A1 Refereed original research article in a scientific journal
Queering Coupledom? Consensual Non-Monogamies in Finnish Online News 2017–2021
Subtitle: Consensual Non-Monogamies in Finnish Online News 2017–2021
Authors: Taivaloja, Nita; Alasuutari, Varpu
Publisher: Foreningen Lambda Nordica
Publication year: 2024
Journal: Lambda Nordica
Journal name in source: lambda nordica
Volume: 29
Issue: 4
First page : 107
Last page: 133
ISSN: 1100-2573
eISSN: 2001-7286
DOI: https://doi.org/10.34041/ln.v29.982
Web address : https://doi.org/10.34041/ln.v29.982
Self-archived copy’s web address: https://research.utu.fi/converis/portal/detail/Publication/484208236
In recent years, popular interest in consensual non-monogamy (CNM) – including swinging, open relationships, and polyamory – has grown steadily in Finland. Finnish online media has started to explore intimate practices in which individuals agree to engage in sexual and/or loving relationships with multiple partners. In this article, we analyze fifty-six human-interest stories on CNM from the five largest online news platforms in Finland, published between 2017 and 2021, to build an understanding of how media representations of CNM contribute to constructing or deconstructing mononormativity and couple-normativity in Finland. The study locates in the field of critical social psychology, draws from queer and feminist theories of non-normative intimacies and employs reflexive thematic analysis to examine how mono- and couple-normativities are regulated in institutional contexts and the ways online news shapes public knowledge, understanding, and attitudes. Our findings indicate that while media representations construct CNM as a valid and beneficial relationship option for some, underlying assumptions of mononormativity and couple-normativity remain strong.
Downloadable publication This is an electronic reprint of the original article. |