The relationship of gender expression, sexual identity, distress, appearance, and clothing choices for queer women

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to explore how queer women today negotiate gender expression and sexual identity through clothing and appearance and its relationship to negative stress or distress. Data related to 20 queer identifying women were collected via an initial in-depth interview, daily diary entries for two weeks, and a follow-up interview at the end of each diary week. In the diary, participants were asked to rate how distressed they were when getting dressed and when wearing their outfits in different spaces throughout their day. Data were coded and the authors looked for emergent themes and patterns. The authors found that identifying as queer influenced how the interviewees chose to dress and style themselves, and that performing queerness in their appearance for a number of women caused distress in both straight and queer spaces.

Keywords:

• queer
• gender expression
• dress
• distress
• sexual identity

Notes

1. Both of these eligiblity requirements were explained on our recruitment flyer.

2. All participants were assigned a pseudonym, and those pseudonyms are used throughout the manuscript.

3. The other four women, though they changed their appearance, did not adopt masculine signifiers.