Sexual identity is not a new concept in Western countries. It was first mentioned in the 19th century by Karl Heinrich Ulrichs in the context of discussion on homosexuality. In Vietnam this term has been becoming more familiar, especially in the recent decade as sexuality and sexual health have drawn more attention in research and intervention.

Sexual identity is a combination of the thoughts, practices, individual and social elements that shape one’s identity in term of sexuality. Sexual identity includes the individual’s thoughts and feelings about themselves in relation to sexuality, such as sexual attraction, sexual capability and rights to enjoy sexuality. It also cover sexual orientation, which describes an enduring pattern of attraction – emotional, romantic, sexual or some combination of these – to the opposite sex (heterosexual), or same sex (homosexual), or both (bisexual). It also refers one’s sexual expression, such as sexual practices and gender roles. The individual factors, for example, sex, disability, illness, educational level, economic status, etc. are important part of sexual identity as they could limit or strengthen one’s opportunities to have sexual pleasure and satisfaction. Similarly, the social elements, for instance, historical and cultural context, Nation and State, also contribute to the development of one’s sexual identity.

In the history of sex research, international scholars debated and shifted the definition of "sexual identity” from the biological to the psychological and to socio-cultural perspectives1. The scholars also give a long time to discuss the distinction between "sexual identity”, “gender identity”, and “sexual behaviors” so that they response to the seemingly simple question - “Who am I in term of sexuality? Am I homosexual, heterosexual or bisexual?”.

In Vietnam, the concept of "sexual identity" is still relatively vague, and it has not yet been discussed thoroughly. Heteronormativity leads sexual minorities trying to fit themselves in one of two categories – man or woman, husband or wife in sexual relationship, and this self-classification has been naturally accepted and reinforced. Meanwhile, the research and interventions on sexuality mostly look at “sexual identity” from the perspectives of risk behaviors, or stigma and discrimination. The interaction between the formation of "sexual identity" and the discourse on sexuality, associated with the historical, cultural, social and political contexts, are still missed. Not to mention that, Vietnam retains a widely-held misunderstanding between sexual orientation, gender identity and sexual behavior.
Given the importance and complexity of sexual identity, the Resource Center on Gender, Sexuality and Health reserves Newsletter No.5 for newly published books and journal articles, discussing concept of sexual identity and the process of sexual identity formation and acceptance. This newsletter offers evidence to confirm the social construction of sexual identity and to criticize common assumption about natural, universal, transcultural and transhistorical sexual identity2. In addition, the publications introduced in this newsletter provide readers with discussion on methodology in studying sexual identity.

The first book, “Profit and pleasure: sexual identities in late capitalism” attempts to understand the relationship between capitalism and sexual identity. Sexual identity has always been linked to gender, race, and nationality. The book suggests how the formation and development of capitalism have impacted on the formation and flexibility of the identities. It also mentions how globalization transforms capitalism, and so transforms sexual identity that has allowed new forms of commodities and sexual subjectivities. The second book, “The story of sexual identity: narrative perspectives on the gay and lesbian life course” introduces narrative as focus of sexual identity research. The contributions highlight the significance of history, generation, and sexual subjectivities in process of identity formation, and the appropriateness of the narrative approach in capturing and analyzing those factors in sexual identity description.

The five journal articles presented in this newsletter illustrate the social construction of sexual identity. Readers will go through the basic concepts – the difference between sexual identity and gender identity, in the first article; to deeper discussions about the formation of and negotiation for sexual identity of different targeted groups: adolescent, men who have sex with men, and particularly the negotiation for sexual identity in the complex interaction with social identity of people with disabilities.

In the review of activities of the Resource Center, we introduce discussions in the workshop “Counseling for LGBT3 and their families” as an illustration for the interaction between sexual identity formation and socio-cultural factors. LGBT, their parents, and counselors went through a thorny and painful negotiation with moral and cultural values in the discourse on sexuality.

At the end of the Newsletter, as usual, you will be updated with national, regional and international upcoming events, and related materials in CCIHP’s library. We hope that readers will find this newsletter useful, and we look forward to get your feedbacks to improve our newsletter.

Attach file here are The Newsletter ‘Gender & Sexuality Review’by English and Vietnamese version

Hopefully, the information in this newsletter will help you find such information. We also expect to receive your comments, feedbacks and reviews from you to make the newsletter more useful.

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Center for Creative Initiatives in Health and Population (CCIHP)

No 2, Alley 49/41 Huynh Thuc Khang Street, Dong Da District, Hanoi

Phone: 844- 3577 0261 Fax: 844 – 3577 0260

Email: gsh@ccihp.org, nga@ccihp.org

Website: http://ccihp.org/ hoặc http://www.cihp.vn/

Many thanks,

MD, MSc, Hoang Tu Anh,

Director