Content area
Abstract
This is a qualitative study that examines the sexual identity development and the "coming out" experiences of homosexual male college students who participated in gay oriented websites and the meanings those students attributed to those experiences. Based on the original study conducted in Taiwan by Cheng-Nan Hou, this study uses in-depth questionnaires as an analysis tool to help participants evoke rich descriptions of their online experiences, relative to the coming out process. The responses were anonymously recorded and categorized in terms of several themed results including: (1) Analyzing realization moments while participating in these websites, (2) Specificity of websites used, (3) Cognitive Dissonance, and (4) Analysis of an outlier response. Responses indicated that participants widely utilized gay websites to not only acquire sexual knowledge, but to affirm their sexual orientation as well as begin to develop relationships of different degrees. Among the differences in the original study, the U.S. participants relied heavily on pornographic websites, while the Taiwanese participants used message board and chat rooms to communicate.
