Male homosexual identity in Hong Kong: A social construction

Abstract

This research is to explore the social and psychological forces that influence the identity of a man who has come to describe himself as a 'homosexual.' An attempt is made to understand the emergence of male homosexual identities in Hong Kong-which is predominantly a Chinese community under western influence for more than one century. The results suggest that male homosexual identity arises not so much from homosexual behavior per se but from the stigma and heterosexist beliefs that encompassed it. The acquisition of homosexual identity is largely a response to the cultural definitions of marriage and family, gender and sex roles, as well as a way to handle a culturally induced set of difficulties of getting access to emotional and sexual fulfillment in an environment that prohibits it.