Rosanna Hertz

Behavior patterns and sexual identity of bisexual males.

Bisexuality may be measured in terms of bisexual behavior or bisexual self‐identity. The relationship between the two is poorly understood. Data from a 1982 survey of readers of Playboy magazine are used to examine the identity and behavior of 6,982 men who acknowledged adult sexual experiences with both men and women. Of these, 29 percent described themselves as bisexual, 2 percent as homosexual, and 69 percent as heterosexual in identification. Those with a bisexual identity were more likely to have had homosexual experiences as adolescents and to describe their adult sexual behavior as predominantly or sometimes homosexual rather than predominantly heterosexual. The sexual behaviors reported by bisexual men would place them at intermediate risk of acquiring or transmitting sexually transmitted diseases—higher than exclusively heterosexual but lower than exclusively homosexual men. Results suggest that a definition of bisexuality based exclusively on identity would fail to capture most men with adult bi...

Only one pair of hands: Ways that single mothers stretch work and family resources

Abstract Based on in-depth interviews with 50 women in the eastern part of Massachusetts in the United States between the ages of 22 and 50 who have chosen to be single mothers, this article presents a typology demonstrating the factors leading to, and consequences of, differing combinations of economic and social support for childrearing marshaled by the mothers. Ensuring middle class lives for their children is a central goal for the mothers. This goal determines how and why the mothers construct specific strategies to complement their ‘one pair of hands’ based on resources they develop: some have both financial resources and a deep network of support (‘good jobs/good friends’), others have either one or the other (‘tapping the networks’ and ‘looking to the market’), and a fourth group have neither (‘going it alone’). Despite variation in resources all the women seek ways to tip the balance of work and family in favor of mother-time, and in the process of developing individual solutions activate broad k...

Donor-Shared Siblings or Genetic Strangers New Families, Clans, and the Internet

Donor-shared sibling families have recently emerged. Families who conceived using the same anonymous donor are locating one another through websites designed to match children with their biogenetic half-siblings. Based on a survey of 587 parents with donor-conceived children, we discovered that a growing number of unrelated parents whose children are genetically related are organizing into durable groups. These groups mainly exist on the Internet where members can choose their level of participation. A smaller group has met offline, but most select one or two families they especially connect with. Overall, these families illustrate that genetics cannot be ignored. Whereas some respondents view donor-siblings as a latent affiliation—an insurance policy for future questions by their children—others have used the Internet as a social arena to connect and form relationships. In this new world, the Internet is altering how kinship is discovered and formed.

Kinship strategies and self-sufficiency among single mothers by choice : Post modern family ties

This article discusses findings from an on-going study of 50 single mothers by choice: women aged 21 to 50 when they become mothers, who are self-supporting economically, and who have chosen to become mothers as unmarried women. The interviews include women (both heterosexual and lesbian) who vary widely by race and social class. We argue that this group of women demonstrate ways of maintaining economic self-sufficiency—relying neither on the state nor on a male “provider”—through creative efforts at networking, resource sharing, and non-economic exchanges. We find that the route the women take to motherhood (adoption, known donor pregnancies, anonymous donor insemination, or “accidental” pregnancy) has a strong impact on the makeup of specific kin relationships between the mothers, their children, and others; yet all the mothers strategically forge or foster close ties which enable them to raise their children independently.

Working to Place Family at the Center of Life: Dual-Earner and Single-Parent Strategies

There are two basic types of work-family strategies: workplace-based strategies and family-centered strategies. In the past, attention has been placed mostly on work policies. This article focuses on members of dual-earner and single-parent families who have actively placed family at the center of their lives. The strategies they adopt depend upon their position in the labor market as well as marital status. Some dual-earner families jointly calculate scheduling and job trajectories while utilizing benefits from both of their employees; others reluctantly coparent because of underemployment. Single mothers who have professional or technical skills try to make special accommodations with bosses or they become contract workers, while less skilled single mothers need benefits in order not to have to work several jobs. In addition, some single mothers have developed extensive networks and advocate for more community support of child rearing. Most working parents committed to keeping their families at the center have pursued nontraditional career paths. Ideologies about families and parenting may shape strategies about employment more often than workplace norms or work-family policies.

Making sense of donors and donor siblings: A comparison of the perceptions of donor-conceived offspring in lesbian-parent and heterosexual-parent families ☆ ☆The first two authors contributed equally to this chapter.

Abstract Donor-conceived (DC) offspring raised in lesbian-parent and heterosexual-parent families have different historical chronologies, which are clusters of events that provide frameworks for shaping contemporary views of sperm donors and donor siblings. Using surveys collected by the Donor Sibling Registry (DSR), the largest U.S. web-based registry, we found that DC offspring from different family forms have somewhat different views about meeting both the donor and donor siblings. In general, all offspring are curious about the donor. All offspring want to know what the donor looks like and they believe that even minimal contact will help them understand themselves better. However, when compared to offspring from heterosexual-parent families, offspring from lesbian-parent families are less likely to want to have contact with the donor. For offspring from lesbian-parent families, donor conception is considered a normal and accepted part of family life and the donor is deemed irrelevant to the family’s construction. Especially among those who live with two heterosexual parents (where both parents are often assumed to be genetic relatives), offspring want to know the donor because they believe he holds the key to important information that the legal (or social) father cannot provide. Most DC offspring want to meet donor siblings although the interest is somewhat weaker among the offspring in lesbian-parent families. Offspring regard donor siblings as special relations who will not disrupt the natal family and who might even become part of a new kind of “extended family” network.

Who Pays for Dates? Following Versus Challenging Gender Norms

Chivalry dictates that on a “date,” the man pays, whereas egalitarian ideals suggest that gender should not determine who pays. We examined the extent to which people embrace or reject these competing notions. Unmarried heterosexual participants (N = 17,607) reported their behaviors and attitudes regarding who does and who should pay for dates on a survey posted on NBCNews.com. Although most men (74%) and women (83%) report that both members of the couple contribute to dating expenses after dating for 6 months, most men (84%) and women (58%) reported that men still pay more expenses. Many women (39%) wished men would reject their offers to pay and 44% of women were bothered when men expected women to help pay. Many women, however, were bothered when men won’t accept their money (40%). Nearly two thirds of men (64%) believed that women should contribute and nearly half of men (44%) said they would stop dating a woman who never pays. Nevertheless, the majority of men said they feel guilty when accepting women’s money (76%). These data illustrate how many people are resisting or conforming to traditional gender norms in one telling aspect of dating that historically was related to the male’s displaying benevolent sexism, dominance, and ability to fulfill breadwinner role during courtship.

GENTILITY, GENDER, AND POLITICAL PROTEST The Barbara Bush Controversy at Wellesley College

Using 452 letters sent in 1990 to Wellesley College over a student petition objecting to the choice of Barbara Bush as the graduation speaker, this article explores how an attempt to expand the boundaries of elite womens political behavior created a cultural and symbolic battle that centered upon the content of education, womens “manners” and civility, and their implications for elite womens participation in the broader Hobbesian social contract for citizenship. The article demonstrates that social class in its gendered form is essential to understanding the construction of citizenship.

Donor Sibling Networks as a Vehicle for Expanding Kinship A Replication and Extension

This article replicates an earlier study of mothers who had used the same sperm donor to conceive their children and connected through the Internet. The original study finds that these groups interact mainly on the Internet; donor siblings are latent affiliations that could answer questions about the paternal side. This new study of 2,217 parents and 419 offspring offers a comparison of the manner in which these relationships develop, finding that the movement from latent to active ties occurs at a different moment than the earlier study. The data show that parents and offspring interpret relationships with genetic relatives in some ways that are similar. However, offspring are more likely than parents to view donor siblings as members of their extended family. Replication of the original study with a more diverse sample allows us to determine if the basic findings can be generalized to other participants who share the same circumstances.

Gamete donor anonymity and limits on numbers of offspring: the views of three stakeholders

This paper discusses the attitudes of three groups of stakeholders in the world of assisted reproduction gamete donors, parents who use donated gamete, and offspring conceived with donated gametes with respect to the two issues of donor anonymity and limits on the number of offspring a single donor can produce. The data are drawn from on-line surveys which were made available between May 12, 2104 and August 15, 2014 to gamete donors, donor-conceived offspring, and parents who used donated gametes to conceive. A total of 325 donors (176 egg donors; 149 sperm donors) responded to the survey as did 2134 parents and 419 offspring. The data show that offspring are more opposed to donor anonymity than are parents and donors. Among offspring opposition to anonymity grows as they age. On the other hand, parents are most in favor of limits on numbers of offspring produced by a single donor. Parents worry about health and accidental contact between people conceived from the same donor.