Fertility preservation decision making amongst Australian transgender and non-binary adults

Background: Historically, transitioning gender was seen as precluding transgender people from having children in the future. However, there are now increased reproductive options available to transgender people, with such options also available to non-binary people (i.e., people whose gender is not exclusively male or female). These options include undertaking fertility preservation if genetic children may be desired in the future. Despite these increased options, there is still only a limited amount of international research exploring the views of transgender and non-binary people on fertility preservation. Methods: This mixed-methods study draws on a convenience sample of Australian transgender and non-binary adults, focused on their decision making about fertility preservation. The questionnaire was constructed by the authors, drawing on previous research. Participants were recruited via Australian organisations and groups made up of and/or working with people who are transgender or non-binary. The questionnaire was open from January-February 2018. The final sample included 409 participants. Statistical analyses were conducted on the closed-ended responses. Open-ended responses were analysed via a conventional content analysis. Results: Decisions about fertility preservation were influenced by views on the importance of genetic relatedness, willingness to delay transition, economic resources, already having children or desiring children in the future, and the views of significant others. Advice or counselling prior to decision making was received only by a minority of participants. Very few participants (7%) had undertaken fertility preservation, although 95% said that fertility preservation should be offered to all transgender and non-binary people. Participants who viewed genetic relatedness as important were more likely to have undertaken fertility preservation. Conclusions: The findings indicate that fertility preservation should be made available as an option to all transgender or non-binary people prior to undertaking treatment which may impact on fertility. However, it should also be recognised that not all people who are transgender or non-binary will want to undertake fertility preservation, and that not all people may be able to afford to.Damien W. Riggs and Clare Bartholomaeu

Transmission of and Views About Family Values in an Australian Convenience Sample: A Mixed Methods Study

OnlinePublFamily values operate in both immediate (i.e., familial) and broader social contexts. This study used a mixed methods approach to examine both forms of family values in the Australian context. A convenience sample of 856 people completed a measure of family values about both their own values and their perceived values of one of their parents, and a measure of familism. Using a story completion approach, a majority of the sample also responded to three story stems focused on the perceived values held by fictional families. Quantitative findings identified relationships between participant and perceived parent values in terms of gender. Participants reported high levels of familism, predicted by religiosity, age, and being a parent. Qualitative findings suggested that some participants were mindful of discrimination faced by the fictional families, but many participants also provided deficit accounts.Damien W. Riggs, and Clemence Du

Transnormativity in the psy disciplines: Constructing pathology in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual and Standards of Care

The psy disciplines (i.e., psychiatry, psychology, psychoanalysis, and psychotherapy) have played a significant role in shaping understandings of transgender people’s lives in ways that are transnormative (i.e., by emphasizing one particular account of what it means to be transgender). This paper documents 1) how the rise of the psy disciplines created opportunities for transgender people to access treatment (but that such access often required tacit acceptance of transnormativity), and 2) how transgender people have resisted transnormative accounts within the psy disciplines. More specifically, this paper explores how both the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, and what is now the World Professional Association for Transgender Health’s Standards of Care, have often enshrined highly regulatory accounts of transgender people’s lives, while also changing over time, in part due to the contributions of transgender people. The paper concludes by considering recent contributions by transgender people in terms of the use of informed consent models of care and clinical research, and highlights the ongoing marginalization of transgender people in terms of access to ethical, trans-competent care

Attitudes Towards Parents of Trans Children and Their Rights: An Australian Study

OnlinePublIntroduction: Trans children and their parents face challenges in both their private and public lives. In terms of the latter, public attitudes toward trans children and their parents can signifcantly impact experiences of inclusion or exclusion, including in terms of rights. Yet, to date, while a substantive body of research has focused on attitudes toward trans people in general, lacking is a focus on trans children and their parents. Methods: The study reported in this paper involved data collected in 2021 with a convenience sample of people living in Australia, who were asked to respond to a series of vignettes featuring accounts of parents of children of different gender modalities and genders, and participants were asked to rate the parents of the children in the vignettes. Participants also completed measures about traditional views of motherhood and fatherhood, a social dominance measure, a measure of values, and a measure of attitudes towards trans rights. Results: The findings suggest mothers were rated more negatively than fathers, those with more traditional views about mothers and fathers rated all vignettes more negatively, and those with more positive attitudes toward trans rights rated all vignettes more positively. There were no differences in ratings of parents based on the gender modality of the child; however, parents of non-binary children were rated most negatively. Conclusions: Together, the findings suggest broad support for trans children and their parents among the sample. Policy Implications The findings suggest that any restrictions to the rights or inclusion of trans children and their parents would likely not align with the views of people living in Australia.Damien W. Riggs, Shoshana Rosenberg, Danielle J. Navarr

Grass burning under our feet: Indigenous enterprise development in a political economy of whiteness

In this article we discuss some of our findings from two research projects that explore opportunities for Indigenous enterprise development in remote locations in Northern and Central Australia. Based on a series of focus groups and in-depth interviews with Indigenous community leaders, Traditional Owners, government officials, Land Council officials and other stakeholders, we discuss barriers to economic development faced by Indigenous communities in remote regions. We argue that many of these barriers are the material effects of discursive practices of ‘whiteness’ in the political economy. We discuss the relationships between institutions and Indigenous communities that constitute the Indigenous political economy and argue that these relationships are informed by discursive practices of whiteness and colonial-capitalist relations of power. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings for management learning and public policy

The management of accusations of racism in Celebrity Big Brother

The 2007 UK series of Celebrity Big Brother drew considerable attention to Britain as a result of the alleged racist bullying of Bollywood film star Shilpa Shetty by four British celebrity housemates. At stake in these allegations was any perception that Britain as a country promotes inclusivity and discourages racism. In this article, we examine, through an analysis of the exit interviews conducted with the four housemates in question, how accusations of racism were made by the host of Big Brother, and how racism was almost made to disappear in the interviews. Specifically, we elaborate on how racism was constructed not simply as an individual aberration, but more precisely as a matter of perception. We then explore how the host of the interviews avoided making accusations of racism herself by implying that it was others who perceived the behaviours of the housemates as racist, and by using other words (such as ‘bullying’) rather than explicitly referring to racism. We conclude by outlining the implications of our findings for future discursive research on racism, and we emphasize the need to further explore how rhetorical strategies aimed at denying racism operate in the service of shoring up privileged identities.Damien W. Riggs and Clemence Du

Experiences of vicarious trauma among Australian foster parents providing long-term care to non-indigenous children

In Australia, significant numbers of children in out-of-home care live in foster care placements, with many such placements being long-term. Despite the potential healing that may occur in the context of foster care, many foster children experience high levels of poor mental health, and may enact trauma-related behaviours that can significantly impact upon the foster placement. Yet to date, the topic of foster parents witnessing and living with the trauma experienced by their foster children has received relatively little empirical attention. This paper reports on a thematic analysis of interviews conducted with 85 Australian foster parents providing long-term care to non-indigenous children, focusing specifically on accounts of vicarious trauma. Four themes were developed: (1) Trauma-related behaviours are unpredictable and require constant attention, (2) Trauma histories are always present and make it hard to connect, (3) Caring for children with a trauma history can be socially isolating, and (4) Lack of agency support to understand child’s trauma. The paper concludes by exploring implications of the findings for the support, training, and care of foster parents so as to ensure that the potential for vicarious trauma is recognized and addressed.Damien W. Rigg

Evaluating outcomes from an Australian webinar series on affirming approaches to working with trans and non-binary young people

Objective: To examine outcomes from a four-part webinar series on affirming approaches to working with trans and non-binary young people in terms of Australian psychologists’ confidence in working with this population. Method: The author designed and ran a webinar series for the Australian Psychological Society (APS) in early 2018. Of the 76 webinar registrants, 55 completed a survey both before the first webinar, and after completing all of the webinar series. The first survey collected information about demographics, past clinical and training experiences, awareness of the DSM-5 diagnosis of “gender dysphoria”, and confidence in working with trans and non-binary young people. The first survey also included open-ended questions asking participants to define “cisgenderism”, “transgender”, and “non-binary”. The second survey included the same questions and additionally asked about understandings of gender diversity, pathways to care, and awareness of the APS information sheet on affirming approaches. Results: Participants who had previously undertaken training, and previously worked with trans and non-binary people reported greater confidence prior to the webinar series. Statistically significant associations with confidence were found following the webinar series. Greater understanding of gender diversity and the APS information sheet were associated with confidence. Content analysis of the open-ended responses identified improved understandings of the three definitions for most participants after the webinar series. Conclusions: Training for psychologists providing affirming care to trans and non-binary young people is important not only for those who specifically work with this population, but also for generalists, given that many young people may require mental health care beyond that specific to gender transition.Damien W. Rigg