The Intersectional Relation between Gender Identity, Gender Ideology, and Wellbeing Across the Lifespan
Chair(s): Matthew Glade Nielson (University of Exeter, United Kingdom)
We explore the influence of gender ideology on identity formation, social experiences, and wellbeing from childhood to adulthood, using diverse methodologies and samples from Europe, the Middle East, and North America. The studies examine how gender identity and ideology interact to affect outcomes like resilience, mental health, and physical safety across the lifespan. Together, these insights inform educators, researchers, and policymakers on the intersection of gender ideology, sexual/gender identity, and wellbeing.
Study 1 uses qualitative interviews with 34 U.S. based gender minorities to examine how transgender and non-binary youth navigate hostile environments shaped by rigid gender ideologies. It identifies coping mechanisms and self-advocacy strategies that counteract discrimination. Practitioners can leverage these strategies to create supportive environments for gender-diverse youth.
Study 2 investigates the evolution of gender ideology in 400 freshmen over the course of their first year at a global Middle Eastern university. Combining latent change score models and latent profile analyses, this work shows how changes in young adult gender ideology affects wellbeing differently across diverse identity groups, demonstrating the intersectionality of the relation between gender ideology and wellbeing, particularly for sexual minorities.
Study 3 examines three years of sexual orientation identity development among 600+ U.S. sexual minority young adults, emphasizing how context and internalized stigma may inform identity shifts and minority stress experiences. Multilevel models show how internalized homophobia was associated with less identity change, while victimization and discrimination were associated with more identity change.
In Study 4, a sample of 4,500 Georgian adults focuses on how beliefs about normative gender ideology relates to experiencing or condoning violence against women. Specifically, it shows how women who hold normative beliefs about violence against women are more likely to experience intimate partner violence, and older, rural men who view violence as normative are more likely to condone it.
Presentations of the Symposium
School-age resilience: Themes within a sample of gender minorities interested in self-advocacy and well-being.
Jack D Simons, Kalani Siler
Mercy University
This study is warranted because transgender students commonly experience bullying in the absence of resources while also trying to cope. Because gender minorities are a vulnerable population, researchers conducted retrospective life story interviews with gender minority people comprising participants who identified as transgender and gender non-binary. Using a directed form of qualitative research proposed by Mayring, we applied Simons' Identity Behavior Theory (IBT) which emphasizes attitudes, identity, resilience, and behavior to code data to examine the experiences of 34 self-identified gender minority individuals to advocate for themselves. Demographic variables were assessed, along with participants’ levels and types of coping. Themes were identified in the interview data. Implications for professors, educators, researchers, and helping professionals are offered.
Gender ideology change during university has different impacts on wellbeing depending on identity intersections
Matthew G Nielson1, PJ Henry2
1University of Exeter, 2New York University Abu Dhabi
Traditional gender ideology, emphasizing rigid gender roles and heteronormativity, has been linked to negative outcomes including boys avoiding help-seeking, girls developing eating disorders, and risky substance use in both genders. However, adolescents, particularly boys, may become less rigid in their gender beliefs during young adulthood (Nielson et al., 2024), possibly due to the gender egalitarianism associated with university education (Campbell & Horowitz, 2015). How this process differs by gender, sexual orientation (Salvati et al., 2018), and religious background (Hildebrandt & Jackle, 2023) remains unclear. This study examines whether adherence to traditional gender ideology decreases during the first year of university and if such changes predict improved wellbeing across different groups.
We analysed longitudinal survey data from 413 first-year students at a global Middle Eastern university with an internationally diverse student body (55.1% women, mage = 18.38). A latent change score model measured changes in gender ideology (e.g., “Men should make important family decisions”) across the first year of university and predicted wellbeing (self-esteem, life satisfaction). Latent profile analysis identified how this process differed for different types of people.
We identified four distinct identity profiles relating to ideology change and wellbeing. Heterosexual young adults showed an increase in traditional gender ideology, which positively related to wellbeing. Sexual minority women did not change their ideology, but those with more traditional ideology reported lower wellbeing. Sexual minority Muslim women also increased traditional gender beliefs, but neither this change nor their baseline beliefs affected wellbeing. Sexual minority men showed no change in gender ideology, but those with more traditional beliefs had better wellbeing, though this group was problematically small (n = 20). These findings provide the first study that highlights how gender, sexual orientation, and traditional ideology relate to wellbeing in intersectional ways.
Changes in gender and sexual identity among youth: Are proximal and distal minority stressors associated with identity change?
André G Real, Stephen T Russell
University of Texas at Austin
Changes in sexual and gender identity may occur among youth. Scholars have suggested that contextual and inter- and intra-personal factors play a role in changes in identity. However, this is yet to be explored. This study aimed to describe sexual and gender identity change among youth, and examine concurrent and lagged associations of minority stressors with sexual and gender identity change.
Data come from the Generations study, a three-wave study of a US national-probability sample of LGB people across three cohorts. We focus on participants from the younger cohort (N=666; 18-25 years old; Mage=22.1). Participants reported their sexual and gender identity at each wave. Other measures include internalized homophobia, felt stigma, experiences of victimization, and everyday discrimination (measures microagressions). Multilevel Mixed Effects Logistic Regression examined between- and within-person associations. All models account for sampling weights to provide population-level estimates.
There were 64 changes in sexual identity and 31 changes in gender identity in the three years of follow-up. Across models, between persons, higher concurrent internalized homophobia (sexual: OR=0.51, p=.046; gender: OR=0.54, p=.060), and higher internalized homophobia in the prior wave were associated with lower likelihood of sexual and gender identity change (sexual: OR=0.35, p=.044; gender: OR=0.47, p=.024). Victimization and discrimination were associated with gender identity change (victimization: OR=1.95, p=.001; discrimination: OR=1.80, p=.052). At the within-person level, only internalized homophobia in the prior wave was associated with higher likelihood of sexual identity change (OR=3.69, p=.044).
In this national sample, changes in sexual and gender identity were not uncommon. Internalized homophobia was associated with less sexual/gender identity change, yet internalized homophobia in the prior year was associated with sexual identity change within individuals. Victimization and discrimination were associated with gender identity change, possibly as a result of gender-nonconforming expressions. Findings illuminate the complexities of internalized homophobia, a critical factor related to SGM well-being.
Violence against women in Georgia: the interplay between social norms and attitudes
Maia Mestvirishvili1, Mariam Kvitsiani2, Natia Mestvirishvil3
1Ivane Javalhishvili Tbilisi State University, Affiliated researcher at Georgian University of Public Affairs (GIPA), 2Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University, 3Affiliated researcher at Georgian University of Public Affairs (GIPA)
In this study, we examine the misperceptions of the social norms around violence against women (VAW), their relationship to VAW-related personal attitudes in women and men in Georgia, and the relationship between perceived VAW norms in women and their lifetime experience of intimate partner violence (IPV). The data from the second national VAW survey in Georgia (a sample of 3,300 women and 1,104 men aged 15–69), conducted by the National Statistics Office of Georgia and UN Women in 2022, were analysed. The study results confirm the mismatch between perceived social norms and personal attitudes towards VAW in Georgia and reveal that for women, perceived VAW-supportive social norms are positively associated with their lifetime IPV experience. Study results also show that perceived VAW-supportive norms, along with selected demographic variables, positively predict VAW-supportive attitudes in both women and men. Lastly, the study found that at the individual level, being male, living in a rural area, having a lower level of education, and being of older age increase the chances of transforming perceived VAW-supportive social norms into VAW-supportive attitudes.
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