What is the Ethical Impact of Gender Non-Conforming Names?

Abstract

Names? What is in a name? This article endeavors to investigate what is in a name. Names are an important part of an individual’s identity. Names, depending on one’s culture, defines and identifies an individual. How an individual obtains a name, who names the individual, be it the father or mother of a newborn, or even grandparents, has a lifetime impact on the named individual. There are implications when naming a newborn at birth because the named individual may in the future be transgender. This situation brings negative consequences for any transgender when assigned a name usually associated with a gender. This article conducts a systematic database search for the evaluation of ethical impact on gender non-conforming names.

Keywords:

• Names
• gender
• transgender
• culture
• social equity

Introduction

The history of names and naming can be seen throughout the ages. Therefore, it is taken for granted that every human would have some type of name. There have been instances of celebrities that have tried to use symbols instead of a traditional type of name such as the late artist formerly known as Prince. A name you say? What is in a name? Well, naming an individual at birth has future implications for the individual that is because the named individual may not like the name, the individual may become transgender in the future and may need a more appropriate name for the gender the individual takes on, or the name may be associated with someone the individual does not wish to be associated. For example, in the state of Germany, the last name Hitler is seldom used by individuals that have this last name. Any German citizen with the last name of Hitler is looked down upon just because it is a last name associated with the former German Chancellor of the 1930’ and 40’s.

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the implications of names on gender nonconforming individuals and show why public administration researchers should prioritize this topic for more study. The paper begins with a look at the social equity pillar of public administration, followed by an overview of naming practices across different cultures and the impact of one’s name on the name bearer, with special attention paid to gender nonconforming names on transgender individuals. To demonstrate the scarcity of public administration articles on this subject, the article conducts a systematic database search for relevant articles about names–in a context of gender–published in public administration journals, followed by a discussion on public policy implications. The article concludes with recommendations for policy makers to better support transgender individuals through name changing efforts, when circumstances warrant. It also demonstrates why gender should not be considered when naming individuals.

Social equity framework

Over the last several decades, the concept of social equity has grown in the public administration field. In 1968, H. George Frederickson (1990) proposed social equity as being as important as the two public administration pillars of economy and efficiency. In 2005, the National Association of Public Administration (NAPA) embraced social equity as a pillar of public administration. Although research in the public administration field in topics related to social equity has increased (Gooden, 2015), there is still no uniform definition of social equity.

The NAPA Standing Panel on Social Equity (2019) defined social equity as:

The fair, just, and equitable management of all institutions serving the public directly or by contract; the fair, just, and equitable distribution of public services and implementation of public policy; and the commitment to promote fairness, justice, and equity in the formation of public policy. (para. 5)

The American Society for Public Administration (ASPA) described social equity in their Code of Ethics (n.d.) as, “Treat all persons with fairness, justice, and equality and respect individual differences, rights, and freedoms. Promote affirmative action and other initiatives to reduce unfairness, injustice, and inequality in society.” Frederickson (2005) provided a more comprehensive definition by writing:

Equity is now more broadly defined to include not just race and gender but ethnicity, sexual preference, certain mental and physical conditions, language, and variations in economic circumstances. The words multiculturalism and diversity are now often used to suggest this broader definition of social equity. (p. 33)

As social equity continues to be redefined to include classifications beyond race/ethnicity and gender, the importance of the transgender community will require public administrators to become more focused on their needs. Estimates of the number of those who identify as transgender vary. A meta-regression conducted by Meerwijk and Sevelius (2017) suggested 390 U.S. adults per 100,000 identify as transgender, while Flores et al. (2016) estimated adults who identify as transgender are 0.58% of the U.S. population. A 2016 survey conducted by Harris Poll found 12% of millennials identify as transgender or nonconforming (GLAAD, 2017).

The function of naming

In the United Kingdom, the Doctrine of Couverture was a legal doctrine that that, under common law, all women’s property rights and obligations in a marriage were subsumed, meaning that the women’s rights were considered to be part of her husband’s rights as well. In simple terms, women’s property rights were transferred to her husbands, leaving the women without any property rights of her own as an individual (Beattie & Stevens, 2013). Under British common law, the Doctrine of Couverture applied only to married women not to all women in general. The term couverture is a French term meaning “covered,” only applying to married women who were considered covered from any property obligations because the husband took over any responsibility the woman incurred. The union between a man and woman was considered one person under British common law (Beattie & Stevens, 2013). Through marriage, the woman’s legal existence disappeared because the husband would protect his wife.

Outside the legal realm, the Doctrine of Couverture resembles the traditional practice of a woman giving up her right to use her given and family name and adopting her spouse’s name. This practice was traditional, however, and not legally binding (Beattie & Stevens, 2013). This practice, commonly exercised in Western, English speaking countries, occurs when wives relinquish the use of their father’s last name and adopt their spouse’s last name. Why the Doctrine of Couverture is discussed above is to emphasize similarities to this article’s main argument, that is women and transgenders facing oppressive social practices in respect to naming.

To explore naming variations across cultures, this literature review focuses first on who gets to choose the name and addresses some power implications of this determination. Unless otherwise specified, the use of “names” here refers to personal names (first names) rather than family names (last names). In many societies, it is common for both mothers and fathers to play a role in their child’s naming. The right to name may vary within the group and often is not strictly defined. For example, Gao (2011) found that, in Beijing, China, dads were most often responsible for choosing their child’s name, followed by both parents, then mom, then the paternal grandfather. Among the Mandes, a hill people of northeastern India, though a child’s name was most often determined by the parents, sometimes, a parent might ask a friend or older kinsman, a midwife, or even a total stranger to select a name for his/her/their child. “Little significance seems to be attached to the act of naming itself” (Hvenekilde et al., 2000, p. 95). Joubert’s 1993 empirical review on names—among American, British, and German publications—found “very limited” data on “who provided input into the naming process” (p. 1124), which suggests a similar insignificance in the Western world.

Sometimes, who gets to name depends on the birth order and/or gender of the child or the timing or function of the new name. In both Rossi’s study of American middle class families (1965) and Ekpo’s 1978 onomastic study of the Ibibio of Southeastern Nigeria, firstborn children’s naming practices often differed from those of later born children. “Boys are more apt to be named for kin than girls, and kin-naming declines sharply and uniformly with each higher order of birth”. In a comparative anthropology piece, Bernard Vernier (2017) describes the Karpathian (Greek people of Karpathos’ system) as follows:

The firstborn daughter “revived” her maternal grandmother, whose name she took and whose property she received. The firstborn son “revived” his eponymous grandfather and was his heir. The other children were disinherited. The younger sons emigrated and the younger daughters, who never married, most often provided free labor for the eldest siblings’ families. It sometimes also happened that a second-born daughter (the namesake of her paternal grandmother) or a second-born son (the namesake of his maternal grandfather) inherited. This was the case in a daughterless family. On account of his name, the second-born boy inherited the female-owned property of his mother. He subsequently had to pass it on to whichever of his daughters had been given his mother’s name. (pp. 216–217)

Additionally, religious leaders and teachers may also bear the right to choose one’s name, either to serve a purpose or to mark a new stage in one’s life (Hvenekilde et al., 2000; Watson, 1986). It is also common that a person might select a new name for oneself, especially as he/she/they mature and gain social significance and power.

The power of naming

In fact, possessing the right to name oneself or others often correlates with one’s social status and possession of power (Vernier & Rundell, 2017). In the Karpathian example above, conflict between the second-born boy and his future wife would result, when both wish to name their first daughter after their own mother. This is because the child’s social future, “its economic, symbolic and affective position within the family” (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 217) would be determined by her given name. In a study of Chinese naming practices, Watson (1986) contrasts the plurality of names that men in a rural Hong Kong village possess—many of which are selected by the men themselves to mark important social transitions—with the namelessness of the women. Once married, women become known by a series of kin terms such as “Sing’s mother” and, when older, just “old woman” (ah po) (Watson, 1986, pp. 627–628).

The relationship between one’s right to name and one’s status is also evident in both Turkish and Yemeni cultures (Vernier & Rundell, 2017). Gabriele vom Bruck shares an intriguing example found amongst Yemeni elite women (2001, as cited in Vernier & Rundell, 2017). These women have a feminine name and a masculine name. Their masculine name is most often chosen by themselves “at the moment they took veil (between ages nine and thirteen) or at the time of marriage (between ages twelve and fifteen)” (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 235). In their culture, a female’s name was “indecent to reveal,” like her body. Thus, these women would use a masculine name in order to communicate with other men during essential business tasks (i.e., property management). This naming practice “was used as part of a class strategy to reinforce the elite as a group differing almost essentially from other groups in society; even its women were like men” (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 238). Furthermore, Vernier notes, “In societies in which women have [an exclusive] power to name…children will have a more prestigious image of women than in societies in which it is the father and/or the grandfather who are in this position” (p. 220).

Curiously, the power to name can also be used as a “weapon…to avenge personal wounds” (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 226). John Middleton’s piece (1961) on the Lugbara people of Uganda describes how mothers in this society would often choose names for her children that allude to discontent with her husband, his family, and/or their neighbors (p. 37). Since a Lugbara mother possesses the power to name her children—and the husband cannot alter her choice—she can use this power to check her husband’s behavior and to defend against her mistreatment, by giving her child a name that offends her husband and his lineage (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 228). Similarly, Retel and Hovarth (1972, as cited in Vernier & Rundell, 2017) provide examples from the Nzakara of the Central African Republic, where fathers and paternal relatives often bear the right to name offspring. A child was named “Hit in the head” by a husband whose wife had cheated on him; another was named “‘Refused me’ to remind everyone that his wife had abandoned him shortly after giving birth” (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 231).

The origin and meaning of names

Clearly, the above examples show that the origin of names are important to consider as well. Oftentimes, one’s name carries with it a deep, symbolic meaning. Thus, how one’s name is formed will be explored now. Cultures vary greatly in what each considers appropriate inspirations for a name; such norms shed light on what each society values, which may change over time. In many cases, multiple inspirations are incorporated into a single name. The following are some of the most common considerations.

Named for others

As seen already, naming children after someone else, especially close kin, is common practice in many societies (Joubert, 1993; Rossi, 1965; Vernier & Rundell, 2017). The Yemini elite women would often integrate a patronym into their masculine name (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 234). The Inuit would sometimes name a new offspring after a lost loved one and treat the new family member as though s/he/they were the reincarnated form of the lost family member.” “[C]hildren take the name of the individuals…they supposedly reincarnate.[and] inherit a certain number of characteristics” (Vernier & Rundell, 2017, p. 241), including the gender identity of the deceased. Many people are also named after important religious characters (Emmelhainz, 2012; Hvenekilde et al., 2000; Rossi, 1965). Yet, the trend for naming children after others can fluctuate with time, perhaps as other cultural values come into play. For example, American sons of the 1950s became less likely to be named for a paternal kin, and more likely to be named for a maternal kin, than those of the 1920s, while the reverse pattern was also observed for daughters (Rossi, 1965).

Environmental factors

In fact, one’s current values and other environmental considerations are also common sources of inspiration for one’s name. The timing, place, and condition of birth, significant social events of the time, and current cultural values (or mindset) of the name giver can all be expressed in a name. Among the Ashanti of West Africa, children are named after the day of the week on which they are born (Joubert, 1993, p. 1136). For the Ibibio of Southeastern Nigeria, particular attention is paid to the time of birth as well (Ekpo, 1978). Gao (2011) found that 23% of a sample (n = 110) of Han Chinese names was inspired by birth circumstances, the second most common source of name inspiration in Gao’s study. For example, a child was named “the rising sun” because “[t]he sun was rising when I was born” (p. 168). In addition, Wang and Micklin (1996) describes how the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949 impacted Chinese names. After 1949, traditional names that symbolized fortune, longevity, virtue, jade, flowers, and so on shifted to names like Jianhua 建华 (Build China), Jianguo 建国 (Build Country), Yuanchao 援朝 (Aid Korea), Wenge 文革 (Cultural Revolution), and Weidong 卫东 (Guard Chairman Mao).

The name’s meaning

Next, a closer look at the meaning of one’s name is explored. To do so, the central focus on a name’s meaning in Chinese naming norms is contrasted with the Mande people’s desire to create brand new names that carry no meaning. In Gao’s study (2011), the most common source of name inspiration (60%) came from the parents’ expectations, hopes, or wishes for the child (p. 168). Such names conveyed ideas such as “bright future, intelligence/knowledge, strength/courage,…youth, health,…beauty, happiness,…” (p. 168). In contrast, the Mande people (of northeastern India) work hard to assemble new names by combining syllables that sound nice together, though they “seem to be reluctant to use forms already used as meaningful words in Mande, or in any other language” (Hvenekilde et al., 2000, p. 88). What matters most to them is that one’s name is unique both to those still living and those who have passed. Therefore, the significance of a name’s meaning is not universally valued.

Personal names and gender

Interestingly, despite wanting a name that is both unique and without meaning, most Mandes do include gender indicators in their names. One can reasonably guess the gender of a Mande name from its final syllable (Hvenekilde et al., 2000, p. 93). When Mande do borrow names from foreign cultures, while the significance and meaning of those names are likely not a factor, the name’s gender does seem to matter. “Borrowed names seem always to be given to children of the same gender as foreign bearers of the name (p. 93). Thus, gender naming appears to be the most universal naming practice in the world (Lieberson et al., 2000).

In Western societies, new parents more or less choose names from a collection of accepted baby names (Hvenekilde et al., 2000); this list (i.e., a baby names book) is first and foremost separated into two sections: Boy Names and Girl Names. A study of trends in American names found that boys are more likely to have traditional “serious” names in an effort to preserve a legacy, while girls are increasingly being given different unique names based on “expressions of attractiveness” and seen as “fashion” (Lieberson & Bell, 1992).

In China, “gendered naming…goes beyond…simple gender differentiation…it introduces, reinforces, and fosters masculinity and femininity” (Gao, 2011, p. 165). This is done by choosing words that possess what the Chinese view as “masculine” qualities for use in boy names and words that indicate “feminine” qualities for use in girl names. In Gao’s study, respondents expressed a clear desire for male names to possess words like gang 刚 (toughness), qiang 强 (strength), and jian 剑 (sword), and female names to possess words like wen jing 文静 (gentle and quiet), wen rou 温柔 (gentle and soft), and mei li 美丽 (beautiful) (2011, p. 172). Therefore, personal names in China not only serve to identify one’s sex, they also “communicate desirable male and female traits in Chinese culture” (Gao, 2011, p. 172). In any case, as these examples highlight, gender’s importance in naming spans across the world, both in subtle and not so subtle ways.

The name as an identity

Given that gender distinction is a key function of naming practices across the globe, it is important to consider the impact that one’s name can have on a person’s identity and how s/he/they are perceived by others, especially if a given name suggests a gender that does not match the gender that a person self-identifies with. First, it helps to keep in mind that a name’s impact on the owner’s self-identity can be positive, neutral, or negative. For example, Joubert (1993) reports that the liking of one’s own name is related to self-esteem, while names that connote specific personality traits–whether positive or negative–have been found to correlate with such traits in the name bearer (Ekpo, 1978; Leirer et al., 1982, as cited in Erwin, 2006; Jahoda, 1954, as cited in Joubert, 1993).

Sue and Telles (2007) explain that names as labels influence the socialization of children and contribute to the development of their personal identities. Tschaepe (2003) explains how this works in depth, arguing that ‘first-naming’ is both “significant [and] performs a very specific function within language use that implies dynamics of power and identity” (p. 67). One’s first name “not only grants…a specific identity…but also directs who that person is and will be through the names physiognomy and reference to the world” (p. 67–68). As a child is born into the world, “language is always already a pre-existing ‘institution’ that must be deciphered” (Tschaepe, 2003, p. 71). While the act of naming a newborn assigns a place in the world for her/him/them, the baby does not exist as a member of the community until s/he/they acquire the community’s language.

During the language learning process, the child learns her/his/their name, along with all the existing associations and meaning attached to it. As the child begins to use her/his/their name in self-reference, “the name…removes any possibility of ‘absolute individuality,’ forcing the named to become a specific type of [person] within the world….the individual becomes its name; the name determines what the individual is” (Tschaepe, 2003, p. 74–75). In this sense, our given names are seen as labels we cannot detach from; to do so would require a kind of death to pass from one name to another. Thus, the role of language is significant in shaping a person’s identity, based on their name.

Similarly, language is the environment that shapes preconceived notions of people based on their names. Not surprisingly, research has documented all kinds of ways that one’s name impacts how s/he/they are perceived by others, from judging a name bearer’s attractiveness (Hensley & Spencer, 1985; Joubert, 1993), popularity (McDavid & Harari, 1966), IQ and academic success (Seraydarian & Busse, 1981), etc, to eliciting well-documented racial, class, and sex biases (Erwin, 2006; Joubert, 1993). Names “function as a means for us to form an opinion about who [a] person, whose name we see or hear, ‘is’” (Hagström, 2012, p. 82). So, when one hears the name Mohammed, s/he/they are likely to visualize someone who is both male and Muslim (Hagström, 2012). Hagström concludes that “based on preconceived notions about other people's names, we draw conclusions about their gender, age, ethnicity, nationality, social positions, and maybe even religious beliefs” (p. 83). Conclusions based on gender could mean assuming the person you are meeting is a woman because the person's name is Jessica, Ashley, Stacy, etc.

A closer look at the impact of gendered names reveals that men’s names connote more masculine, less “ethical caring,” and more success related qualities than women’s names, while androgynous names connote more “popular fun,” less “ethical caring,” and more masculine traits for women than gender specific names (Mehrabian, 2001). Children as young as 8 years old have evaluated gender specific and androgynous names differently, with girls showing a clear preference for female and androgynous names assigned to a girl over male or androgynous names assigned to a boy (Erwin, 2006). Thus, Erwin concludes that “gender associations may be considerably more important and influential in evaluations than many other associations” (p. 518).

Naming in the transgender community

Deadnaming is the practice of referring to transgenders by their birth name instead of their newly adopted and legally changed or preferred name (Clements, 2017). The practice of deadnaming is problematic because oftentimes crimes against transgenders are reported by the birth name instead of the newly adopted name by which the crime victim is known. When a male to female transgender victim of a murder is identified, for example, the police reporting the incident in the police narrative identify the victim by the victim’s birth name and as a male. This creates a social issue because the victim’s identity as a transgender is ignored, family members may not be readily identified, and it dehumanizes the victim (Clements, 2017).

For the transgender community, the practice of gendered naming is especially problematic. This is because transgender individuals do not identify with their assigned gender at birth and often reject their birth name because they feel the name misrepresents who they are (Rodgers & O’Connor, 2017). While society at large often describes transgender behavior as being gender nonconforming, transgender individuals would likely assert instead that their given names are gender nonconforming and a regular source of distress for them. Yet, all too often, transgender youth are not supported in their efforts to assert their experienced gender identity; their requests to be addressed by a new, gender-affirming name are often ignored, even by their parents. Rodgers and O’Connor’s psychoanalytic exploration of self and identity in 6 transgender individuals who were assigned female at birth reports difficult parent-child relationships, especially with fathers; “Mothers tended to, at least initially, refuse to use the participants’ male name with some dismissing their distress around the use of their female birth names and others avoiding names altogether” (2017, p. 147–148).

Many studies have identified the harmful results that transgender youth experience in unsupportive environments. Ristori and Steensma (2016) explain that “psychological functioning…is likely inversely correlated with the intensity of social intolerance experienced by” children experiencing gender dysphoria (p. 14). Gender dysphoria (GD) in childhood is characterized by “clinically significant distress due to the incongruence between assigned gender at birth and experienced gender….These children show extreme and enduring forms of gender nonconforming/gender variant behaviours, preferences, and interests” (Ristori & Steensma, 2016, p. 13).

Because gender nonconforming behaviors are usually evaluated negatively by other children, sometimes with outright hostility (Rad et al., 2019; Ristori & Steensma, 2016), transgender youth experience higher rates of bullying and low self-esteem, increased levels of anxiety, and are at higher risk of developing anxiety disorders (Jones et al., 2017). Gender nonconformity partially accounted for higher rates of physical and sexual abuse before age 11 years and post-traumatic stress disorder in adulthood (Roberts et al., 2012). This population experiences higher rates of homelessness, depression, and suicide as well (Grossman & D’Augelli, 2007; Hatchel et al., 2019; Shelton et al., 2018; Toomey et al., 2018). In adulthood, transgender and gender nonconforming adults are more likely to be socioeconomically disadvantaged; more likely to be uninsured and have less access to healthcare; more likely to have unmet health care needs due to cost, and less likely to have routine care (Gonzales & Hennings, 2017).

In contrast, when transgender youth experience others’ acceptance of their gender nonconforming ways, their psychological functioning and emotional health improve as well. For example, Russell et al. (2018) reported that transgender youth who can use their chosen name in multiple contexts (home, school, work, or with friends) experience fewer depressive symptoms and less suicidal ideation and behavior. “An increase by one context in which a chosen name could be used predicted a 5.37-unit decrease in depressive symptoms, a 29% decrease in suicidal ideation, and a 56% decrease in suicidal behavior” (Russell et al., 2018, p. 3). And, van Beusekom et al. (2015) found that a fathers’ acceptance of gender nonconformity moderated the presence of psychological distress and social anxiety for adolescent boys, such that the positive association between gender nonconformity and psychological distress became nonsignificant for boys reporting the highest level of father acceptance (as cited in Spivey et al., 2018). Lastly, Ristori and Steensma (2016) noted peer relationship quality as the strongest predictor of emotional and behavioural problems among gender dysphoric children.

Thus, the difference between social acceptance and social intolerance for a transgender individual is huge! Therefore, serious attention should be paid by public administration leaders and policy makers to identify their role in ensuring that public institutions—publicly funded schools, libraries, healthcare clinics, and more—provide a socially supportive environment for people of all gender types, including transgender individuals. Given that gender naming at birth is so common around the world and assigning the wrong gendered name to a person can cause significant harm for the name holder, this article will now focus on identifying the quantity of (peer-reviewed) public administration articles on this subject.

Sinclair-Palm (2017) writes that “trans youth negotiation of naming is particularly complex as they juggle family affinities and independence as well as trying on new identities and building relationships with peers” (p. 1). This speaks to the banalities of gender structures in naming. Sinclair-Palm echoes Gordon in her article stating that “the tendency in social science research to equate persons with social markers… demands that we notice in our reading and research practices, the complicated relationships that individuals have both to the particularities of their lives and to the social categories we use to make sense of the world” (p. 4). The practice of using pronouns in work and school settings attempts to mitigate this issue of misgendering, but ultimately, people in the trans community should not be subject to announcing their pronouns simply because they don’t seem to fit the gender of their names. It would do more to solve this issue if we removed the gender categorization of names all together. As a society, when it comes to how names are perceived, the default is to assign gender and ethnicity to a name and this literature review has provided some insight into the way that this structure is problematic as a practice.

Methodology

This systematic database search reviewed 15 articles published in public administration journals. The reasons why these 15 articles were selected and reviewed were because they directly or indirectly discussed the ethical impact on gender naming individuals. The term “name” was searched in the full text of peer reviewed articles published between January 2009 and October 2019. Of the articles which contained the term, the full texts were reviewed to determine whether the term was used in relation to gender. Five articles were found to use “name” in this context: two were published in Public Administration Review, two were published in Administration & Society, and one was published in Public Integrity.

The journals searched were Administration & Society, The American Review of Public Administration, International Journal of Public Administration, International Review of Administrative Sciences, Journal of Public Analysis and Management, Journal of Public Administration Research and Theory, Journal of Public Affairs, Journal of Public Affairs Education, Public Administration Review, Public Integrity, Public Performance & Management Review, Public Personnel Management, Public Policy and Administration, Policy Studies Journal, and Review of Public Personnel Administration.

Review of articles

Although five articles referenced names in relation to gender, none studied the impact of a birth name on the name bearer. The field experiment conducted by Grohs et al. (2016) used traditionally male and female names of German and Turkish descent to measure the responsiveness of German public administrators; Harrits (2019) created qualitative vignettes with traditionally male and female names to measure whether Danish street-level bureaucrats were influenced by class stereotypes when interpreting information and making decisions; Sellers (2014), Elias (2017), and Sellers (2018) made references to the challenges faced by the transgender community with respect to their birth name but focused their research on how transgender policies can be improved.

The impact of a birth name on its bearer has been studied by other fields. Russell et al. (2018) found transgender and nonconforming youth who were allowed to choose a name had fewer depressive symptoms and less suicidal ideation and suicidal behaviors. Guss et al. (2019) found in their interviews of transgender and gender nonconforming adolescents that being called by their birth name by medical providers made primary care experiences non-affirming. These works were published in the Journal of Adolescent Health, a multidisciplinary scientific journal. Figlio (2007) found in a study of Florida middle school students that boys with names traditionally given to girls were more likely to be disruptive in school than boys with names traditionally given to boys. Figlio’s work was published in Education Finance and Policy, a journal focused on education finance, policy, and practice.

This systematic database search did not find any research in this topic from public administration scholars. Although the frequency of keywords found in research articles may not translate to advancements in society, it can serve to direct the attention of practitioners to matters of importance. As an example, a content analysis conducted by Sabharwal and et al. (2018) found diversity research over a span of 75 years mirrored the growth of the diversity movement.

This is an important topic for those who were assigned birth names which do not conform with their gender identity. If public administration strives to be fair, just, and equitable to all people including members of the transgender community, research must be conducted to understand how a name like Robert or Mary, traditionally associated with a specific sex, affects a person whose gender identity is different than their biological sex.

Recommendations

Due to the small number of studies conducted on how an assigned name, given at birth, impacts transgender individuals because it does not conform with their gender identity, it is recommended more studies be carried out determining what is its impact. Does it even have an impact? How does it impact the individual? Why does it have an impact? Under what capacity does it have an impact? By further researching impact had on gender identity and nonconforming names given at birth, progress is made from a public administration perspective by understanding the transgender communities’ effects on their behaviors, hardships, feelings, mental health, and legal issues.

In Latin America, given names to sons and daughters are just as important as to whom the names are given. Latin Americas are predominantly Catholic in faith, with a growing number of evangelic fundamentalists. With faith strongly influencing the naming of children, it is common to name males at birth Jesus or Joseph. For female newborns, it is very common to name them Maria or Magdalena. It is recommended that a study exploring how transgenders’ biblical given names affect their psychological wellbeing and social inclusion considering the fact that this part of the world continues to be extremely opposed to embracing the LGBT community.

Latinos name their newborns hoping that by naming their male children Jesus, Jesus feels honored and protects the newborn throughout his lifetime. As for newborn females named Maria, it is expected that the Virgin Mary will look out for the newborn as naming it Mary renders the Virgin Mary honor. Why focus on Latin America, because it will further advance the study of the effects of naming transgenders traditional sex specific male or female names whilst incorporating an additional factor in the equation, namely biblical names.

There are occasions where transgender individuals change their names when they no longer identify or conform with their sex at birth. When these individuals change their names socially but not legally, they encounter voting issues because their driver’s licence may display a name traditionally associated with a certain sex. And as a consequence, when their socially changed names do not appear on the roster as a registered voter, then issues of identity arise plus they may even be denied their right to vote. From a public administration perspective, we are concerned with providing all citizens equity, equal rights, justice, and fairness. What are public administrators doing to address these types of issues? What public policies are public administrators introducing in their communities to rectify these concerns as faced by transgenders? Is anything being done to make voting easier for transgenders? As public administrators, they need to look beyond their communities as binary and embrace an ever-changing community with people from all walks of life, including transgenders.