Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic Review
BackgroundDue to the restrictions and stigmatization of homosexuality in China, there has emerged the “Tongqi,” or the wives of men who have sex with men (MSM). There are around 14 million Tongqi wives whose needs for support are often overshadowed. This phenomenon has been largely under researched,...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2020-01-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Psychology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02929/full |
| _version_ | 1811327913569550336 |
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| author | Yuanyuan Wang Amanda Wilson Runsen Chen Zhishan Hu Ke Peng Ke Peng Shicun Xu |
| author_facet | Yuanyuan Wang Amanda Wilson Runsen Chen Zhishan Hu Ke Peng Ke Peng Shicun Xu |
| author_sort | Yuanyuan Wang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BackgroundDue to the restrictions and stigmatization of homosexuality in China, there has emerged the “Tongqi,” or the wives of men who have sex with men (MSM). There are around 14 million Tongqi wives whose needs for support are often overshadowed. This phenomenon has been largely under researched, this review is the first to address the current data on the Tongqi. The aim of this systematic review is to begin to provide insight into the pre-existing data and the further support that is needed for the wives of MSM.MethodsThe researchers searched PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CNKI, Sinomed and WangFang databases from their inception date until June 7, 2019. Handsearching was also completed to provide a rich data set.ResultsThe articles were summarized and analyzed for thematic clusters. From the selected article, five themes emerged, including Sexual Health Issues, Intimate Partner Violence, Mental Health Status, Marriage Dissatisfaction, and Coping Strategies. These themes often intersected to provide a complex understanding of the current gaps in support provided to Tongqi.ConclusionTongqi wives remain a hidden population in Chinese mainstream society, who deserves a sensitive approach to support. The study revealed that the MSM wives suffer severe mental, physical, health, and life related harms. However, instead of situating them into the victim roles, many women take on an identity of empowerment and are working together, aiming to make social changes. In order to address the Tongqi phenomenon, it is also essential to reduce the discrimination toward homosexuality. Tongqi are a special group of Chinese women, they require further intensive research attention. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T15:16:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-06be4540360d4dfd89be370d3c899be3 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1664-1078 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T15:16:22Z |
| publishDate | 2020-01-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Psychology |
| spelling | doaj.art-06be4540360d4dfd89be370d3c899be32022-12-22T02:41:50ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782020-01-011010.3389/fpsyg.2019.02929491639Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic ReviewYuanyuan Wang0Amanda Wilson1Runsen Chen2Zhishan Hu3Ke Peng4Ke Peng5Shicun Xu6Division of Psychology, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, De Montfort University, Leicester, United KingdomDivision of Psychology, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, De Montfort University, Leicester, United KingdomNational Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders & Advanced Innovation Center for Human Brain Protection, Beijing Anding Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, ChinaFaculty of Health Sciences, University of Macau, Macau, ChinaThe George Institute for Global Health, UNSW, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaSchool of Public Health, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, AustraliaDepartment of Population, Resources and Environment, Northeast Asian Studies College, Jilin University, Changchun, ChinaBackgroundDue to the restrictions and stigmatization of homosexuality in China, there has emerged the “Tongqi,” or the wives of men who have sex with men (MSM). There are around 14 million Tongqi wives whose needs for support are often overshadowed. This phenomenon has been largely under researched, this review is the first to address the current data on the Tongqi. The aim of this systematic review is to begin to provide insight into the pre-existing data and the further support that is needed for the wives of MSM.MethodsThe researchers searched PubMed, Web of Science, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CNKI, Sinomed and WangFang databases from their inception date until June 7, 2019. Handsearching was also completed to provide a rich data set.ResultsThe articles were summarized and analyzed for thematic clusters. From the selected article, five themes emerged, including Sexual Health Issues, Intimate Partner Violence, Mental Health Status, Marriage Dissatisfaction, and Coping Strategies. These themes often intersected to provide a complex understanding of the current gaps in support provided to Tongqi.ConclusionTongqi wives remain a hidden population in Chinese mainstream society, who deserves a sensitive approach to support. The study revealed that the MSM wives suffer severe mental, physical, health, and life related harms. However, instead of situating them into the victim roles, many women take on an identity of empowerment and are working together, aiming to make social changes. In order to address the Tongqi phenomenon, it is also essential to reduce the discrimination toward homosexuality. Tongqi are a special group of Chinese women, they require further intensive research attention.https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02929/fullTongqiChinasexual healthmental healthviolencereview |
| spellingShingle | Yuanyuan Wang Amanda Wilson Runsen Chen Zhishan Hu Ke Peng Ke Peng Shicun Xu Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic Review Frontiers in Psychology Tongqi China sexual health mental health violence review |
| title | Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic Review |
| title_full | Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic Review |
| title_fullStr | Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic Review |
| title_full_unstemmed | Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic Review |
| title_short | Behind the Rainbow, “Tongqi” Wives of Men Who Have Sex With Men in China: A Systematic Review |
| title_sort | behind the rainbow tongqi wives of men who have sex with men in china a systematic review |
| topic | Tongqi China sexual health mental health violence review |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/article/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02929/full |
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