ABSTRACT

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant public health concern. Much research on the topic has focused on heterosexual relationships where men are frequently perpetrators and woman the victims of IPV as a function of systemically gendered inequality embedded in pervasive forms of patriarchy. However, IPV is also a concern in same-sex relationships. While the forms and functions of sexuality and gender in talk about IPV in heteronormative relationships are well documented, research on the ways that these key social categories feature in accounts of Same-Sex Intimate Partner Violence (SSIPV) has been limited. The current study advances this important area of violence scholarship by exploring the ways in which self-identified gay men describe violence in their intimate relationships. Our critical discourse analysis of accounts of IPV elicited through in-depth, semi-structured interviews demonstrates the ways in which the participants framed violence as unintimidating, tolerable, natural, erotic or even actively sought-after as part of an overarching strategy aimed at making claims on agency and resisting victimhood. The analysis suggests that researchers and policymakers should take cognisance of the local meanings and range of moral positions used by gay men to account for IPV when setting scholarship agendas and developing interventions.

摘要

亲密伴侣暴力 (IPV) 是一个重要的公共卫生问题。关于该主题的许多研究都集中在异性恋关系上，其中男性经常是 IPV 的肇事者，而女性则是 IPV 的受害者，这是普遍存在的父权制形式中系统性性别不平等的功能。然而，IPV 也是同性关系中的一个问题。虽然在异性恋关系中谈论 IPV 的性行为和性别的形式和功能已得到充分证明，但对这些关键社会类别在同性亲密伴侣暴力 (SSIPV) 账户中的特征方式的研究有限。目前的研究通过探索自我认同的男同性恋者在亲密关系中描述暴力的方式，推进了这一重要的暴力学术领域。我们通过深入、半结构化的访谈对 IPV 的叙述进行批判性话语分析，展示了参与者将暴力视为无畏、可容忍、自然、色情甚至积极追捧的方式，作为旨在使要求代理权和抵制受害。分析表明，研究人员和政策制定者在制定奖学金议程和制定干预措施时，应考虑男同性恋者用来解释 IPV 的地方含义和道德立场范围。