Transgender Friendship Experiences: Benefits and Barriers of Friendship across Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation

Framing Transgender Friendships

• LGBT friendship literature explores families of choice.
• Broader social networks include LGBT and transgender individuals, offering support, similar experiences, and shared knowledge.
• Question: How do transgender friendships differ from and resemble other sexual minority friendships?

Sexual Minority Friendships

• Gay men and lesbians often form friendships with same-sex individuals and those identifying with the LGBT community.
• Research primarily focuses on provisions, not barriers.
• Provisions include shared experiences, processing minority status, and equity, leading to better psychological adjustment.

Friendships Outside LGBT Community

• Barriers: stigma, sexual tension, discomfort sharing personal information.
• Benefits: objectivity, breaking stereotypes, increased trust, functioning as intentional families.

Feminist Intersectional Theory

• Critiques research lacking consideration of race, gender, and social class intersections.
• Focuses on inequality and power in cultural meanings of gender.
• Now addresses gender identity along transgender-cisgender dimensions.
• Discusses cisgender privilege.

Benefits of Using Framework

• Enables comparative approach across trans- and cis-gender identities.
• Disaggregates sexual and gender minority experiences.
• Allows systemic comparison to understand how these minorities function as non-normative identities.
• Aids in understanding differing experiences among transgender individuals.

Current Study

• Purpose: to examine the intersection of gender identity (transgender, cisgender) and sexual orientation (sexual minority, heterosexual).
• Compares friendships' benefits and barriers across normative (cisgender/heterosexual) and non-normative (transgender/sexual minority) groups.

Method: Participants

• Sample: N = 536 (18-73 years; M = 36.69 years; 83.6% White).
• Identified as transgender or gender variant.
• Gender Identity: 40.4% male, 33.5% female, 16.3% gender nonconforming, 7.2% bigender, 2.6% did not identify.
• Sexual Orientation Identity: 35.1% queer/pansexual/fluid, 19.2% heterosexual, 19.2% lesbian/gay, 19.0% bisexual, 7.5% questioning.

Questions

• What are the unique benefits and barriers to having friends who also identify as:
  • A) transgender
  • B) cisgender (non-transgender)
  • C) sexual minorities
  • D) heterosexual

Inductive Coding Method

• Derived 19 codes for benefits and 19 codes for barriers.
• Coded each person’s responses for each code as 0 = not present or 1 = present.
• Agreement between coders was 66% - 92%.
• Only used certain codes across normative and non-normative experiences.

Friendship Benefits with Cisgender and Heterosexual Individuals

• Helps me feel “normal.”
• Transgender/sexuality issues do not dominate conversations.
• Validation more powerful from someone in a normative identity.
• More opportunities to make friends because larger population.
• Emotionally stable.
• Helps me “pass.”
• Offers diverse perspectives.
• Opportunity to educate about transgender experiences.

Friendship Barriers with Cisgender and Heterosexual Friends

• Not knowledgeable about issues of gender, sex, and privilege.
• Insensitive use of language re identity.
• Difficult to talk about transgender/sexuality issues.
• Feelings of discomfort.
• Not understanding non-normative experiences.
• Fewer shared experiences.

Friendship Benefits with Transgender and Sexual Minority Individuals

• Understanding non-normative experience.
• Knowledgeable on issues of gender, sex, and privilege.
• Shared experience.
• Can talk about transgender issues.
• Offers support via mentoring and shared resources.
• Comfortable being myself.
• Shared community.
• Non-judgmental/open-minded.

Friendship Barriers with Transgender and Sexual Minority Individuals

• Invalidating gender identity and personal experience.
• Transgender/sexuality issues dominate conversation.
• Negative emotions, drama, and instability.
• Fear of being “out-ed” by association or disclosure.

Friendship Benefits with Other Transgender Individuals

• Shared experiences.
• Can talk about transgender issues.
• Offers support via mentorship and shared resources.
• Comfortable being myself.
• Helps me “pass”.

Friendship Barriers with Other Transgender Individuals

• Transgender issues dominate conversation.
• Negative emotions, drama, and emotional instability.
• Fear of being “out-ed”.
• Fosters feelings of discomfort.

Friendship Benefits with Sexual Minority Individuals

• Shared sense of community.
• Non-judgmental/open-minded.
• Offers more diverse perspectives and interactions.
• Opportunity to educate about transgender issues.
• Opportunities for sexual partners.

Friendship Barriers with Sexual Minority Individuals

• Not understanding non-normative experience.
• Fewer shared experiences.

Discussion

• 3 benefits and 2 barriers did not differ across gender identity or sexual orientation of the friend.
• Benefits: Accepting, Affirmative use of language, Opportunity for dating/sexual partners.
• Barriers: Judgmental, Not accepting.

Discussion: Limitations

• Overemphasis on role identity.
• Did not use a developmental lens.
• Did not study intersectionality with race or class.