Organismos e Informes referentes de ámbito internacional

The aim of the research, as described in Chapter 1, is to investigate older people as diverse and active audiences of representations of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and

Transgender (LGBT) people in television soap operas in the late twentieth and twenty first centuries. As demonstrated in Chapter 1, the older population of the UK are frequently positioned by a range of discourses as problematic, dependent, a ‘burden’, passive, infantile and largely asexual, but simultaneously and equally importantly, recent initiatives have sought to engage with them as more active consumers and citizens. Some current discourses begin to take a more critical approach to ageism and broadsheet recognition of more positive approaches to people living longer are welcome. “Our ageing world isn’t a catastrophe. It’s a triumph” (Williams 2009 p28) the Guardian headlines and the stress is on many older people not needing care. Many of the earlier reviews assume a conservative horror from older people to representations of sexuality, such as “putting them off their cocoa”. (Kingsley 1998). Emerging discourses are complex and often contradictory frequently creating a ‘new’ younger ‘old’ who are represented as more active and critical, which challenges but also reinforces ageism by shifting the focus onto people of around 70 and over as opposed to 50 plus as less demanding and with multiple needs. It is the aim of this research to demonstrate that within ‘older people’ there are many voices and many views about LGBT representations and that older people change views in different social contexts; they show a familiarity with issues which are not reducible to age groups and that these are all evidenced in talk about LGBT issues generated from soap opera texts.

In order to provide evidence of diverse and critical opinions and discussions, the social research is organised to elicit (i) evidence regarding the critical responses of research participants as members of audiences and (ii) evidence of attitudes to non-normative sexualities through perceptions of narratives and characters in the programmes, and (iii) ways in which these relate to ‘themes’ identified in Chapters 3 and the participants’ everyday lives. Different Groups of older people that can provide useful comparisons are selected and questions designed to provide life stories, histories and changing attitudes.

This chapter describes both cultural and social the methodology, ethics, research methods and analysis of data. Themes and issues arising from theorists of soap operas are

examined in relation to areas of questions for Groups. Sampling strategy, rationale and access to Day Centres and Campaign Groups are explained and the variable access to these Groups according to professional networking and shared history and sexual politics. The two Mainstream Centres are a Drop-in for carers and former carers of older people in an area of East London, the other an older people’s Day Centre in a South London Outer Suburb, and are coded EL and SL for anonymity. Three Campaign Groups are coded OL for the Older Lesbian Group, GM for Older Gay men’s Group, and T for Transgender Group. Discussion of social research methodology and methods is on p.153.

In order to clarify the methodologies of cultural analysis and social research, the following discusses the relevance of ‘close readings.’

Cultural and Social Research Methodologies

As described in Chapter 2, television soap operas have been theorised as aimed at women, in the scheduling, context and the narrative structure and content, and in a broader intertextual context. Some evidence points to changing audiences and in terms of gender and age with more men and younger viewers. (Hargrave and Gatfield 2002) Soaps draw attention to the constructions and representations of ‘everyday life’. They have large diverse audiences, there is much intertextual material and are talked widely about widely within work and social contexts. As Ang (1985) Hobson (1990) and Brown (1994) establish, soaps are important as focal points for sexual and social identities. Responses vary even in a single episode. Responses are further diversified by the style of engagement; Ang’s (1985) research shows that women audiences of soaps may

describe their responses as critically engaged and/or ironic while enjoying the pleasure of viewing either alone or with others, and that there are various ways that soaps are read; the structures (tragic, melodramatic, ‘realistic’) of the genre do not define the audiences readings and the responses vary; life histories, experience and intertextualities are some of the variables (Schlesinger, Dobash, Dobash and Weaver 1992), Ang, (1985, p61)

Brown, (1994) and Thomas (2002) are particularly relevant as they research the talk that soaps generate and the carnivalesque and negotiated responses of audiences.

This social research aims to continue these themes in relation to older audiences by exploring the ‘talk’ about soaps, the extent of variation to which the social identities represented by soaps influence their ‘everyday lives’ and how they respond to them. The group structures enable the views of older people to be discussed and negotiated and to provide challenges to views which place older people as fixed and unchanging. The qualitative research undertaken provides possibilities for participants to relate to

narratives of other participants. Quantitative research on viewing figures for prime time soaps were according to the Independent on Sunday in 2002 EastEnders, 11m,

Coronation Street, 10.9m, Emmerdale, 8.2 m, Brookside 1.5m. (Vallely, 2002). Figures

are higher when there are ‘controversial’ themes (murder, incest, lesbian gay and transgender representations) in prime time and are starting points for further qualitative studies which are able to investigate meanings and perceptions. Here quantitative and qualitative can usefully be seen as complementary rather that oppositional methods.

Cowan and Valentine (2006) research the BBC over a period of 168 hours and conclude that “gay lives were represented positively for just six minutes”, that lesbians are rarely represented and that gay men are acceptable only if desexualised. (Cowan and Valentine 2006, p6). Nevertheless they also conclude that many heterosexual viewers become aware of lesbians and gay men via television and that empathy can be created in this way. (Cowan and Valentine 2006, p6).

The Groups selected for research here continue an investigation into the extent of ‘empathy’ created by the texts, negotiated meanings and diverse responses of older audiences. As noted in Chapter 1, there are a range of Groups; one is made up of users of a tightly structured national voluntary provider, one belongs to a loosely organised Drop- in centre and there are three ‘Campaigning’ Groups: Older Lesbian, Older Gay Men and a male to female Transgender identified Group. Attempts to find an Older Bisexual Group were unsuccessful. The diversity of older audiences is expected to yield varied

responses; some have known and been familiar with LGBT communities and will have complex critical responses to representations.

Themes and Issues

The research is organised to evaluate selected soap theorists’ conclusions. As argued in Chapter 2, Ang’s (1990) theory of ‘emotional identification’ and Brown’s (1994)

theorising of the carnivalesque (from Bakhtin’s (1968/1984 development from Rabelais) and audience pleasures provide potential for active, varied and resistant readings. Brown (1994) theorises resistant, carnivalesque and active talk and Brunsden (1997) researches the group discussions in a work environment which occur after the programmes have been transmitted. Ang, Brunsden, Brown, Thomas (2002) and others illustrate from their research that soap opera audiences talk about storylines and themes, identify with them at times and use various reading approaches. They frequently resist and transform

hegemonic discourses. Carnivalesque is defined in this thesis as Brown (2002) uses it, referencing Bakhtin’s (1965) concept “to suggest that the making fun of role hierarchies and the status reversal that the pre-Lenten carnival involves can lead to a kind of

empowerment for the people”. (Brown 1994, p134) Resistance and laughter are key components; Brown explains, “Social practices for subordinated groups can be a mass of contradictions. Soap opera fanship networks acknowledge these contradictions, and in turn such contradictions have the capacity to provoke carnivalesque laughter”. (Brown 1994 p134). The outcomes of cultural analysis and the themes and issues are identified as appropriate for group discussion and social research.

The introduction and incorporation of LGBT narratives bring into popular culture issues which had previously frequently been compartmentalised as ‘special ‘interest’

programmes. The fandom of soaps indicate that audiences who would not watch a documentary programme about LGBT issues engage with soap narratives with these storylines; there is a compulsory engagement with LGBT issues for the soap opera fan. The analysis of this talk in the Groups and outside of them investigates some of the

readings and the possibilities of change that these audiences utilise in relation to LGBT narratives in the soaps under discussion.

As there were few lesbian and gay narratives in the periods being studied by the soap theorists focused on in Chapter 2, it was only possible for the theorists to predict the implications of more mainstream Lesbian Gay (Bisexual) and possibly Transgender narratives. Modleski’s approach is relevant and worthy of investigation when she

theorises that only “acceptable” issues are addressed in soaps. The possible acceptability of the lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and transgender can be investigated textually and intertextually in relation to these older audiences as well as the absence of bisexuality as explicit narrative. Geraghty’s prediction of the transgressive possibilities of lesbian narratives within the soaps and audiences’ responses will also be investigated.

The research methodologies discussed in Chapter 1 which are most useful for this project are those which use focus groups and semi-structured interviews, providing potential for discussion and probes of views and the situating of views within broader narratives. Addressing the issues alongside concepts of empowerment indicates a positive approach and acknowledges older people’s contributions rather than needs. (Walsh and O’Shea, 2007). Researching older people’s views is most relevant (Manthorpe, Moriarty,

Rapaport, Clough, Cornes, Bright and Iliffe 2008, Iliffe, Wilcock, Manthorpe, Moriarty, Cornes, Clough and Bright, 2008), Gott and Hinchcliffe 2003. Research on older LGBT issues by the Group Gay and Grey in Dorset (2006) emphasises varied experiences the need for awareness and training for health and social care staff and need for social and support Groups. The research came out of discussion Groups and expanded to reach other lesbians and gay men. Theories of familiarity with issues and minority groups in

prmoting tolerance (Valentine and McDonald 2004, p20, Schlesinger, Dobash and Weaver 1992) are relevant to this project. These are discussed in Chapters 5 and 6.

Themes derived from Chapter 3 inform social research into soap ‘talk’. Older audiences are frequently not recognised or set up to be easily shocked, and heterosexual. They can be perceived as bigoted and unable to change yet rarely consulted about sexuality or

gender issues; these widely available representations provide an appropriate site for investigating their evaluations of these readings.