Analysis Of Cycles Of Sameness And Difference In LGBT Social Movements

In observing “Cycles of Sameness and Difference in LGBT Social Movements" by Amin Ghaziani, Verta Taylor, and Amy Stone, it is clear that this work is different in the fact that the entire paper itself acts a literature review. The article focuses on the similarities and differences between movements and observes prior literature that attempts to explain why these similarities and differences exist and better understand the history and reasoning behind both LGBT and social movements in general. Rather than conducting individual research, Ghaziani and other’s article attempts to explain how and why the history of LGBT movements happened in the way it did. Furthermore, the work is structured according to the three movements it attempts to explain:

This is namely in the fact that most literature reviews do not take up the entirety of the work. We also see that there is not much original data present in the work. Rather, the work pieces together theories, ideas, and trends from work within the same field with a focus on LGBT rights. In doing so, the article attempts to create a cohesive and chronological telling of LGBT movements, including the subcultures within the movement and the other social movements occurring at the same time, such as the feminist movement. In observing other articles within the Annual Review of Sociology, we see that this is actually not uncommon, however. For example, “Social Structure, Adversity, Toxic Stress, and Intergenerational Poverty: An Early Childhood Model” by Craig A. McEwen and Bruce S. McEwen is very similar in structure, reviewing other’s literature and connecting theories and models in order to explain how, why, and if these phenomena

A Queer Dilemma” by Joshua Gamson. Published in Social Problems, this work has been cited 974 times according to Google Scholar and focuses on the self-destructive nature of identity movements, such as the LGBT movement. Ghaziani’s previous work, The Dividends of Dissent: How Conflict and Culture Work in Lesbian and Gay Marches on Washington, is also heavily emphasized. Unlike Gamson’s work, Ghaziani’s is an independently standing book, which might explain why it is emphasized so heavily. However, outside of “Cycles of Sameness and Difference in LGBT Social Movements,” it is not as heavily cited as Gamson’s with only 124 citations according to Google Scholar. Lastly, we also see Tina Fetner’s How the Religious Right Shaped Lesbian and Gay Activism emphasized and, yet again, it is an independently standing book that is less heavily cited than Gamson’s work with 285 citations according to Google Scholar yet again. In observing all cited works, important sociology journals appears to be Social Problems, Social Theory, and just sociology books in general. Since Cycles of Sameness and Difference in LGBT Social Movements is published in Annual Review of Sociology, one of the top sociology journals, these publications don’t seem to hold the same amount of weight, yet they are important