[Air-l] Making gender complicated on Friendster

[GTa3411203 at aol.com]

I have a Facebook account. Users are able to create profiles that share 
personal interests with others. One of these interests has to do with dating. I've 
run across a few profiles where men and women are indicating choices as being 
both male and female, which could be construed to say the person is bisexual. 
I personally wouldn't feel comfortable in making this assessment without 
having access to more information. 

I'm going to digress a minute and call attention to the manner in which this 
also plays out in research circles.  I recently submitted a paper for a 
conference. The form was designed so that a person had to choose between 
qualitative, quantitative, evaluation, or research in progress. I submitting a proposal 
for a paper that explored an emerging trend across 200 organizations using a 
mixed-method approach to gathering and analyzing data. I contacted the 
conference organizers and challenged their designations. As a mixed method researcher, 
I can identify with feelings of confusion others feels about sexualilty when 
being placed in a position where established social norms are defining actions. 
:-)

-- Gail

Gail Taylor, M.Ed.
Human Resource Education Ph.D. Student
Educational Psychology Teaching Assistant
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign