 1-10 scale, t = 14.6). Most lesbian respondents (92%) supported legalizing same-sex couples' access to ART, although less than half (41%) wanted to use it themselves to have children. Among lesbians who thought childbearing was important to their parents or their partners, not wanting ART was associated with higher anxiety levels.
This is the first quantitative study of childbearing attitudes of lesbians in Asia. The data suggest that Chinese lesbians in the study who perceived childbearing as important to their parents or to their partners but did not want to seek ART reported higher anxiety levels. This study helps raise health care professionals' awareness of Chinese lesbians' attitudes toward childbearing as well as calls for a better delivery system of fertility and mental health services to address the psychological burden of Chinese lesbians in relation to reproductive issues.
Older adults’ mental health and suicidal tendencies have garnered much attention because of their vulnerability. Few studies have examined the impact of psychological well-being and suicide attempts ...among older men who have sex with men (OMSM). This study examines the levels of depression and suicidal tendencies among OMSM, factors impacting their mental health, and their likelihood of committing suicide. Descriptive statistics are used to analyze the correlation between depression and suicidal tendencies among OMSM in the United States. We constructed a regression model using relevant data, and scales were selected based on a literature review. The validity and relevance of the control variables were considered. Depression and suicidal tendencies were dependent variables. Data were obtained from the U.S. General Social Survey and analyzed with an ordinary least squares model. There were significant differences between MSM and general groups in depression and suicidal tendency scores (t = 67.084, 58.193, p < .01). Compared with general groups, MSM scored significantly higher on depression and suicidal tendencies. The regression analysis revealed that sex with men was associated with depression and suicidal tendencies (p < .01) among older men. This indicates that OMSM generally have higher levels of depression and suicidal tendencies than the general population. Finally, in the intermediary test, the level of depression had a significant mediating effect on the relationship between homosexuality and suicidal tendencies (p < .01). This suggests that depression intervention can help reduce suicidal tendencies among OMSM.
Tau toxicity has been implicated in the emergence of synaptic dysfunction in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), but the mechanism by which tau alters synapse physiology and leads to cognitive decline is ...unclear. Here we report abnormal acetylation of K274 and K281 on tau, identified in AD brains, promotes memory loss and disrupts synaptic plasticity by reducing postsynaptic KIdney/BRAin (KIBRA) protein, a memory-associated protein. Transgenic mice expressing human tau with lysine-to-glutamine mutations to mimic K274 and K281 acetylation (tauKQ) exhibit AD-related memory deficits and impaired hippocampal long-term potentiation (LTP). TauKQ reduces synaptic KIBRA levels and disrupts activity-induced postsynaptic actin remodeling and AMPA receptor insertion. The LTP deficit was rescued by promoting actin polymerization or by KIBRA expression. In AD patients with dementia, we found enhanced tau acetylation is linked to loss of KIBRA. These findings suggest a novel mechanism by which pathogenic tau causes synaptic dysfunction and cognitive decline in AD pathogenesis.
•Dementia in AD is marked by enhanced acetylation of K281 and K274 on tau•Acetylated tau impairs memory encoding and AMPA receptor trafficking during LTP•Postsynaptic activity-dependent actin polymerization is blocked by acetylated tau•Loss of postsynaptic protein KIBRA underlies the tau-mediated LTP deficit
Tracy et al. identify K274 and K281 acetylation on tau as a contributing factor to synaptic dysfunction and memory loss related to Alzheimer’s disease. They show that acetylated tau disrupts postsynaptic signaling required for long-term synaptic strengthening.
A152T‐variant human tau (hTau‐A152T) increases risk for tauopathies, including Alzheimer's disease. Comparing mice with regulatable expression of hTau‐A152T or wild‐type hTau (hTau‐WT), we find ...age‐dependent neuronal loss, cognitive impairments, and spontaneous nonconvulsive epileptiform activity primarily in hTau‐A152T mice. However, overexpression of either hTau species enhances neuronal responses to electrical stimulation of synaptic inputs and to an epileptogenic chemical. hTau‐A152T mice have higher hTau protein/mRNA ratios in brain, suggesting that A152T increases production or decreases clearance of hTau protein. Despite their functional abnormalities, aging hTau‐A152T mice show no evidence for accumulation of insoluble tau aggregates, suggesting that their dysfunctions are caused by soluble tau. In human amyloid precursor protein (hAPP) transgenic mice, co‐expression of hTau‐A152T enhances risk of early death and epileptic activity, suggesting copathogenic interactions between hTau‐A152T and amyloid‐β peptides or other hAPP metabolites. Thus, the A152T substitution may augment risk for neurodegenerative diseases by increasing hTau protein levels, promoting network hyperexcitability, and synergizing with the adverse effects of other pathogenic factors.
Synopsis
A mouse model of A152T‐variant human tau suggests that the mutation augments the risk for neurodegenerative diseases by increasing neuronal levels of soluble hTau, promoting network hyperexcitability, and synergizing with adverse effects of other pathogenic factors.
Cortical and hippocampal hTau protein/mRNA ratios are higher and hTau fragment levels lower in hTau‐A152T than hTau‐WT mice.
hTau‐A152T mice show age‐dependent neuronal loss, astrocytosis, nonconvulsive epileptiform activity and cognitive impairments, but no accumulation of insoluble, fibrillar tau.
In human amyloid precursor protein (hAPP) transgenic mice, co‐expression of hTau‐A152T worsens premature mortality and epileptic activity, suggesting co‐pathogenic interactions between hTau‐A152T and amyloid‐β peptides or other hAPP metabolites.
A mouse model of A152T‐variant human tau suggests that the mutation augments the risk for neurodegenerative diseases by increasing neuronal levels of soluble hTau, promoting network hyperexcitability, and synergizing with adverse effects of other pathogenic factors.
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