TY - JOUR
T1 - Mothers of transgender youth experience stigma-by-association
AU - Moss-Racusin, Corinne A.
AU - Van der Toorn, Jojanneke
AU - Beneke, Grace
AU - Olson, Kristina R.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC.
PY - 2024/4
Y1 - 2024/4
N2 - The current research investigated whether mothers of transgender youth experience stigma-by-association. Mturk participants (N = 489) were randomly assigned to read a vignette about a family in which the social identity (transgender, gay/lesbian, cisgender/heterosexual control) and gender (girl, boy) of a child was manipulated, while all other information was held constant. Results revealed stigma targeting mothers as a function of children's social identity (but not gender), such that mothers of transgender girls and boys were viewed substantially more negatively than identical mothers of cisgender/heterosexual youth. Moreover, this stigma was particularly robust among politically conservative participants. In contrast, mothers of gay/lesbian youth did not encounter systematic stigma, though they were sometimes perceived more negatively than mothers of cisgender/heterosexual youth. Results provide novel experimental evidence of stigma-by-association targeting mothers of transgender youth and raise serious concerns about the treatment of parents who seek to affirm their transgender children.
AB - The current research investigated whether mothers of transgender youth experience stigma-by-association. Mturk participants (N = 489) were randomly assigned to read a vignette about a family in which the social identity (transgender, gay/lesbian, cisgender/heterosexual control) and gender (girl, boy) of a child was manipulated, while all other information was held constant. Results revealed stigma targeting mothers as a function of children's social identity (but not gender), such that mothers of transgender girls and boys were viewed substantially more negatively than identical mothers of cisgender/heterosexual youth. Moreover, this stigma was particularly robust among politically conservative participants. In contrast, mothers of gay/lesbian youth did not encounter systematic stigma, though they were sometimes perceived more negatively than mothers of cisgender/heterosexual youth. Results provide novel experimental evidence of stigma-by-association targeting mothers of transgender youth and raise serious concerns about the treatment of parents who seek to affirm their transgender children.
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U2 - 10.1111/jasp.13024
DO - 10.1111/jasp.13024
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85185449095
SN - 0021-9029
VL - 54
SP - 209
EP - 220
JO - Journal of Applied Social Psychology
JF - Journal of Applied Social Psychology
IS - 4
ER -