Reframing transgender communication in gender-affirming communication care: Comfort and confidence are the main goals

Abstract

Purpose

To understand the communicative participation experiences of transgender people through a qualitative inquiry, and to address similarities and differences in experiences across genders.

Method

This study was a secondary analysis of interview data gathered for modifying the Communicative Participation Item Bank for use with transgender populations. Fourteen transgender participants attended individual qualitative interviews. During the interview, participants shared their communication experiences in various situations and the availability of social supports related to communication. Qualitative content analysis was used to develop themes and subthemes from the data.

Result

Three themes emerged from the data: the participants’ priorities for comfort, safety, and authenticity; the use of an internal “checklist” to optimise their communication; and changes in attitudes towards communication over time. Across themes, participants shared core communication experiences regardless of gender identities.

Conclusion

The findings support prior research on voice-related communication experiences of transgender people. A key finding is the notion that communication success is influenced by sociocultural contexts and the physical environment beyond their communication presentation. To achieve targeted comfort and satisfaction in communication, healthcare professionals need to consider the transgender client’s communication contexts, and incorporate a life-participation approach to gender-affirming voice and communication training.

Keywords:

• voice
• qualitative
• International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF)

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the charitable grant from the Murakami Foundation as part of the Division of Otolaryngology at Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, WA, and the University of Washington Department of Rehabilitation Medicine for funding this study, and our participants for their willingness to share their experiences.

Disclosure statement

The authors have no conflict of interest to declare.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by the University of Washington Department of Rehabilitation Medicine; Murakami Foundation at Virginia Mason Medical Center, Seattle, WA.