Research with Gender Diverse Populations: Why Sensitivity, Transparency, and Respect Matter

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Gender diversity is an umbrella term used to describe the many ways to identify outside of the binary of men and women. It includes multiple labels (e.g., non-binary, agender, transgender) that people may use when their gender identity/expression do not align with others’ expectations or with societal norms and stereotypes (A Gender Agenda, 2021).

Gender diverse identities have been pathologized for most of the 20th century: prior to the 1970s, the majority of research on this community focused on sickness (Blair, 2016). In fact, the gender binary (i.e., man or woman) was considered “normal”,  so anything deviating from it signalled a defect and was even considered morally “bad”. Thus, not identifying with the sex one was assigned at birth was considered a sickness that needed to be treated (Drescher, 2015). These “treatments” involved invasive and harmful practices such as involuntary castration and electric shocks. These harmful practices were also conducted in research contexts, and although not considered so in the past, these are now seen as ethical research transgressions towards gender diverse individuals (Blair, 2016; Drescher, 2015).

Why is it important to mention past unethical research practices? Well, in order to currently achieve best practices in ethical and inclusive gender diverse research, it’s important that researchers “appreciate the systematic impact of historically unchecked transphobia within their discipline” (Vincent, 2018). The process of recognizing this problematic history can involve engaging with reports on the topic, and with responses from gender diverse organizations and informal sources (Vincent, 2018; some resources are linked at the bottom of the article under the “More readings” section).

Although developing sensitivity to the history of gender diversity research is a good start, it is possible that some gender diverse participants will be negatively impacted by a researcher’s presence or the design/wording of the study. In the end, members of the gender diverse community are the experts on how to effectively engage with them and their communities (Vincent, 2018). That being said, carefully studying language is essential, as researchers can come across as out of touch when using outdated or non-inclusive terms (Bauer et al., 2019; for more information, consult the “Promoting Trans* Literacies" document under the “More readings” section).

 In addition, the gender diverse community is largely heterogeneous. Therefore, effective engagement from researchers could look different for various individuals, depending on how they identify and what their lived experiences are (Chang & Chung, 2015). Indeed, some gender diverse individuals are impacted by multiple oppressions. For instance, experiences of gender diverse BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Colour) individuals and individuals with disabilities will differ from those of white, able-bodied gender diverse individuals. Thus, it is important to open a dialogue with gender diverse community members facing multiple oppressions to conceive ways of conducting research that they are comfortable with and able to participate in (Vincent, 2018). Certainly, the wide range of gender identities intersect with race, class, sexual orientation, and more. Bauer and colleagues (2019) recommend that researchers reflect on the relevance of their studies to different groups within the gender diverse community, as well as how sub-groups that are multiply marginalized will be represented. It is therefore important to attend to interacting oppressions that may be at the source of inequities within the gender diverse communities (Bauer et al., 2019).  

Related to this is the importance for researchers to work directly with gender diverse people in a collaborative manner to ensure recognition of community members’ expertise and inclusion of their perspectives (Bauer et al., 2019). Analyzing stakeholders’ positions has further been linked to improved relationships between gender diverse community members and researchers (Nieder et al., 2018). Being in touch with stakeholders can also guide researchers towards wording and language that are as up-to-date as possible. As gender diverse communities continue to grow, “up-to-date” language is subject to change: checking-in with stakeholders is invaluable to understand what terms community members use to describe and understand themselves (University of British Columbia Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice, 2015).

Furthermore, researcher transparency matters when studies involve gender diverse populations and researchers should ask themselves the following questions: Why are we seeking gender diverse participants? In what ways, and to whom will this research be useful? Answering these questions can give a clear goal of what researchers are trying to achieve, how they are achieving it, and how at least part of the gender diverse population can benefit from it (Bauer et al., 2019; Vincent, 2018). Reflecting on these questions further pushes researchers to ask themselves if they are being driven by a desire to benefit their career, in which case they would likely be perceived as self-interested outsiders (Tuck & Chang, 2014). Moreover, if results from a study have the potential to reinforce stereotypes or stigma towards the gender diverse population when they are not presented in context, it is crucial to address what the results mean as well as what they do not mean (Bauer et al., 2019).

Researchers should also be aware and consider how research fatigue may affect over-researched minority populations (Ashley, 2020). This kind of fatigue is often reported by marginalized and small communities, as their participation in research is solicited over and over, by various researchers (Patel et al., 2020). For instance, Florence Ashley (2020) writes that as a member of the gender diverse community, the reason they may pass on participating in important studies is because of psychological and emotional exhaustion, also known as research fatigue. Ashley (2020) further states that researchers should disclose risk for research fatigue in conjunction with anticipated benefits to the community. Doing so can guide potential participants in deciding which studies to prioritize, and can minimize research fatigue through giving participants an idea of the study’s usefulness for themselves and their communities (Ashley, 2020).

Additionally, being respectful of spaces is invaluable when research involves gender diverse participants. Community spaces include physical and digital communities and these spaces can allow for individuals who belong to a particular group to come together, connect, share resources, and resist oppression. Although these spaces may appeal to researchers as potential recruitment sources, it is important, especially for cisgender researchers, to contact group moderators or administrators asking for permission to engage with the community before posting anything. This demonstrates respectful engagement and gives agency to the group moderator/administrator. Further, respecting the decision of any group moderator/administrator is crucial. It is important to remember that gender diverse community spaces can serve as spaces free from dominant cis-centric structures (Vincent, 2018). However, when requests are denied, some researchers try to persuade group moderators/administrators to grant them access to their space, in some cases pushing the message that being interested in gender diverse individuals’ experiences should be something to be grateful for. In addition to being disrespectful and unprofessional, this behavior may alienate gender diverse community spaces from interacting with researchers (Vincent, 2018). In fact, Chang & Chung (2015) reported that repeated microaggressions can lead members of the gender diverse community to deter from any form of engagement with academia.

As previously mentioned, because members of the gender diverse community remain experts on effective engagement with their communities, and given that effective engagement can look different across the heterogeneity of identities and lived experiences, it is not possible to guarantee that a researcher’s presence will not negatively impact any gender diverse participant (Vincent, 2018; Chang & Chung, 2015). Nonetheless, negative impact can be minimized when researchers gain familiarity with research history on gender diverse populations, study language carefully, attend to interacting oppressions, include stakeholders’ perspectives, consider the impact of research fatigue, are transparent in their intentions, and are respectful of spaces.

So, researchers: let’s get learning and let’s reflect on our social location (gender, sexual orientation, race, class, etc.) and the impact it can have on the research we conduct.

Yasmina Leveille, BAH, Queen’s University Psychology

More readings

 

References

A Gender Agenda. (2021). What is gender diversity? https://genderrights.org.au/information-hub/what-is-gender-diversity/

Ashley, F. (2020). Accounting for research fatigue in research ethics. Bioethics.

Bauer, G., Devor, A., Heinz, M., Marshall, Z., Pullen Sansfaçon, A., & Pyne, J. (2019). CPATH ethical guidelines for research involving transgender people & communities. Canadian Professional Association for Transgender Health.

Blair, K. L. (2016). Ethical research with sexual and gender minorities. The SAGE Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Studies, 3, 375-380.

Chang, T. K., & Chung, Y. B. (2015). Transgender microaggressions: Complexity of the heterogeneity of transgender identities. Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling, 9(3), 217-234.

Drescher, J. (2015). Out of DSM: Depathologizing homosexuality. Behavioral sciences, 5(4), 565-575.

Patel, S. S., Webster, R. K., Greenberg, N., Weston, D., & Brooks, S. K. (2020). Research fatigue in COVID-19 pandemic and post-disaster research: Causes, consequences and recommendations. Disaster Prevention and Management: An International Journal.

Tuck, E., & Yang, K. W. (2014). R-words: Refusing research. Humanizing research: Decolonizing qualitative inquiry with youth and communities, 223, 248.

University of British Columbia Institute for Gender, Race, Sexuality and Social Justice (2015). Promoting Trans* Literacies.  https://grsj.arts.ubc.ca/files/2015/10/Promoting-Trans-Literacies-Supplementary-Resource.pdf

Vincent, B. W. (2018). Studying trans: Recommendations for ethical recruitment and collaboration with transgender participants in academic research. Psychology & Sexuality, 9(2), 102-116.