Minority Stress, Coping, and Transgender Youth in Schools—Results from the Resilience and Transgender Youth Study

Abstract

BACKGROUND Transgender youth report high rates of negative experiences in schools. Using a lens of minority stress, this study sought to examine in‐school experiences of transgender youth to understand youth coping and to identify key opportunities for improving school environments for transgender youth. METHODS Participants included 41 youth across 33 in‐depth interviews (Mage = 21.7) and two focus groups (N = 8; Mage = 17.3). Thematic analysis was used to analyze data. Themes related to stress, coping, and facilitators/barriers to stress/coping were derived and coded. RESULTS Distal stressors, such as structural discrimination and prejudice events, were found to contribute to the exclusion of transgender youth from school life, while proximal stressors, such as concealment and expectations of rejection, reinforced transgender youth's feelings of personal isolation. Participants expressed coping with both challenges by advocating for inclusion through direct action with teachers and administrators and seeking/finding connection with trusted staff and peers. CONCLUSIONS Findings suggest that creating safe and supportive environments at school for transgender youth is an attainable goal, as all identified barriers to inclusivity and connection were modifiable. By considering the needs of transgender youth in policies and programming, schools may improve climate for and wellbeing of transgender students.

Coping Strategies to Enhance the Mental Wellbeing of Sexual and Gender Minority Youths: A Scoping Review

“…Table 3 summarizes the methods and key findings obtained from the non-intervention-focused studies, which frequently drew upon the expert by experience perspectives of SGMYs in regard to psycho-social coping techniques or strategies. Repeatedly, in the included studies, the ability to obtain support and a connection with other SGMYs was seen as important (e.g., [ 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 ]). The opportunity to meet people “like me” was seen as especially useful.…”

“…SGMYs taking on an educator role (i.e., [ 56 , 61 ]) or something akin to a political advocate role (i.e., [ 46 , 57 , 62 ]) was perceived as helpful by SGMYs. For instance, when SGMYs held a “proud LGBTQ+ position”, this could be resilience-enhancing in the face of mistreatment [ 62 ].…”

The role of social work and social welfare in the current crisis facing trans youth in the US

“…Neither sample included the voices of parents who took no issue with their children's transgender identities, nor did they actively seek out stories disconfirmatory of their primary hypothesis. Furthermore, the notion that being transgender is a socially attractive identity fails to account for the astronomically high rates of bullying, violence and ostracisation towards trans and gender-diverse youth consistently found in socialepidemiological studies with school-aged children (Casey et al, 2019;Johns et al, 2021;Messinger et al, 2021).…”

Affirming Care for Transgender and Gender-Diverse Youth

“…School nurses can implement, guide, and support the efforts of administration to provide and maintain security for all students, but particularly for vulnerable students such as TGD students (National Association of School Nurses, 2021). Schoolbased nurses can serve on school safety and curriculum committees, identifying, advocating, and implementing trans-specific anti-bullying policies and inclusive curricula that contribute to the well-being and educational experience of TGD youth (Johns et al, 2021;Peter et al, 2016). ation, 2022).…”