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Current Assessment of Coming Out. N D 64 for mother, 36 for father, 78 for schoolmate, 43 for coworker, and 12 for spouse.
Source publication
Invisibility is a major obstacle to the improvement of the lives of GLBT individuals in contemporary Japanese society. Japanese GLBT scholars and activists attest that it is extremely difficult to come out of the closet in Japan. There is little systematic research, however, as to why. Using online survey data from 136 GLBT individuals in Japan, th...
Context in source publication
Context 1
... variously difficult coming-out experiences, the great majority of the par- ticipants reported that they were currently glad that they had come out, regardless of who they had come out to, as Figure 5 shows. Yet, significantly fewer of those who came out to a coworker reported that they currently regret or cannot say if they either regret or are glad that they came out. ...
Citations
... In contemporary Japanese society, the family unit is frequently perceived as the source of homophobia, where negative sentiments and attitudes towards homosexuality are expressed [32]. This stems in part from a societal pressure for conformity to traditional norms, leading parents to harbour fears of public scrutiny and potentially react unfavourably to children deviating from heteronormative expectations [33]. Therefore, even if an individual expects assistance from family after disclosing their HIV-positive status, it is likely that they may not receive adequate emotional support from parents, who are feeling uncomfortable upon discovering that their child is homosexual. ...
Background
There is a scarcity of research on the potential impact of disclosing HIV status to friends and family in moderating the adverse effects of discrimination on the mental health of people living with HIV (PLWH). This study assessed the experiences of discrimination and HIV status disclosure among PLWH in Japan, and evaluated their potential associations with psychological distress.
Method
Data were derived from a nationwide cross-sectional survey of PLWH conducted in Japan between 2019 and 2020. The interaction effects of HIV-related discrimination and HIV status disclosure on the psychological distress were examined using logistic and linear regression analyses.
Results
The median age of the 804 respondents was 46 years old. Most respondents were male and 85.4% (687/804) identified as homosexuals or bisexuals. A total of 12.7% (102/804) of the respondents reported that they had recently experienced discrimination because of their HIV status. Experience of HIV-related discrimination was independently associated with high psychological distress (adjusted OR 2.02; 95% CI, 1.15–3.57), and HIV status disclosure to friends partially weakened the association between discrimination and the level of psychological distress (regression coefficient −3.115; p = 0.004).
Conclusion
While measures that aim to end discrimination remain vital, increasing the opportunities of PLWH to communicate with friends they feel comfortable disclosing their HIV status may also be helpful in protecting their mental health.
... Hiding sexuality from family members is a psychological burden for gay and bisexual men [6,11,19,20]. Although the majority of LGBT individuals report wanting to come out their sexuality to family members, only 14.7% came out [21,22]. It is possible that seeking help for emotional support from others help these individuals become more accepting and easier to come out to family members [9,16,23], but this association remains uninvestigated in Japan. ...
Objective
This study investigates Japanese gay and bisexual men’s experiences of seeking help for emotional support from others regarding their sexual orientation concerns. It examines the relationship between their help-seeking and presence of gay and bisexual peers, duration between questioning their sexual orientation and accepting it, and experience of coming out to family members by multiple logistic regression analysis.
Results
We conducted a cross-sectional survey using a self-reported paper questionnaire. There were 360 valid responses. Eighty-two respondents (22.8%) had experience of help-seeking for emotional support, and this was associated with age, occupation, presence of gay/bisexual friends, and experience of coming out to family members about their sexual orientation. Respondents sought the most help from their male friends (70.0%), followed by female friends (25.0%), mothers (17.5%), and the Internet (16.3%). Even after controlling for age and occupation, experience of help-seeking for emotional support was higher among participants who had gay/bisexual friends when they were aware of their sexual orientation, took < 1 year from questioning to realizing their sexual orientation, and had come out to their family about their sexual orientation.
... There are still instances of bullying and gender inequality in the workplace (Chi, 2016). In addition, Tamagawa (2018) mentions the difficulty of coming out in Japan compared to other countries, citing factors of culture, family complexity, and generation gaps. ...
A report on an LGBT unit devised for an EFL social policy issues course.
... Thus, specific reactions to coming out are unique to some cultures, which are quite evident from the qualitative studies. [21,24,26,28,37] Coming out process in countries like Japan, China, and Taiwan emphasize the role of collectivistic societal ideals where the process is a violation of traditional honors and would only mean getting ousted from the family [70][71][72][73] . Thus, a model of 'Coming Home' is highlighted where the return to the family after gaining acceptance is a more appropriate way of understanding this process. ...
Background
People who identify themselves as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and others (LGBTQ+) go through a process of self-exploration and self-identification during adolescence, and the process resolves when one decides to self-disclosure. The experience of ‘Coming Out’ (CO) can be positive, leading to acceptance and a feeling of liberation, or it can be harmful, leading to stigma, humiliation, and discrimination, subsequently leading to significant psychological distress.
Aim
This study was to do a narrative review on the studies published in the area/topic of CO in youth in the last decade (2012-2022) and to look for factors that act as barriers and facilitators of CO. Additionally, we have tried to look for differences in CO in LGBTQ+ adolescents and youth in the Western world vis-a-vis Indian/Eastern societies.
Materials and Methods
An extensive literature search in electronic databases, PUBMED, Web of Science, EMBASE, Medline, Scopus, and search engine ‘Google Scholar’ using specific search terms and assessment of all published articles until 20 th May 2023 was done.
Results
Twenty-three studies were found eligible for data extraction, which discussed the problems faced during the CO process. Most of the studies are from developed countries, and only one is from India. Eleven were qualitative studies, 11 were cross-sectional studies, and one was a case study. The qualitative studies focused on generating themes of CO along with various issues/problems faced by the participants. The cross-sectional studies mainly explored parental reactions, stigma, parental support, psychological distress, and perceived stress in the participants. Major themes emerging from the qualitative studies were the experience of prejudice from various strata of society, such as parental, societal, racial, cultural, and religious factors that lead to problems of hiding, internalized homophobia, and anticipatory rejections that put this population under extreme conditions. Limited research is available from Eastern societies. More recently, the new generation of adolescents has taken the help of social media platforms for self-disclosure.
Conclusions
CO is an elaborate multi-step process that considers the presence of parental/family and societal support, cultural/traditional values, and several psychosocial factors that determine the degree of positive outcomes. Emerging data indicated an improved trend of adolescents deciding to come out to families or in online platforms, both of which are associated with challenges, more in eastern collectivistic societies and developing countries.
... As such, gender and sexual minorities have been stigmatized during large parts of the 20th century, and continue to be, to a certain degree, in both countries. For example, a Japanese report showed that, in 2005, less than 14% of gay and bisexual men had come out to their parents, with experiences of familial homophobia common and attributed to Confucian-inspired heteronormative ideals [52]. Surveys on social acceptance of LGBT people show that on a 10-point scale, Swedish people score 7.9 (similar to Ireland and Nepal) and Japanese people 4.9 (similar to Hungary, Myanmar, and Bangladesh) [53]. ...
There is a lack of research on older lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ) adults. This systematic review aimed to synthesize Japanese and Swedish qualitative research on LGBTQ adults aged 60 years or older following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Japanese and Swedish articles, published in English, were searched across ASSIA, CINAHL, Medline, PsychINFO, PubMed, Scopus, and Sociological Abstracts databases. Additional searches were conducted to include studies in Japanese or Swedish. There were no papers from Japan, whereas five from Sweden were reviewed. One article was excluded due to the wrong phenomenon. Four articles were included, involving 48 participants aged 60-94 years. We summarized the findings using a deductive thematic synthesis. Two major themes emerged: (a) quality of life, minority joy, and resilience (positive aspects), and (b) discrimination, stigmatization, and minority stress (negative aspects). The participants wished to be acknowledged for their own assets and unique life histories, and to be treated as everyone else. They emphasized the importance of knowledge of LGBTQ issues among nursing staff, so that older LGBTQ people are treated in a competent and affirmative way. The study revealed several important topics for understanding older LGBTQ adults' life circumstances and the severe lack of qualitative studies in Japan and Sweden.
... Except for several local policies, same-sex marriage is not legally recognized in Japan (Tamagawa, 2018). Indeed, Japan is the only G7 country without the legalization of same-sex marriage, and Taiwan is the only place where same-sex unions are legal in Asia (Pew Research Center, 2019). ...
... Melela hanyalah salah satu aspek dari proses penemuan jati diri individu LGBTQ (Rosenberg, 2018). Tamagawa (2018) berargumen bahwa individu LGBTQ di Jepang merasa lebih sulit melela kepada orang tua dibanding kepada teman sejawat atau teman sekolah. Salah satu alasan utama adalah karena orang tua yang bersangkutan cenderung tidak memahami isu-isu LGBTQ, tidak mau menerima kenyataan bahwa anaknya memiliki identitas gender atau orientasi seksual LGBTQ, dan cenderung memaksa anaknya untuk menjalani kehidupan yang heteronormatif (Tamagawa 2018). ...
... Tamagawa (2018) berargumen bahwa individu LGBTQ di Jepang merasa lebih sulit melela kepada orang tua dibanding kepada teman sejawat atau teman sekolah. Salah satu alasan utama adalah karena orang tua yang bersangkutan cenderung tidak memahami isu-isu LGBTQ, tidak mau menerima kenyataan bahwa anaknya memiliki identitas gender atau orientasi seksual LGBTQ, dan cenderung memaksa anaknya untuk menjalani kehidupan yang heteronormatif (Tamagawa 2018). Otsubo (2020) menyoroti soal pemikiran di kalangan aktivis LGBTQ ataupun heteroseksual bahwa individu LGBTQ harus mengakui orientasi seksual ataupun identitas gendernya kepada lingkungannya. ...
This study examines the concept of coming out as part of queer narrative within Shimanami Tasogare (2015), a manga by Kamatani Yūki. Although coming out has become an important concept within LGBTQ, previous related research tends to see coming out as a one-time achievement. This study analyses the significance of coming out in Shimanami Tasogare by using the queer narrative approach. This study applies Klein et al.’s theory (2015) which argues that coming out is a dynamic and non-linear social process. This study uses text analysis and compositional interpretation (Rose, 2001) as research method. Results show that coming out plays a significant role for the characters who have done it for two reasons. First, coming out is a way for LGBTQ individuals to remove the compulsion to hide their non-heteronormative identity. Second, coming out is also a way to educate people who misunderstand or have misconceptions about LGBTQ. This study found that Shimanami Tasogare has succeeded in depicting the complexity of LGBTQ identity without trapping itself within the traditional queer narrative which assumes that coming out is a linear process.
... It is generally accepted that mothers and other family members play a crucial role in the wellbeing and life courses of their children (Aaron & Rostosky, 2019;Abreu & Gonzalez, 2020;Ishii, 2018;Rosenkrantz et al., 2020;Tamagawa, 2018). However, there is nothing substantive written about Indigenous LGBTIQSB + children and their relationship with their Indigenous mothers in Australia. ...
... However, there is nothing substantive written about Indigenous LGBTIQSB + children and their relationship with their Indigenous mothers in Australia. Although there is an emerging body of research on mothering and LGBTIQ + children this evidence base does not usually include Indigenous LGBTIQ + families (Aaron & Rostosky, 2019;Abreu & Gonzalez, 2020;Ishii, 2018;Rosenkrantz et al., 2020;Tamagawa, 2018). The majority of the literature about LGBTIQ + people, their families and communities tends to investigate white, non-Indigenous LGBTIQ + people living in the United States (Abreu & Gonzalez, 2020). ...
... Important factors in the relationship between LGBTIQ + children and their families include the strength of heteropatriarchal and heteronormative values, gender identities, and gendered roles in families. Some studies show that different cultures have differing gendered values about child rearing, with normative expectations based on the relative strength of heteropatriarchal and heteronormative values about the gendered role of women and men in the family (Ishii, 2018;Tamagawa, 2018). Within strongly heteropatriarchal families, for example, mothers are seen as the primary caregiver responsible for child rearing, and children often spend more time with their mothers and develop deeper, more intimate emotional connections with them (Aaron & Rostosky, 2019;Brainer, 2017;Svab & Kuhar, 2014;Tamagawa, 2018). ...
There is no research into the experiences of Indigenous LGBTIQSB + young people and their mothers in the country now known as Australia. Based on a series of nine narrative interviews with young LGBTIQSB + people living in New South Wales, this article is the first to discuss Indigenous LGBTIQSB + children’s relationship with their Indigenous mothers. Indigenous mothers have been framed in ways that justified targeted settler state interventions situated within broader racialised biopolitical governance practices and the regulation of Indigenous lives. The findings of this research project provide a counter narrative to the current framing of Indigenous mothers and families as dysfunctional and in need of intervention by state and welfare agencies. Indigenous LGBTIQSB + young people speak to their experiences of coming out and the ways their Indigenous mothers defended, affirmed and advocated for them. Participants spoke of how Indigenous mothers provided them with protective skills and strategies that allowed them to effectively navigate close and extended familial and community contexts. This article demonstrates the significance of Indigenous mothering practices and values for the wellbeing of their LGBTIQSB + children.
... 10 Tamagawa also commented that 'a number of Japanese GLBT scholars and activists attest that it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to come out of the closet in Japanese society' (p 488). 11 In Japan, where LGBT people are thus less visible, the revision of the model core curriculum for medical education for the 2016 academic year (2017) was the first version to include a learning goal about being able to 'explain gender formation, sexual orientation, and ways of consideration for gender identification' (p 43). 12 However, there are still no guidelines about what and how to teach LGBT-related content in medical education in Japan. ...
Objectives:
We aimed to clarify current teaching on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) content in Japanese medical schools and compare it with data from the USA and Canada reported in 2011 and Australia and New Zealand reported in 2017.
Design:
Cross-sectional study.
Setting:
Eighty-two medical schools in Japan.
Participants:
The deans and/or relevant faculty members of the medical schools in Japan.
Primary outcome measure:
Hours dedicated to teaching LGBT content in each medical school.
Results:
In total, 60 schools (73.2%) returned a questionnaire. One was excluded because of missing values, leaving 59 responses (72.0%) for analysis. In total, LGBT content was included in preclinical training in 31 of 59 schools and in clinical training in 8 of 53 schools. The proportion of schools that taught no LGBT content in Japan was significantly higher than that in the USA and Canada, both in preclinical and clinical training (p<0.01). The median time dedicated to LGBT content was 1 hour (25th-75th percentile 0-2 hours) during preclinical training and 0 hour during clinical training (25th-75th percentile 0-0 hour). Only 13 schools (22%) taught students to ask about same-sex relations when obtaining a sexual history. Biomedical topics were more likely to be taught than social topics. In total, 45 of 57 schools (79%) evaluated their coverage of LGBT content as poor or very poor, and 23 schools (39%) had some students who had come out as LGBT. Schools with faculty members interested in education on LGBT content were more likely to cover it.
Conclusion:
Education on LGBT content in Japanese medical schools is less established than in the USA and Canada.
... It has been estimated that 83.0% of the global sexual minority population conceals its sexual orientation from all or most people [1]. Such concealment may cause men who have sex with men (MSM) to avoid HIV testing, thereby increasing the risk of HIV infection and interfering with AIDS-related behavioral interventions [2][3][4]. Although the experience of sexual stigma among MSMs in China is well documented [5][6][7][8], little is known about its effect on the psychological well-being of young MSMs (YMSM). ...
... The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare. 1 Nursing College, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, China. 2 Nanning Municipal Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Nanning, Guangxi, China. 3 School of Public Health, Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, Guangxi, China. ...
Abstract Introduction This study aimed to investigate sexual orientation disclosure and mental health among young men who have sex with men (YMSMs). To this end, we constructed a chained multimediator model of sexual minority stigma, sexual minority identity, social support, and resilience, with the moderator of sexual orientation disclosure. Methods We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 345 YMSMs in Nanning, China. Bivariate analysis was used to evaluate factors associated with sexual orientation disclosure. Sexual minority stigma was used to predict identity, with social support as the step 1 mediator and resilience as the step 2 mediator. Sexual minority identity was analyzed using a chained moderated mediation model; sexual orientation disclosure was included as a moderator in all models to control its confounding effect. Results The average age of YMSMs was 20.0 ± 1.3 years. Bivariate analysis indicated that YMSMs who disclosed sexual orientation may have experienced less stigma (15.49 ± 3.02 vs 16.21 ± 2.74), obtained more social support (65.98 ± 11.18 vs 63.19 ± 11.13), had strong psychological resilience (37.40 ± 8.57 vs 35.39 ± 7.73), and had a more positive self-identity (104.12 ± 21.10 vs 95.35 ± 16.67); differences between subgroups were statistically significant (p