Beyond Inclusion: Thinking Toward a Transfeminist Methodology

Johnson, Austin H.

doi:10.1108/s1529-212620150000020003

Cited by 36 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Transfeminist methodology calls for reflexivity in research (Johnson 2015a); therefore, we reflect here on our subject positions as researchers. The first author identifies as a southern, white, educated, trans man.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“We're the Normal Ones Here”: Community Involvement, Peer Support, and Transgender Mental Health

Johnson

Rogers

2019

Sociological Inquiry

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This article uses ethnographic methods to explore how peer support and community involvement influence the mental health and well-being of transgender (or, trans) people in the southeastern United States. The study builds on existing research that suggests that trans community involvement and peer support among trans people enhance mental health experiences and moderate the effects of stigma and discrimination on health outcomes. Through qualitative analysis of 158 hours of participant observation and 33 indepth interviews with members of a trans community organization in the U.S. Southeast, this paper identifies three key processes through which peer support and community involvement enhance the mental health and well-being of trans people: (1) the normalization of trans identities and experiences; (2) the creation of a social support network; and (3) the empowerment of trans people.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“We're the Normal Ones Here”: Community Involvement, Peer Support, and Transgender Mental Health

Johnson

Rogers

2019

Sociological Inquiry

Self Cite

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“…In line with feminist methodologists’ (Harding ; Hesse‐Biber ) and my own (Johnson ) call for reflexivity in the research process, it is necessary to reflect here on my subject position as a researcher. As a transgender man whose primary research area lies within the sociology of gender and medical sociology, I am uniquely situated to conduct this research.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transnormativity: A New Concept and Its Validation through Documentary Film About Transgender Men

Johnson

2016

Sociological Inquiry

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186

137

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While prior research has called attention to how medically based, normative understandings of sex and gender place undue restrictions on transgender people's autonomy, there has yet to be an attempt to consolidate this research into a recognizable concept that is situated within existing theoretical frameworks. This article uses documentary films focused on transgender men as an empirical example to develop the concept of transnormativity. Transnormativity describes the specific framework to which transgender people's presentations and experiences of gender are held accountable. Drawing on research specific to transgender community groups, medicalization, and legal transition, I argue that transnormativity structures transgender experience, identification, and narratives into a hierarchy of legitimacy that is dependent upon medical standards. This ideology, as I show via a content analysis of documentary films, circulates in media depictions of transgender people in ways that eclipse alternative explanations of gender non-conformity. While medical transition is a central component of many transgender people's gender trajectory, I argue in this article that the privileging of the medical model over others creates a marginalizing effect for gender-non-conforming people who cannot or do not wish to medically transition.

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“…For example, feminine cisgender men may be targets for discrimination; however, their gender identity and sex are not questioned as is common with transmasculine people who demonstrate similar qualities. 50 Entwined with the Benjamin standards, 47 ''not trans enough'' is steeped in essentialism and perpetuated through authoritative frameworks, such as multiple iterations of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). 32,33,51 Davis et al .8 characterized the Institute of Medicine's influence in creating and disseminating ideologies around sex, gender, and sexuality as such, ''.…”

Section: Medical Model In Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

Learning from Transmasculine Experiences with Health Care: Tangible Inlets for Reducing Health Disparities Through Patient–Provider Relationships

et al. 2020

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We examined health care experiences of transmasculine young adults to clarify factors contributing to mistrust in the health care system and identify tangible and modifiable means to address health disparities through improved patient-provider interactions. Thematic analysis highlights patterns within historical relationships between medical models and transmasculine embodiment, and provides guidance for health care clinicians, researchers, and policy makers to deliver competent services for transgender and gender diverse (TGD) individuals. Methods: The study team used qualitative methodology guided by interpretive phenomenological analysis. Semistructured interviews with 12 participants who self-identified as transmasculine were conducted, transcribed, and coded thematically. Results: Participants were a community sample of 12 young adults 18-35 years of age (M = 23, standard deviation = 3.74), who self-identified as transmasculine. Three participants identified as a racial/ethnic minority. Participants were highly educated, with most completing at least some college. The superordinate thematic domain Perspectives on Health Care emerged, under which three subthemes were nested: (1) an essentialist, binary medical model is inaccurate and oppressive, (2) consequences of medicalizing gender (i.e., gender as a diagnosis), and (3) recommendations to improve health care. Conclusions: Qualitative analysis revealed specific ways in which the relationship between transmasculine individuals and current health care systems are fraught with difficulties, including the impact of stigma, gatekeeping, and inaccuracies, in current diagnostic criteria. Participants shared lived experiences and offered innovative ideas to improve health care delivery, such as challenging socialized biases, increased education, and immersion in TGD communities to advocate for change in research, practice, and policy.

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Beyond Inclusion: Thinking Toward a Transfeminist Methodology

Cited by 36 publications

References 39 publications

“We're the Normal Ones Here”: Community Involvement, Peer Support, and Transgender Mental Health

“We're the Normal Ones Here”: Community Involvement, Peer Support, and Transgender Mental Health

Transnormativity: A New Concept and Its Validation through Documentary Film About Transgender Men

Learning from Transmasculine Experiences with Health Care: Tangible Inlets for Reducing Health Disparities Through Patient–Provider Relationships

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