The invisible community in contemporary China: a visual narrative framework for Chinese lesbian identity

The study investigates how contemporary Chinese lesbians construct, negotiate, and express their sexual orientation identities within intersecting social norms and cultural expectations in China. Drawing on queer theory (e.g., Judith Butler) emphasizing gender/sexuality as fluid and performative, the authors adopt an innovative visual methodology—Photo Elicitation (PE)—to grant participants agency in selecting and interpreting images that represent their lived experiences. The research introduces the Visual Narratives of Identity (VNI) framework to integrate visual elements into discussions of identity construction. The purpose is to challenge simplistic, linear models of lesbian identity, illuminate the pressures from family and society (including China’s “Triple No Policy”), and reveal the strategies used to balance social structures and personal desires. The work aims to bridge academic analysis with lived experience, advancing visual cultural studies on gender and sexual orientation in a non-Western context.

Global scholarship has increasingly recognized the diversity of lesbian identities, supported by legal and social changes in many Western contexts. In China, however, acceptance has progressed more slowly due to strong family and lineage expectations and the state’s implicit “Triple No Policy” (no approval, no disapproval, no promotion). While globalization, internet use, and youth engagement have expanded discourse and awareness, lesbians continue to face distinctive pressures to reconcile personal identity with familial and social obligations. Existing methods—quantitative surveys, qualitative interviews, and textual analysis—offer insights but often miss the granular, embodied, and non-verbal dimensions of identity construction. Visual methods (photography, video) can capture affect and everyday performances but have often centered the researcher’s gaze rather than participant agency, and Chinese visual studies largely rely on film analysis that can dilute authenticity. The authors argue for participatory visual approaches that foreground lesbians’ direct perspectives to achieve more authentic, nuanced understandings.

Design and framework: The study integrates the Visual Narratives of Identity (VNI) framework with Photo Elicitation (PE). VNI conceptualizes sexual orientation identity as complex, fluid, and shaped by internal/external factors; it emphasizes visual expression, the interplay of global LGBTQ+ discourses with local contexts, and the impact of sociocultural norms on visibility. PE empowers participants to select/create photographs that prompt narratives during interviews, deepening access to affective and non-verbal dimensions of identity. Participants and recruitment: Seven self-identified lesbians (age 18+), from diverse provinces, backgrounds, and professions in China, were recruited via sexual minority platforms and direct contact; snowball sampling enhanced diversity. Data collection: Two stages—(1) participants selected or took photos (e.g., selfies, daily scenes, symbolic objects) representing experiences and identity; (2) photo-based semi-structured interviews probing selection reasons, contexts, and identity meanings. Interviews lasted ~1.5 hours each. Data analysis: Verbatim transcription; Thematic Analysis with iterative coding to identify and refine themes capturing identity development and sociocultural impacts. Three core themes emerged (visibility/invisibility; global–local interplay; sociocultural contexts and performativity). Confidentiality/ethics: Anonymization of recordings/notes, removal of sensitive identifiers. Informed consent obtained in Mandarin; voluntary participation with right to withdraw. Risks/benefits: No material compensation; study offered a platform for participants’ voices to be heard. Empirical validation: The combined VNI+PE approach was used to demonstrate how visual narratives reveal strategies of navigating visibility/invisibility and sociocultural pressures in contemporary China.

- Participant-driven visual narratives revealed three core, interrelated themes: (1) Visibility and invisibility: Participants actively managed identity visibility across public/private contexts. Examples include removing a ring at home to avoid family conflict (Anran), keeping relationships hidden to protect careers in small towns (Xiang Nan), and creating a fictional boyfriend to blend into a conservative workplace while privately affirming same-sex relationships (Ma Du). (2) Interplay of global and local influences: Global LGBTQ+ symbols (e.g., rainbow flags) are localized with Chinese language/slogans (Du Shuang, Liu) to construct a “hybrid but Chinese” identity that is resonant yet culturally legible. (3) Sociocultural contexts and gender performativity: Family expectations, heteronormativity, and workplace surveillance shape identity expression; participants resist norms through clothing and demeanor (e.g., preference for suits, dark colors; rejection of pink/skirts) to assert authenticity and challenge gender binaries. - Visuality as method: Photographs captured nuanced, affective experiences and identity work that words alone could not, validating the VNI+PE approach to study fluid, performative identity. - Structural pressures: China’s “Triple No Policy,” traditional family values, and stigma constrain visibility, sometimes pushing lesbians toward concealment or “xinghun” (contract marriages). Two participants withdrew due to planned heterosexual marriages, reflecting real-time pressures. - Contextual data points: N=7 participants; interviews ~1.5 hours each; recruitment across multiple provinces; corroborating literature notes very low parental disclosure (e.g., 3% in Zheng, 2016) and differential acceptance across settings (e.g., more open art schools versus conservative public institutions). Overall, identities are actively constructed and negotiated through everyday performances and visual-symbolic strategies under significant sociocultural constraints.

The findings address the research aim by showing how Chinese lesbians construct and express identities through negotiated visibility, localized global symbols, and performative resistance to gender norms. Visual narratives make legible the micro-strategies used to balance authenticity with safety amid family obligations, workplace surveillance, and community expectations—pressures intensified by the state’s ambiguous policy environment. The VNI framework, operationalized via PE, illuminates the fluidity and non-linearity of identity and centers participants’ agency in meaning-making. These insights underscore the importance of visual, participatory methods in capturing the lived, embodied dimensions of identity that are often missed by conventional verbal/textual approaches. The study demonstrates that hybrid identity formations emerge where global LGBTQ+ discourses meet local cultural grammars, and that resistance/performance in attire, symbols, and daily choices functions both as self-affirmation and as challenges to heteronormative norms. Practically, this suggests the need for supportive family/community dialogues, more inclusive institutional policies, and culturally sensitive advocacy that leverages localized visual-symbolic repertoires.

The study integrates queer theory and visual culture studies through the VNI framework and empirically applies Photo Elicitation to examine lesbian identity construction in China. It challenges linear, stage-based models and demonstrates that identities are fluid, performative, and negotiated within socio-cultural constraints. Visual narratives reveal how participants resist and navigate gender expectations, how global LGBTQ+ symbols are localized into hybrid forms, and how family and societal norms limit visibility and authenticity. The VNI framework foregrounds participant agency and the analytic value of visual methods, offering a robust lens for understanding identity formation in non-Western contexts. Future research should refine VNI by exploring the roles of digital media and online communities, extend participatory visual methodologies to broader and more diverse samples, and investigate policy and institutional interventions that can enhance visibility, safety, and acceptance.

- Small, qualitative sample (N=7) limits generalizability; two participants withdrew due to planned heterosexual marriages, further constraining diversity of perspectives. - Findings are context-specific to contemporary China and reflect self-selected participants’ experiences using self-curated images, which may introduce selection and presentation biases. - The framework’s current application places limited emphasis on digital media/online communities; authors note this as an area for improvement. - Reliance on qualitative interviews and participant-generated photographs may underrepresent experiences of those unable or unwilling to produce visual materials.