Beyond the Gender Binary: A Case Study of Two Transgender Students at a Midwestern Research University

Abstract

ABSTRACT Few non-pathologizing models of transgender identity development currently exist. This study uses an adaptation of the D'Augelli (1994) lifespan model of sexual orientation identity development to consider the lives of transgender college students. Interviews with two transgender-identified students find that they have developmental experiences in each process of D'Augelli's framework. In addition to demonstrating the need for more research on transgender identity development, this study suggests that the binary construction of gender that pervades United States culture and college campuses, in particular, must be examined and challenged.