Experiences and Meanings of Surrogate Pregnancy Among Gay Israeli Men Who Become Parents Through Overseas Surrogacy.

This study explores the experiences of single gay men and gay men who raise children in couples who have created their families through surrogacy procedures in different countries and cultural contexts. The analysis of 39 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with these fathers suggests that the effects of medicalized reproduction on these men are twofold. Medicalized reproduction leads these men, on one hand, to feel alienated from surrogate pregnancy and the fetus, and on the other hand, to contribute to the construction of a new form of intimacy between the surrogates and the newborns.

Between Mainstream and Marginality: The Case of Men and Women of Mixed-Orientation Relationships.

The literature regarding mixed-orientation relationships (MORs) focuses on individual and relationship aspects. Our study, informed by the social construction of reality theory, illuminates social aspects by examining social attitudes toward MORs as they are experienced and perceived by individuals of MOR. Within the scope of this study, we focused on self-identified non-straight men (gays, bisexuals, or men who have sex with men) who are in a relationship with self-identified straight women.

Dualism, Tension, and Integration: Dialectics as a Theme of Integration in Daily Lives of Israeli Gay Men Who Became Fathers Through Overseas Surrogacy.

This article explores the constructed meanings of lived experiences of Israeli gay men who became parents through commercial overseas surrogacy. Based on the analysis of 39 in-depth, semistructured interviews with gay fathers, we show that their parenting experiences are shaped in contradictory ways, allowing them to adopt a reflective position in relation to existing social frameworks. Data from in-depth interviews reveal three major themes.

"How We Stay Together Without Going Crazy:" Reconstruction of Reality Among Women of Mixed-Orientation Relationships.

Until recently, the literature that addressed the phenomenon of mixed-orientation relationships, in which the female partner is straight and the male partner is non-straight, has focused mainly on the men's perspective. Most of the studies have employed a pessimistic tone, underscoring the obstacles faced by each of the partners. This study was designed to understand how women of mixed-orientation relationships construct their reality within such a relationship, focusing on elements that assist them in maintaining those relationships.

The Myth of Openness and Secrecy in Intimate Relationships: The Case of Spouses of Mixed-Orientation Marriage.

The phenomenon of mixed-orientation marriages, in which one of the partners is straight and the other is non-straight, is invisible, yet not insignificant. Focusing on gay and bisexual men who are married to straight women, this article was designed to explore one of the essential themes in their relationship: the dynamics between secrecy and openness regarding the men's sexual orientation and gay practices. Based on the phenomenological paradigm, 38 men and eight women of mixed-orientation marriages in Israel were interviewed and shared their subjective life reality.

Reflexivity: The Creation of Liminal Spaces--Researchers, Participants, and Research Encounters.

Reflexivity is defined as the constant movement between being in the phenomenon and stepping outside of it. In this article, we specify three foci of reflexivity--the researcher, the participant, and the encounter--for exploring the interview process as a dialogic liminal space of mutual reflection between researcher and participant. Whereas researchers' reflexivity has been discussed extensively in the professional discourse, participants' reflexivity has not received adequate scholarly attention, nor has the promise inherent in reflective processes occurring within the encounter.

Power relations and reciprocity: dialectics of knowledge construction.

In this article we suggest a theoretical framework of knowledge construction by employing the concept of dialectics to power relationships between researcher and participants. Power distribution in research is perceived as dichotomous and asymmetrical in favor of the researcher, creating unequal power relations that make exploitation possible. Acknowledging such exploitation has led to a critical stance and attempts to bridge gaps through egalitarianism and empowerment of participants.

Ambivalence over emotional expressiveness in intimate relationships: a shift from an individual characteristic to dyadic attribute.

This study investigates how ambivalence over emotional expressiveness (AEE) relates to various aspects of intimate relationships, including perception of the relationship, marital satisfaction, and dyadic closeness. Whereas most commonly AEE has been treated as an individual attribute, we suggest looking at a combined measure of the AEE of both spouses as a dyadic attribute. We examine the contribution of each spouse's level of AEE as well as joint couple AEE to explain variations in the marital relationship.

Cooperation and conflict in qualitative research: a dialectical approach to knowledge production.

Our goal with this article is to present a dialectical approach to examining the interaction between researchers and research participants. A dialectical approach maintains that an apparent contradiction at one level might, in fact, be integrated as a synthesis of the two opposing poles at a higher level of conceptual analysis. We claim that a research approach advocating either pole might limit understanding of the complexity of the phenomenon in question.

The association of daily hassles and uplifts with family and life satisfaction: does cultural orientation make a difference?

The study examined similarities and differences between people having individualist and collectivist cultural orientations in terms of what they perceive as stressful and uplifting experiences in their daily lives, and the relation between daily experiences and family and life satisfaction. Data were collected from two representative community samples (697 Jews and 303 Arabs). Each sample was grouped into individualist and collectivist cultural orientations.

The effect of security-related stress on dyadic closeness among Jews and Arabs in Israel: a daily diary study.

An important aspect of Israeli life is its continuous state of conflict with the neighboring Palestinian people and Arab countries. Given that security-related stress is so intensely experienced by all Israeli residents, we examined the effects of daily fluctuations in security-related stress on dyadic closeness among Jewish and Arab couples. Time sampling approach was used to study repeated sequences of associations between stress and dyadic closeness.

Dyadic characteristics of individual attributes: attachment, neuroticism, and their relation to marital quality and closeness.

The present article focuses on couple types based on 2 personality traits, attachment security and neuroticism, as they relate to 2 facets of the marital relationship--a global evaluation of relationship quality and dyadic closeness-distance. The sample consisted of 248 married couples who completed measures of attachment anxiety and avoidance, neuroticism, and marital quality, as well as levels of closeness reported over 7 consecutive days. Cluster analyses yielded 3 types of dyadic attachment configurations (secure, fearful avoidant, and insecure-mixed) and 4 types of dyadic neuroticism (low couple neuroticism, high couple neuroticism, wife neuroticism, and husband neuroticism).

Emotional expressiveness and neuroticism: do they predict marital quality?

This study examines how neuroticism and emotional expressiveness relate to perceptions of marital quality. Data were gathered from a sample of 197 Israeli couples. Wives scored higher than husbands on neuroticism and emotional expressiveness, but no significant gender differences were found in perceived marital quality.

Cultural orientation, ethnic affiliation, and negative daily occurrences: a multidimensional cross-cultural analysis.

The present research focuses on cultural variations in the experience of daily stresses and strains. It simultaneously examines the experiences of daily hassles among people holding different cultural orientations (individualistic vs. collectivist) and different socioethnic groups (Jews and Arabs).

Daily stresses and uplifts during times of political tension: Jews and Arabs in Israel.

This study examined similarities and differences between Jews and Arabs in Israel in terms of their daily stressful and uplifting experiences and assessed the relation between these experiences and family and life satisfaction. Data were collected from representative samples of 697 Jews and 303 Arabs by using a computerized-assisted telephone interviewing system. Contrary to expectation, Jews reported more sources of hassles than did Arabs, whereas Arabs reported more uplifts.

Anorexia nervosa and the family: effects on younger sisters to anorexia nervosa patients.

The aim of this study was to describe and analyze the experience of the sister of the anorexia nervosa (AN) patient. This experience was examined in terms of the illness, the sister herself, and relations within the family during the course of coping with AN. A qualitative study method was employed in an attempt to understand the complexity and nature of a younger sister's subjective experience regarding an anorexia patient.

Dimensions and predictions of professional involvement in self-help groups: a view from within.

This article focuses on an analysis of how members of self-help groups perceived professional involvement and what they defined as the dimensions of such involvement. Models to predict these identified dimensions are also suggested. The instrument developed for the study consisted of two parts: (1) demographic question and (2) 12 statements concerning self-help group members' attitudes toward professional involvement.

Reduction in Services for Severely Mentally Disabled Sheltered-Care Residents: A 12-Year Perspective.

This study explores reductions in the availability and utilization of health, mental health, and social services to 144 of California's sheltered care facilities between 1973 and 1985. Results show sheltered care facilities were insulated from reductions in availability and utilization of services. While utilization in 1973 was not associated with the availability of mental health agency-based services in 1985, it was significantly associated with reductions in outreach services involving facility visits by agency-based personnel.