Transgender microaggressions in the context of romantic relationships

The present study focuses on transgender microaggressions that occur in the context of romantic relationships. While romantic relationships are typically built on equality between partners, crosscategory relationships (where the partners hold different levels of societal power) are inherently built on inequity, and may be maintained at the expense of the individual with a minority identity. This inequality may result in a disproportionate number of microaggressions, and may influence relationship dynamics in a unique way given the specific negotiation of gender identity. Participants included 233 adults who identified as transgender and who were all currently in a romantic relationship. Participants completed an online survey and provided information regarding their experiences of microaggressions from their romantic partners. Frequency of responses were analyzed via thematic analysis resulting in four relationship-salient themes: (1) minimizing identity; (2) gendered expectations; (3) public negotiation of transgender identity and relationship; and (4) relationship trajectories. Responses were also analyzed via chi-square tests, and found that the thematic structure was consistent across gender identities (i.e., transfeminine, transmasculine, gender nonconforming, and agender) and race (i.e., White and people of color). Discussion of the results focuses on understanding how microaggressions are shaped by expectations of the gender binary and how they serve to reinforce power differences in romantic relationships of transgender individuals.