Sexual Orientation and the Sister Relationship

Abstract

The researchers conducted interviews with sisters of differing sexual orientations to explore stories of original family life and current patterns of interaction. Do differing sexual orientations affect connections between sisters? With a qualitative research design, the researchers asked a series of prepared questions in a conversational format. Twenty-two biological sister teams were interviewed. Researchers' assumptions emphasized that participants were the experts on their lives, knowledge about daily experiences, and interactions with others. These assumptions pose an epistemological phenomenon and a social construction. The multi-ethnic, multi-racial mix of participants added a dimension to the data gathered. Results indicated that interviewing sisters together provides a powerful, creative process that allows for understanding of the potent mix of differences and similarities. Data analysis revealed that sisters can be powerful tools of resilience for each other and the experience of shared histories can have greater influence than the experience of differences in sexual orientation.

Key Words:

• Feminist research
• feminist family research
• sexual orientation
• sister
• lesbian
• heterosexual
• ethnicity
• qualitative research
• interviews
• resilience
• communication research
• gender
• coming out