Is Transphobia Associated with How Cisgender People Define the Term Transgender?

Transgender people are individuals whose gender identity does not align with the sex they were assigned at birth. Many cisgender (i.e., non-transgender) people have transphobic attitudes. In the present study, we examined factors that may explain why cisgender people hold positive or negative attitudes toward transgender individuals. We predicted that more positive attitudes would be reported, specifically when considering typically gender-segregated settings (e.g., locker rooms), when participants were first provided with a comprehensive, accurate definition of the word transgender. In the control conditions, participants did not receive this definition, but were asked to provide their own definition either at the beginning or end of the study. Contrary to our hypothesis, attitudes in the intervention condition did not differ from attitudes in either control condition. However, we did find a significant difference between the two control conditions. Those who wrote their own definition before reporting their attitudes toward transgender people had more positive attitudes than those who wrote their own definition after reporting their attitudes. Additionally, we content-coded participants’ own definitions of the term transgender and found that participants who included the term gender identity in their definition reported more positive attitudes and more support for transgender rights policies than participants who did not include the term. There is a small amount of literature on interventions that may help reduce transphobia, and we hope the present study about whether understanding the term transgender relates to cisgender people’s attitudes will encourage new ideas for interventions