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This paper presents some scientific contributions on the subject of the development of sexual identity in adolescents and young adults. In the field of psychology, investigating the development of sexual identity is particularly important to understand, plan and implement interventions to support queer children in the internal and external coming out process. Despite the fact that the international scientific world has registered a decline in the phenomena of discrimination and social control in the sporting, academic and school contexts, in 2021 Italy ranked last in the Rainbow Europe Map and Index. According to the Minority Stress Theory, many young people who identify with the queer community experience distal and proximal stressors which can lead to the development of: worry, relationship difficulties and/or anxiety, and depressive states. Among the main causes of this malaise is the internalisation of sexual prejudice, which is spread and perpetrated by the homophobic culture still present in the West. This report identifies the main individual, social and cultural factors affecting the well-being of these sexual minorities in order to design effective support strategies to be implemented in the family environment. Indeed, the family represents the primary social network through which individuals form their cognitions and values, where they initiate their first relationships, experience emotions and feelings, and learn emotional and relational skills, but also the first potential context of exposure and/or education to sexual prejudice. This paper, therefore, focuses on the relationship between: i) the family value system and external coming out; ii) coming out in the family and the level of family cohesion; iii) family support for individual autonomy and the public declaration of one’s sexual identity to family members; iv) having a stable romantic relationship and coming out in the family; v) the arrangement of friendships within the queer community, and the public disclosure of one’s sexual identity; vi) internalised sexual prejudice, by the adolescent himself and/or his loved ones, and coming out. This review also wishes to encourage an exploratory research project into family units resistant to accepting and welcoming LGBTQICAPF2K+ children, living in our country and referred to as heteronormative Italian families. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While there is always a 'dance' of hierarchy and leadership between therapist and client, this article posits that treating LGBTQ clients contains a unique factor that shapes the relationship. Singular challenges may surface as a result of internalized homophobia; it can undermine a client's stance, in a vague and latent way, to take part meaningfully and effectively in a therapeutic alliance. Moreover, a client may project dimensions rooted in homophobia onto the therapist. As such, it could stymie or undermine the therapeutic alliance. We've coined this phenomenon in a therapeutic relationship the 'blurred facilitation stand"©. This term seeks to underscore a unique effect that can surface in an encounter between a heterosexual or non-heterosexual therapist and a non-heterosexual client. It bears mention this effect may undermine the potency of a therapeutic alliance, which theoreticians and researchers affirm has unique dimensions in working with LBGTQ clients. The 'blurred facilitation stand' may damage the hope potential that is essential for the placebo effect in a client's mind and experience in the long-awaited therapeutic process. We discuss factors that lead to the 'blurred facilitation stand' and propose steps in the therapeutic process to reduce its effect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

L’approvazione della legge sulle Unioni Civili (legge 20 maggio 2016 n. 76) ha segnato un passaggio importante in Italia sul versante del cambiamento istituzionale, culturale e del riconoscimento dei diritti delle persone LGBT+ con effetti anche sul versante conoscitivo rendendo possibile indagare, in maniera campionaria o censuaria, un segmento specifico di tale popolazione. Obiettivo del presente lavoro è fornire un quadro delle principali caratteristiche socio-demografiche delle persone in unione civile ed effettuare prime analisi esplorative sull’esistenza di eventuali asimmetrie di coppia considerando il grado di omogamia/eterogamia tra i partner relativamente ad alcuni indicatori di appartenenza a un gruppo (livello di istruzione, condizione occupazionale e posizione professionale, mobilità territoriale e cittadinanza) nonché il grado di apertura ed eterogamia delle coppie omosessuali, di donne e uomini, in confronto alle coppie eterosessuali.

In Italy, homosexual people are not allowed to adopt a child or to perform donor insemination/surrogacy, thus they become parents mainly in the context of previous heterosexual relationships (Barbagli, Colombo, 2007). Data from the Italian Superior Sanity Institute on 7000 homosexual individuals (2006) revealed that 18% of gay men and 21% of lesbians were parents. Despite their growing diffusion, mixed-oriented marriages (i.e. same sex attracted people who are or weremarried with opposite sex partners) are still scarcely investigated by the scientific community. Previous international studies (Higgins, 2004; 2006) have tried to identify possible explanations for the phenomenon, evidencing an important role for internalized homophobia the homosexual individual's negative feelings and attitudes toward homosexuality-. However, this topic has not been previously investigated in Italy. The aim of the present study is to explore the association between internalized homophobia, awareness of sexual orientation, religious education and coming out in a sample of Italian homosexual parents with children from previous heterosexual relationships. Method: Participants were recruited through the e-mail lists of Rete Genitori Rainbow and Famiglie Arcobaleno, two voluntary associations of Italian homosexual and bisexual parents. 32 lesbian mothers and 26 gay fathers (mean age 45.62 ± 8.88 years) participated in the study. Information about past and current relationship status, awareness of sexual orientation at the time of marriage, coming out and religious education were collected. Sexual orientation was measured both through the Kinsey Scale (Kinsey Pomeroy e Martin, 1948) and the Modified Klein Sexual Orientation Grid (MKSOG) (Moore, 2000). MKSOG assesses seven domains of human sexuality (i.e. sexual attraction, behavior, and fantasies, emotional and social preference, lifestyle as well as selfidentification) at three different points of measurement (past, present, and ideal), thus offering a more expanded definition of sexual orientation than the onedimensional Kinsey Scale. Internalized homophobia at the time of marriage and at the present time was assessed through the Measure of Internalized Sexual Stigma for Lesbian and Gay Men (MISS-LG) (Lingiardi, Baiocco e Nardelli, 2012). Results: Most of the sample (79.3%) has been married with the opposite sex partner (marriage mean duration: 14.16 ± 6.98 years). 13.8% of the participants is still in a heterosexual relationship, while 69% has currently a same sex partner (relationship mean duration: 4.62±4.48 years). 46.6% of the participants were aware of their homosexual orientation when they entered into the heterosexual relationship in which they become parents. Sexual orientation has been found to change from the past time to the present time, both in men and in women. While half of the sample reported a "bisexual" sexual orientation in the past, most of the sample (75.90%) described themselves as "homosexual" at the present time. Noteworthy, 32.80% the participants defined themselves as "heterosexual" at the time of marriage. Gender differences were found in internalized homophobia levels with men reported higher scores than women, both at the time of marriage and at the present time. Participants reported higher levels of internalized homophobia at the time of the heterosexual relationship compared to the present time (M±SD=2.47±1.03 and M±SD=1.53±.69). This difference was statistically significant both in the total sample (t (57)=7.42; p < .001), and in males and females (t (25)=5.71, p < .001; t (31)=4.85, p < .001). Internalized homophobia is associated with coming out with children, while it did not correlate with awareness of sexual orientation and religious education. Parents who have not declared their sexual orientation to their children reported higher levels of internalized homophobia relative to parents who came out with their children (M±SD=2.16±1.07, M±SD=1.32±.33 respectively, t (56)= 4.58 p < .001). Discussion: The current results provide a first contribution to the study of a specific population, still scarcely investigated by the scientific community. In line with previous studies (Higgins, 2004; 2006) internalized homophobia decreased from the time of marriage to the present time, suggesting its possible role in the phenomenon of mixed-oriented marriages. Moreover, internalized homophobia resulted to be an obstacle for the coming out process with children. Present findings can help health care professionals and therapists to become aware of the influence that internalized homophobia has on gay and lesbian parents' lives. The investigation of this aspect can help individuals to achieve greater self-acceptance and, consequently, better psychological well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Most people imagine that biological gender is a simple dichotomy between male (XY) and female (XX). On this basis, people born with male sexual anatomy who "believe" they are female, and vice versa, are understood to be suffering from a psychological disorder. This is by no means always the case; it is not even usually the case. In fact, it is a gross misconception which is completely contradicted by the scientific facts. In this contribution, I will describe how gender develops in the fetal body and brain, and I will show how complicated – almost impossible – it is to decide exactly what distinguishes male from female. It seems we are – all of us – a subtle and complex mixture of both. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is in line with the reflections on gender already published in the dossier in the first number of this Magazine. With the intention of "offering interpretive criteria and finding paths for growth, for the construction of the feminine and masculine identities", the article starts with the profound transformations in society which is in a phase of "liquid modern", a phase in which affectivity and relationships, sexuality, identity (masculine and feminine) continue to transform themselves, their forms being continually redefined by the situations themselves. This article considers the aspects of identity that are more widely discussed - gender identity, sexual roles - and the author highlights development pathways for sexual identity. The elaboration of sexuality and the acquisition of a psycho-sexual identity are important to accomplish on the growth journey, especially in adolescence. They are part of the development tasks that lead to the construction of the System of Self: an intertwining of different dimensions, from the cognitive concept of self to the affective-emotional image of self, to the physical bodily image of self. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article treats the question of the awareness of personal identity in comparison to the position assumed in Gender Studies. The article points out the criticism of some scholars, who in the light of a wholesome anthropology, underline the possible consequences that Gender Studies can have now and in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]