Current ResearchBook
When States ‘Come Out’: Europe's Sexual Minorities and the Politics of Visibility, Cambridge University Press, 2016 Summary: Why, despite similar international pressures, has socio-legal recognition of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) minorities changed so differently across states? Why are some traditionally Catholic countries leading the way on LGBT rights and why do other advanced, wealthy democracies lag behind? Such variations are not explained by differences in international pressures, the fit between domestic and international norms, modernization or low implementation costs – the traditional explanations for successful diffusion and social change. Extensive fieldwork (82 semi-structured interviews, a survey of 291 LGBT organizations, and 2 datasets on legislation and social attitudes) suggests new domestic preconditions and international pathways of diffusion. I use a mixed-method approach, combining large-n quantitative analysis with in-depth qualitative analysis of key cases, to argue that visibility is central to norm diffusion. The degree to which international pressures resonate in various states – and become internalized within them – depends on specific international channels and domestic interest groups that make political issues visible. The exchange of ideas with other countries and the extent of a state’s openness to international organizations have demonstrable effects on diffusion. Furthermore, the extent to which domestic actors are embedded in transnational networks shapes the speed and direction of diffusion. The findings thus speak to the politics of visibility and how it can accelerate or retard social change. |
PUBLICATIONS
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NEW PROJECTS AND WORKING PAPERS
On Media and Public Opinion: “Getting the Message Out: Media Context and Global Changes in Attitudes toward Homosexuality” (with Jeremiah Garretson, Stony Brook University), under review
On Social Movement Framing: ‘European Poles and Polish Patriots: Movement/Countermovement Dynamics and Frame Development in the Polish LGBT Movement’ (with Agnes Chetaille, EHESS-Ecole des hautes études en sciences sociales), under review
On Intersectionality: ‘Intersectional and Transnational Alliances during Times of Crisis: The LGBT Movement’
On Anti-LGBT Networks in World Politics: (Team led by PI: Kristina Stoeckl): ‘Moral Conservatism and Russian Orthodoxy: Towards a Post-Secular Conflict Theory’
On Power and Rights Recognition in World Politics: ‘Extensions: LGBT, Environment and Bitcoin’ (with Jessica Green and Peter Katzenstein), for the project Protean Power in World Politics by Lucia Seybert and Peter Katzenstein
On LGBT Rights Diffusion: “No Happy Union: Contested International Norms and the Diffusion of Partnership Rights for Same-Sex Couples in Central and Eastern Europe”
On Gender and Visibility Politics: “Constructing Women Workers: The Politics of Labor Force Participation in Germany and Sweden”
On Methodology: “Interviewer Biases and Fieldwork in Marginalized Communities: Researching Immigrant and Queer Activism in the United States and Europe” (with Chris Zepeda-Millán, University of California, Berkeley)
See next tab.
NEW PROJECTS AND WORKING PAPERS
On Media and Public Opinion: “Getting the Message Out: Media Context and Global Changes in Attitudes toward Homosexuality” (with Jeremiah Garretson, Stony Brook University), under review
On Social Movement Framing: ‘European Poles and Polish Patriots: Movement/Countermovement Dynamics and Frame Development in the Polish LGBT Movement’ (with Agnes Chetaille, EHESS-Ecole des hautes études en sciences sociales), under review
On Intersectionality: ‘Intersectional and Transnational Alliances during Times of Crisis: The LGBT Movement’
On Anti-LGBT Networks in World Politics: (Team led by PI: Kristina Stoeckl): ‘Moral Conservatism and Russian Orthodoxy: Towards a Post-Secular Conflict Theory’
On Power and Rights Recognition in World Politics: ‘Extensions: LGBT, Environment and Bitcoin’ (with Jessica Green and Peter Katzenstein), for the project Protean Power in World Politics by Lucia Seybert and Peter Katzenstein
On LGBT Rights Diffusion: “No Happy Union: Contested International Norms and the Diffusion of Partnership Rights for Same-Sex Couples in Central and Eastern Europe”
On Gender and Visibility Politics: “Constructing Women Workers: The Politics of Labor Force Participation in Germany and Sweden”
On Methodology: “Interviewer Biases and Fieldwork in Marginalized Communities: Researching Immigrant and Queer Activism in the United States and Europe” (with Chris Zepeda-Millán, University of California, Berkeley)
© 2015. Phillip Ayoub. All rights reserved. Keywords: transnational politics, norm diffusion, social movements, LGBT rights.