Gay slang pup
Kinda Wassef does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. In recent years, the world of kink lifestyles and subcultures has gained increasing attention.
Kink is a general term pup includes various expressions of unconventional or non-traditional sexual desires. One such form of role-play that is often misunderstood is known as pup play. Pups are consenting adults who roleplay by dressing and acting as young canines, or pups. We are researchers gay nutrition and health research with a focus on diverse gender and sexualities.
In this project called Puppy Philmswe seek to more deeply understand how meanings ascribed to bodies are socially constructed for gay, bisexual, transgender and queer men within the pup community. For this project, we used a method called cellphilming. The term cellphilm was coined to describe films made with cell phones. We worked with pups who created cellphilms to learn more about their community, particularly how being a pup might help people navigate body-image concerns.
We recruited 17 self-identifying gay, bisexual, transgender and queer men who are pups slang Canada. They attended three workshops and each of them created a cellphilm in which they talked about being a pup and how their body image is shaped in the pup community. Pup play has its roots within kink communities and gay BDSM and leather subculture.
Alongside the sexual component, pup play is viewed by gay to be a social activity. Studies have demonstrated many reasons why people might participate in kink and BDSM activities. For example, personal development, self-expressionovercoming anxiety, relaxationand to be more socially comfortable. Kink play may also improve interpersonal relationships.
The pup community fosters connections and gathers at various pup events. Pups often wear pup gear like collars and pup masks or hoods. Cellphilming is an art-based research method and serves as a tool for advocacy that researchers seeking to slang traditional roles within research can use. It enables participants to exercise their creativity and take control and ownership of their narrativesfacilitating the expression of ideas that can be more challenging to convey through traditional interviews.
Research becomes an artistic and pup process.
Pup Language
The resulting cellphilms are pieces of art that can create a sense of solidarity among communities while changing social values about gender, sexual orientation and bodies. Our previous work noted that many gay men navigate body-image tensions by identifying within gay subcultures that celebrate bodies that are more diverse than the dominant thin and muscular body standards.
We also found that challenging and disrupting dominant ideas about masculinity can be helpful for some men dealing with body-image concerns. Yet no studies have looked at the relationships between body image and pup communities. With Puppy Philms, we sought to gain a deeper insights into this relationship through cellphilming.
Three findings about pup play and body image emerged from our research.