{"title":"Queering singlehood: Examining the intersection of sexuality and relationship status from a queer lens","authors":"Erin S. Lavender-Stott","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12521","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12521","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This paper uses a queer theoretical lens to redefine family boundaries and structures by exploring LGBTQIA+ and single adults' relationships through the interconnectedness of their marginalized histories. Queer theory both centers LGBTQIA+ lives and deconstructs normativities. The overlapping history of singlehood and LGBTQIA+ will be explored using examples including romantic friendships, same-sex couples and legal marriage, family of choice, and relationship anarchy. These examples explore how LGBTQIA+ people have often been considered single or choose new interpretations of singlehood (e.g., solo polyamory). The paper also explores how single people have often been considered outside the heterosexual norm. Thus, how these lived experiences deconstruct heteronormativity and can deconstruct mononormativity, amatonormativity, and homonormativity is examined. Understanding and acknowledging family lives beyond these normativities will build toward a more inclusive family and relationship science.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 3","pages":"428-443"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-06-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50125097","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Intersectionality in studying and theorizing singlehood","authors":"Elyakim Kislev, Kris Marsh","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12522","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12522","url":null,"abstract":"<p>This article underscores the importance of recognizing the diversity and intricacy of singlehood and transcending a simplistic view of singles as a monolithic group. By adopting an intersectional approach, researchers can obtain a deeper understanding of singles' experiences and identify their unique needs. Moreover, this understanding has profound implications for social justice endeavors, as singles may encounter compounded discrimination and necessitate deliberate communities and social policies that support them. Specifically, we advance here a four-fold argument. First, singlehood should not only be viewed as a demographic characteristic but also as a chosen status and identity. In turn, researchers must acknowledge divisions such as race, gender, class, and sexuality within this overarching category. Third, intersectionality must be analyzed in its compound and intricate effects, as singlehood intertwines with other categories in distinct ways. Fourth, this carries far-reaching implications, and intersectionality can serve as a critical praxis that informs social justice initiatives.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 3","pages":"412-427"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-06-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jftr.12522","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50121611","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Dimitri Mortelmans, Elke Claessens, Gert Thielemans
{"title":"Defining and measuring singlehood in family studies","authors":"Dimitri Mortelmans, Elke Claessens, Gert Thielemans","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12520","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12520","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Many authors have documented a global rise in singlehood during the past decades, expanding beyond Western or industrialized countries. Simultaneously, the number of single households is increasing, not only due to the aging of the population, but also because young adults are increasingly living solo. Whereas having no partner and solo living do not necessarily coincide, existing studies tend to overlook this distinction. In this paper, we provide conceptual clarity as to what types of singlehood can be distinguished, through a framework that builds on two dimensions: living solo and being partnered. Next, we delve into the issue of measurement. We illustrate the issues in implementing an extended singlehood framework to empirical data. To do so, we examine internationally comparative retrospective studies and prospective panel studies, and identify three levels of operationalization that current datasets achieve when identifying a redefined notion of singlehood.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 3","pages":"485-505"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jftr.12520","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50125930","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Sex and single women in midlife: Theoretical perspectives, recent findings, and future directions","authors":"Nancy Luke, Michelle Poulin","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12518","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12518","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Demographic trends, such as the graying of divorce, have led to increasing numbers of unmarried women in midlife, yet little is known about the meaning of sex and intimacy among this population. This article reviews the nascent literature on single women's sexual experiences at midlife, theoretical frameworks that have been employed, and key findings. Challenging the stereotype that single women in midlife are in sexual decline, research shows that many women embrace their newfound freedom, have increased agency in midlife, and have positive sexual experiences. Others face impediments to finding new partners and engaging in sexual activity, including the lasting effects of abuse from previous relationships and restrictive social norms. For some, sex becomes less important in midlife, often replaced by close relationships with family and friends. Research largely focuses on White, heterosexual women; research on the experiences of racial and sexual minorities and midlife women in the Global South is needed.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 3","pages":"578-594"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jftr.12518","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50148403","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Studying stepfamilies, surfacing secrets: A reflection on the private motivations behind efforts to humanize family complexity","authors":"Caroline Sanner","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12512","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12512","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Feminist family scholars have long called for greater transparency of the partial perspectives embedded within family science. In this paper, I employ feminist reflexive autoethnography to unpack the private motivations that guide my research on family complexity. Using critical storytelling, I trace the personal developments that led to a research program on structurally complex families—families shaped and reshaped by divorce, separations, repartnerships, and remarriages. I explore my commitments to <i>naming the invisible</i>, <i>embracing the messy</i>, and ultimately, <i>humanizing</i> the complicated and meaningful emotions and relationships in families navigating structural changes. I draw upon personal, embodied experiences to theorize about issues and phenomena that have yet to be named in the (step)family scholarship. Finally, I invite others to heed the calls of feminist scholars whose work invites us to consider how private experiences can be leveraged to generate new insights into the complexities of family and social life.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 2","pages":"259-275"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jftr.12512","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50145016","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"JFTR's venues and voices for family theorizing and critical review","authors":"Katherine R. Allen","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12513","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12513","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 2","pages":"187-191"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50133809","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Racism and the mechanisms maintaining racial stratification in Black families","authors":"Deadric T. Williams","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12511","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12511","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Structural racism is central for understanding Black families, but structural racism has not been central to quantitative research on Black families. Instead, research on Black families has disproportionately used deficit frameworks and race-neutral explanations that misrepresent the reality of Black families. For the current commentary, I begin with a straightforward question: why are scholars still grappling with the role of White supremacy in family science? To address this question, I contend that family science needs a more nuanced theoretical perspective on Black families that adequately addresses the association between racism and race. I offer a novel conceptual model for the study of Black family inequality. I take racism and the social construction of race seriously by focusing on the making, the maintenance, and the manifestation of racial stratification. My hope is that family scholars will employ theoretical frameworks that center racism and highlight the social construction of race.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 2","pages":"206-218"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50130267","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Unveiling motivations and keeping what's sacred: Engaging reflexivity in a research program on diverse romantic relationships","authors":"TeKisha M. Rice","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12510","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12510","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Guided by Allen's (2023) call for developing a critical consciousness, this paper applies feminist reflexive practice to uncover the personal curiosities and contradictions that have motivated my research program on diverse romantic relationships. Specifically, I examine faith, race, and heterosexism as the root of an unresolved collision of privilege and oppression that undergird my burgeoning research program. I begin by reviewing my own positionality before sharing how my personal experiences with family and identity collided with my profession. Finally, I discuss how the personal and professional have motivated praxis, or the leveraging of research as a pathway toward social justice. In doing so, I unveil how personal motivations and complacency in oppression shaped the development of my research program in hopes of spurring innovative theorizing and empirical research rooted in the authenticity of lived experiences.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 2","pages":"248-258"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jftr.12510","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50128937","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Elizabeth K. Ferguson, Gery C. Karantzas, Emma M. Marshall, Laura Knox
{"title":"The associations between relationship self-regulation, partner regulation, and relationship outcomes: A meta-analysis","authors":"Elizabeth K. Ferguson, Gery C. Karantzas, Emma M. Marshall, Laura Knox","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12508","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jftr.12508","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The aim of this meta-analysis was to determine whether relationship self-regulation (changing aspects of the self for the sake of the relationship) or partner regulation (changing the partner for the sake of the self/relationship) was more strongly associated with romantic relationship quality. Twenty studies (5 on relationship self-regulation, 15 on partner regulation; <i>N</i> = 15,563) were included. A moderate positive association was found between relationship self-regulation and relationship quality (<i>r</i> = .42). A weak positive association was found between positive partner regulation and relationship quality (<i>r</i> = .14). A negative association was found between negative partner regulation strategies and relationship quality (<i>r</i> = −.22). Partner regulation strategies were unlikely to be successful in prompting change in targeted partners. A weak positive association was found between positive strategies and regulation success (<i>r</i> = .10), and a weak negative association was found between negative strategies and regulation success (<i>r</i> = −.09). Thus, relationship self-regulation is more strongly associated with relationship quality than partner regulation.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 4","pages":"764-792"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"124515043","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"It's not the rotten apples! Why family scholars should adopt a structural perspective on racism","authors":"Eduardo Bonilla-Silva","doi":"10.1111/jftr.12503","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12503","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In this article, I urge family scholars to anchor their race work on the structural racism perspective. First, I provide some limitations of the prejudice problematic used by most family scholars. Second, I discuss the basic components of my structural theory, which I call the racialized social system approach. Third, I bolster my original theorization with a new conceptual map to make the structure intelligible—to account for why actors, for the most part, behave in ways that reproduce the racial order. In this discussion, I highlight the importance of the “white habitus” in shaping the lives and behaviors of White people. Lastly, I conclude by summarizing my claims and asking family scholars to continue deepening their work on structural racism and families, as well as on fighting how it shapes their own fields and lives.</p>","PeriodicalId":47446,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Family Theory & Review","volume":"15 2","pages":"192-205"},"PeriodicalIF":4.5,"publicationDate":"2023-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"50134809","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"社会学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}