Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Student Experiences in Christian Higher Education: A Qualitative Exploration

Wolff, Joshua R.; Kay, Theresa Stueland; Himes, Heather L.; Alquijay, Jennifer

doi:10.1080/15363759.2017.1310065

Cited by 21 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Sometimes, institutional policies and local gender practices conflict, creating disparate microclimates on a single campus. In terms of Christian institutions, students face possible expulsion if outed as trans, whereas specific communities can also provide support and gender affirmation, using faith‐based frames such as “love thy neighbor,” to combat anti‐trans messages (Wolff, Kay, Himes, & Alquijay, ). It is also important not to reify particular locations as bigoted strongholds, which obscures the violence that exists in more so‐called “progressive” places.…”

Section: Institutional Typementioning

confidence: 99%

Transgender experiences and transphobia in higher education

Siegel

2019

Sociology Compass

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While categories like “campus climate” highlight variation across institutions, trans people's experiences also vary within an institutional context. By studying trans people's experiences in higher education, however, we can better understand and respond to the differentiated and changing needs of transgender people in other arenas. In this paper, I review key qualitative and quantitative findings along several themes: (a) disclosing trans identities, (b) trans communities, and (c) resources and career‐level support. Specifically, I use the concept of microclimates to explain how trans people encounter various forms of support and discrimination on campus. For example, someone might receive support from particular individuals, such as an advisor, or spaces, like a gender studies classroom, but not others. Researchers also report both similarities and differences between binary and nonbinary trans people, as well as between transgender men and transgender women, suggesting that there is no universal trans experience, nor a one‐size‐fits‐all approach to supporting trans students and faculty members. Challenging interpersonal and systemic transphobia requires context‐specific interventions.

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Section: Institutional Typementioning

confidence: 99%

Transgender experiences and transphobia in higher education

Siegel

2019

Sociology Compass

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“…Studies with transgender samples revealed similar experiences to those with sexual‐minority samples, with the addition of one trans‐specific theme: erasure. Participants in two transgender studies described how the gender‐essentialism present in their Christian faith communities left them with no language or framework to understand their experiences (Sumerau et al, 2016; Wolff et al, 2017). These participants suffered from feelings of invisibility and experienced social punishment, shaming, and ostracism for existing in ways that violated faith‐based rules about gender (Sumerau et al, 2016; Wolff et al, 2017).…”

Section: Nonaffirming Religious Affiliationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“I feel like God doesn't like me”: Faith and Ambiguous Loss Among Transgender Youth

Anderson

McGuire

2021

Family Relations

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Objective The present study expands the use of ambiguous loss theory into the realm of religion and religious rejection for sexual‐ and gender‐minority people, an area that has previously been addressed primarily as an issue of minority stress. Background Research has demonstrated that religion‐based, nonaffirming messaging from family and faith communities is correlated with decreased health and well‐being of sexual‐ and gender‐minority persons, who are, like most Americans, likely to have been raised in religious (predominately Christian) homes. Existing research has begun to explain why nonaffirming faith affiliation seems to negatively impact sexual gender minority people, but it does not explain the mechanisms of long‐term distress. Methods This study is a qualitative thematic analysis of religion and family data from semistructured interviews with 63 transgender youth from the United States, Canada, and Ireland who reported being raised in religious Christian homes. Results Analysis revealed that the narratives of participants who had been members of a psychological family of faith included all of the core elements of ambiguous loss, suggesting that individuals can experience ambiguous loss in relationship to a faith community and to God. Discussion This study presents a new application of Boss's ambiguous loss theory and offers a framework for understanding why sexual‐ and gender‐minority people from Christian backgrounds might experience long‐term distress in relation to faith and spirituality whether they stay in their faith communities of origin or move on to something else. Implications The experiences of transgender people examined through the framework of ambiguous loss and the concept of the psychological family of faith could be applied to research with people from any demographic in relation to loss of faith or faith community. This information may contribute to the study of family ruptures that occur as a result of family experiences of ideological or moral incompatibility (e.g., deconversion, political realignment, leaving a cult).

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“…In addition, campuses that have nondiscrimination policies that explicitly include QT people also foster a more inclusive campus climate Garvey, Rankin, Beemyn, & Windmeyer, 2017). From a curricular perspective, institutions that have gender and sexuality academic programs or offer courses in QT studies also enhance students' campus climate perceptions (Wolff, Kay, Himes, & Alquijay, 2017). Faculty are influential in students' perceptions of campus climate, especially in promoting students' academic integration and engagement within their college or university (Kim & Sax, 2009).…”

Section: Campus Climatementioning

confidence: 99%

Critical Imperatives for Studying Queer and Trans Undergraduate Student Retention

Garvey

2020

Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Pr

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The dearth of retention scholarship that centers (or includes) queer and trans (QT) students has resulted in inadequately capturing the nuanced dimensions of student retention. As a scholarly community, we are at a critical juncture where it is academically, administratively, and morally necessary to reexamine assumptions about retention to better acknowledge and center QT people in this body of work. The purpose of this article is to provide critical imperatives for studying QT undergraduate student retention, including methodological, institutional, interpersonal, and individual contexts. I close with implications for education scholars, institutional researchers, and assessment professionals when studying QT student retention.

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Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Student Experiences in Christian Higher Education: A Qualitative Exploration

Cited by 21 publications

References 22 publications

Transgender experiences and transphobia in higher education

Transgender experiences and transphobia in higher education

“I feel like God doesn't like me”: Faith and Ambiguous Loss Among Transgender Youth

Critical Imperatives for Studying Queer and Trans Undergraduate Student Retention

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