Dancing Between Masculinity and Femininity: How Effeminate Gay Adolescents Construct “Sissy Capital” in Chinese Schools

• In Event: Sociology of Sexualities Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 8: Sexuality and Gender II

Abstract

This study identifies “sissy capital” as a cultural mechanism for Chinese effeminate gay students that helps them negotiate heteronormativity and navigate sissyphobic schools. Drawing on 14 in-depth interviews, it analyzes how effeminate gay students mobilize between dominant masculinity and femininity to obtain social popularity, gender capital, and symbolic status. The findings reveal a status hierarchy within queer students, distinguishing “sissy elites” who excel socially, academically, or sexually from marginalized peers. However, this capital accumulation requires them to internalize heteronormativity and neoliberal meritocracy. The study concludes that while sissy capital creates alternative queer spaces, it simultaneously reproduces queer inequalities and marginalizes sissiness in schools. By theorizing sissy capital, this research contributes to the literature of gender, sexuality, and capital in oppressive contexts, providing insights into broader queer cultures and Chinese educational contexts.

Author

• Han Wang, University of Pennsylvania