Lived Experiences of College‐Age Transsexual Individuals

This article reviews the lived experiences of 4 college-age transsexual individuals. A qualitative study using grounded theory was conducted to investigate their experiences influencing their later educational persistence. Results suggested that level of discomfort, perceived social supports, level of secrecy, and academic achievement all affected participants' decision making regarding persistence. This process appeared best explained by participants' expressed hierarchy of needs. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed. Keywords: transgender, transsexual, student retention ********** There is currently a dearth of literature about the experiences of transgender individuals in higher education. Transgender is an identity that includes persons who identify as cross-dressers, drag kings or queens, transsexuals, intersex, and others (Ellis & Eriksen, 2002). It is currently unclear how large the population of transgender persons is in America, because the population has not been systematically studied by researchers (Singh & Burnes, 2009). Extant literature about transgender persons has focused on identity development models (Bilodeau, 2005; Poynter & Washington, 2005) or services that are needed (Beemyn, 2003, 2005; Beemyn, Curtis, Davis, & Tubbs, 2005; Lovaas, Baroudi, & Collins, 2002), with few researchers exploring the lived experiences of transgender-identified individuals (McKinney, 2005; Pusch, 2005); thus, we know very little about their experiences in higher education. This is disturbing, because research has shown that college years are when many students begin to form positive sexual and gender identities and disclose to others (Rankin, 2003; Sanlo, 2004-2005). Concurrently, this population faces a number of distinct stressors that affect their physical and mental health and their academic success and retention (Sanlo, 2004-2005). Researchers have suggested that transgender college students may follow a development similar to students who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (Bilodeau, 2005; Poynter & Washington, 2005). This literature is confounded with assumptions, because researchers used the identity models under study as a frame of reference for the participants being studied. Research into services needed for transgender students (Beemyn, 2003, 2005; Beemyn et al., 2005; Lovaas et al., 2002) has provided some insight about the college experience of transgender students, but the results offer little more than information about campus facilities, such as restrooms, housing concerns, and the need for a more sensitive staff: Therefore, little is known about the needs of the transgender population according to the population itself. McKinney (2005) and Pusch (2005) conducted the only two identified studies that specifically explored the experiences of transgender college students. In a qualitative study with 75 participants, McKinney found that undergraduate and graduate transgender students reported that their colleges lacked resources, education, or support for transgender issues, which contributed to a hostile climate. The students believed that the lack of education and awareness of transgender issues on their campuses affected the ways that other students, faculty, and staff interacted with them, which were classified as being primarily negative. Support and disapproval by others have been consistent themes with transgender students. In a qualitative study of 13 college students conducted via listserv, Pusch (2005) found that transgender college students reported negative reactions when they disclosed their gender identity to their parents. Students also reported discouraging messages from their parents about "transitioning," or the process of changing from one gender to the other. Messages received from their friends were more positive and accepting. Students who lived full time in their self-identified gender reported a greater sense of "feeling normal," while those who were pretransition, or lived part time in their self-identified gender, felt that others' reactions reinforced their sense of not being normal. …