#That's the week done

[the-agent-of-blight]

Aromanticism in Academic Papers (day 7)

Today is the last day of ASAW 2024. It's been fun compiling all of this research for you! As ASAW ends, I thought it'd be a good time to look forward. We are part of a wider community after all, the queer community. And as a whole, the queer community is also underrepresented in relationship research.

Today's paper is: Queer Intimacies: A New Paradigm for the Study of Relationship Diversity by Phillip L. Hammack, David M. Frost, and Sam D. Hughes (2018). [stable link]

This paper puts forth 7 ways in which relationships differ from the normative path, and how these perspectives need to be included in academic research more. These assumptions and corresponding "axioms" are that:

Relationships involve 2 different cisgenders, as opposed to homosexual relationships and relationships involving trans/non-binary gender identities

That intimacy is directed solely at one gender, and that attraction does not change, as opposed to plural sexual orientations such as bi and pansexuality and changes in desires

That intimacy is between only two individuals, as opposed to polyamory

That intimacy is characterized by equality and symmetry of role and status, as opposed to consentual power asymmetry often found in kink and BDSM communities

That intimacy is characterized by romance and sex, as opposed to asexual and aromantic intimacies that do not involve romance or sex

That family structures consist of biological offspring, as opposed to chosen families

That forms of intimacy can be known and catalogued, as opposed to the fact that intimacy forms are always situated in their place in history, and that new ways of being intimate with other people are always being invented.

This paper stresses the need for research to be done into these other forms of intimacy that are not usually focused upon.

Now for today's post, I'm going to be focusing on point 5 because I can speak to it personally better. For the sake of brevity I am focusing this on aromanticism, as that is what this whole week of posts has been about. If you have the ability to read this paper though, don't neglect the other portions. they deserve better and further research too.

The authors carefully detail some of the history of asexuality research, and then present the primary holes left to fill in the research. They ask why there has been a difference found in rates of ace men and women having a romantic relationship and for analysis to look beyond the gender binary. They ask for more research on the direct experiences of aros and aces in relationships. The relational forms present in our community are unique and deserve "Legitimization through empirical documentation and systematic inquiry". The authors ask what unique forms of intimacies exist? how do individuals make meaning of these relationships in a culture that privileges sex and romance? and how do partners navigate stigma? What distinctions exist in the experience or expression of asexuality and aromanticism across diverse gender, race, class, and sexual identities?

This paper by Hammack, Frost, and Hughes gives us a charge. To go out and research this. These are only the most obvious gaps in literature from 2018, some will be closed, but that means more will have been opened. We should try and research this, or facilitate those who do. If you ever see a chance to participate in a survey on aromanticism or whatever identity you have, Take it. Even if you aren't in the position to conduct research personally, you can always take part in it. Support organizations like AUREA which provide vital resources not just to the community but to researchers! take part in the aro census ! You have the chance to help facilitate important research in something that is sorely lacking representation in academia. So please, if you have the chance, do it.

[tawnysoup]

Found my fav Slay the Princess route recently. Dragon my beloved. Your horrifying beak mouth was an impossible-to-refuse lip syncing challenge 💖

Shoutouts to @blacktabbygames for making such a cool game!

[jollymalt]

working on a timebomb comic strip!

[badolmen]

WARNING 18+

19

[oh-snapperss]

they'll fund a genocide and let their poor regions be destroyed. don't fucking forgive them for that.

my hometown is completely gone from what pictures i can find of it, i have not heard from my family (including aunts, uncles, parents, one sibling, and a grandparent), and the infrastructure in the mountain communities is wiped out. i cannot stress how catastrophic this is, or how difficult it will be for these communities to build back. i am angry, and scared, and heartbroken by everything that's happened.

and our government is spending it's money to fund a genocide.

free palestine, and don't be complicit. realize that this is not something happening that doesn't affect you--although it shouldn't take this to care about the deaths of thousands of people anyway.

[doctorsiren]

OBJECTION! - Ace Attorney, but in Legos that I 3D modeled myself

[thatdisasterauthor]

If you have a family group text, you must also have the parallel siblings only group text where you dissect what the FUCK is going on with your parent(s) as a running live commentary on what's going down in the main group text.

[mambodork]

All the budget went into making the snails

[cyphertronix]

Stanley Pines lyric PMV bc I think he’s neat :]

EDIT: YouTube link!

[sunlit-mess]

coping real hard

[mroddmod]

everyone be quiet i'm manifesting

[inquisitor-apologist]

Ok I’m being so brave about it but a couple of days ago I saw this post claiming that the Jedi saying ‘this weapon [your lightsaber] is your life’ is emblematic of ‘the Jedi’s failure as peacekeepers’ (not an exact quote but pretty close) because why would a weapon be the life of a peacekeeper?

And like. The Jedi are a culture. They’re a religion.

You know that, right? You know that many cultures, including generally peaceful ones, have sacred weapons, right? You know that the bond between a Jedi and their crystal(s) is an extremely sacred thing that requires the consent of both parties and is integral to their way of life, right?

You know that lightsabers are not intended to be only for killing, right? That the first thing Luke learns to do with his lightsaber is to shield and defend? You know that a culture having sacred weapons doesn’t mean that they view killing as sacred, right?

Not trying to start shit, I don’t even remember who said it, but ugh

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

The squad of all time has arrived on scene.

[mabbbish]

s9 noodles and leftovers

[blorbologist]

Misc Chateau Shorthalt screengrabs because OH man, look at how happy they all are!!!!!

[egophiliac]

everyone out of the way, this is the only thing I'm going to be thinking about from now on.

(okay, there is one more thing)