Parenting Desire Among Sexual Minority Women in China: From the Stigma Perspective. 2024

Yaxin Pu, and Wenjian Xu
Department of Sociology and Psychology, School of Public Administration, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610065, China.

In China, women who are childless or have children outside of heterosexual marriage are generally stigmatized. Consequently, Chinese sexual minority women are challenged for their willingness to have children. This study explored how multiple (structural-interpersonal-individual) levels of sexual minority stigma are related to parenting desire among Chinese sexual minority women. Furthermore, it examined the mediation mechanism of individual stigma and the moderation effect of outness to one's family in the link between structural/interpersonal stigma and parenting desire. Participants (265 lesbian and 193 bisexual women) completed online measures of structural stigma (adherence to Confucianism), interpersonal stigma (discrimination events), individual stigma (internalized homophobia and rejection sensitivity), outness to one's family, and parenting desire. Lesbian women reported lower structural and individual stigma and parenting desire levels than bisexual women. Sexual minority women's high adherence to Confucianism, internalized homophobia, and rejection sensitivity were positively associated with their increased parenting desires. Notably, adherence to Confucianism and discrimination events were associated with parenting desire through internalized homophobia, but not rejection sensitivity; moreover, outness to one's family buffered the direct link between adherence to Confucianism and parenting desire and strengthened the direct link between discrimination events and internalized homophobia and the indirect link between discrimination events and parenting desire. This study contributes to a robust understanding of how sexual minority stigma is connected to parenting desire among sexual minority women in Chinese sociocultural contexts, providing cultural-specific evidence to support theories of stigma and minority stress.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D001727 Bisexuality The sexual attraction or relationship between members of both the same and the opposite SEX.
D002648 Child A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL. Children
D002681 China A country spanning from central Asia to the Pacific Ocean. Inner Mongolia,Manchuria,People's Republic of China,Sinkiang,Mainland China
D005260 Female Females
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000072339 Sexual and Gender Minorities Individuals including lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, gender non-conforming people, and other populations whose sexual orientation or GENDER IDENTITY and reproductive development is considered outside cultural, societal, or physiological norms. Gays,Gender Diverse,LGBTQ,LGBTQIA,Bisexuals,GLBT Persons,Gender Minorities,Homosexuals,LBG Persons,LGBT Persons,LGBTQ Persons,Lesbians,Lesbigay Persons,Men Who Have Sex With Men,Non-Heterosexual Persons,Non-Heterosexuals,Queers,Sexual Dissidents,Sexual Minorities,Women Who Have Sex With Women,Bisexual,Dissident, Sexual,Dissidents, Sexual,Diverse, Gender,GLBT Person,Gay,Gender Minority,Homosexual,LBG Person,LGBT Person,LGBTQ Person,Lesbian,Lesbigay Person,Minorities, Gender,Minorities, Sexual,Minority, Gender,Minority, Sexual,Non Heterosexual Persons,Non Heterosexuals,Non-Heterosexual,Non-Heterosexual Person,Person, GLBT,Person, LBG,Person, LGBT,Person, LGBTQ,Person, Lesbigay,Person, Non-Heterosexual,Persons, GLBT,Persons, LBG,Persons, LGBT,Persons, LGBTQ,Persons, Lesbigay,Queer,Sexual Dissident,Sexual Minority
D016487 Parenting Performing the role of a parent by care-giving, nurturance, and protection of the child by a natural or substitute parent. The parent supports the child by exercising authority and through consistent, empathic, appropriate behavior in response to the child's needs. PARENTING differs from CHILD REARING in that in child rearing the emphasis is on the act of training or bringing up the children and the interaction between the parent and child, while parenting emphasizes the responsibility and qualities of exemplary behavior of the parent.
D057545 Social Stigma A perceived attribute that is deeply discrediting and is considered to be a violation of social norms. Stigma, Social,Social Stigmas,Stigmas, Social
D018452 Homosexuality, Female Sexual attraction or relationship between females. Lesbianism,Female Homosexuality

Related Publications

Yaxin Pu, and Wenjian Xu
January 2017, Women's health issues : official publication of the Jacobs Institute of Women's Health,
Yaxin Pu, and Wenjian Xu
March 2024, Journal of assisted reproduction and genetics,
Yaxin Pu, and Wenjian Xu
November 2015, Pediatrics,
Yaxin Pu, and Wenjian Xu
August 2009, Journal of youth and adolescence,
Yaxin Pu, and Wenjian Xu
January 2013, Psychiatria polska,
Copied contents to your clipboard!