[Survey] Sexism as Experienced by Transgender Individuals

Here is a survey being conducted to measure sexism from a trans perspective.  The link is at the bottom and some information about the staff and the survey should indicate if this is something that you can add to. -a

Hello, my name is Caitlyn Benoit, and I’m a member of a research team out of the Psychology Department at Southwestern Illinois College, an accredited school in the St. Louis Metro East area.  Our research group is conducting a study about sexism as experienced and viewed by transgender individuals.

The best way to address what we hope to learn from this study is by starting with what we’re not trying to accomplish.  We are not trying to document the transgender experience; we are specifically studying sexism.  We believe that transsexual individuals – having experienced life as both genders – can offer valuable insight as to how members of each sex are perceived and treated in the workplace, relationships, schools, and other areas.

This study is being headed by Dr. Barbara Hunter, a psychology professor and active ally to the LGBT community.  All student members of the research team are psychology students and either allies to or members of the LGBT community.

As responsible researchers, the privacy of our subjects is absolutely paramount. We understand the extremely personal nature of some of the information that may be disclosed in the course of this study.  When considering how to maintain anonymity, we ask ourselves, “How would I want my privacy handled?”  The only source of identifying information we have included is an optional contact information page at the end of the survey.  Should you choose to provide us with this information, it will be reviewed only by members of the research team and kept separate from the actual survey packet; responses will in no way be attributable to the individuals from which they were received.

We acknowledge that this study does not lend itself to the inclusion of those outside the gender binary.  This is not a willful exclusion of those individuals, but in an attempt to understand sexism as it applies to and affects us all, we must first understand gender roles in the context of society at large, which unfortunately necessitates that we limit the scope of this study at this time.  We hope to investigate the issues facing genderqueer and genderneutral individuals in the future.

Dear Survey Participant:

I am a Professor of Psychology at Southwestern Illinois College. My research focuses on gender and sexuality.  I am interested in doing a study of sexism, discrimination and perceptions of traditional gender roles.  I believe trans individuals have a unique perspective to offer because so many have lived life as both male and female.  They, more than anyone, can shed light on how men and women are treated differently in our culture’s traditional gender binary system.  I would like to contact willing individuals to participate in a survey and perhaps a follow-up interview.  I would eventually be presenting and publishing this research in psychological research journals and settings.  I am also giving some thought to a book and documentary which would include anecdotes from willing participants which illuminate gender as experienced by transgender individuals.  If these were completed and resulted in profit, a significant portion of the proceeds would go to providing financial assistance to individuals facing legal difficulties related to their transgender identity.

I hope you will assist me in this endeavor.  I believe transgender individuals have unique insights and experiences to share that will contribute to our overall understanding of gender and gender discrimination.

Sincerely,

Barbara A. Hunter, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychology
Southwestern Illinois College
2500 Carlyle Ave
Belleville, IL 62220
Email: Barbara.Hunter@swic.edu

Thank you very much for your time and participation, and if you have any questions, feel free to contact me personally at kbenoit242@att.net and thank you in advance for any data you are able to give us.

Thank you,
Caitlyn Benoit

The study may be found here.