Experiences of Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Youth

The proposed research aimed to amplify the voices and experiences of transgender and gendernonconforming

youth through sandtray and narrative exploration. Transgender and gendernonconforming

individuals are at high risk for homelessness, suicide, depression, discrimination,

and other mental and physical health problems (American Psychological Association, 2015;

Edwards et al., 2019; Ehrensaft, 2014; Newcomb et al., 2018). There is a lack of research

allowing transgender and gender-nonconforming children and adolescents to describe their lived

experiences. The current study elaborated on the specific experiences of transgender and gendernonconforming

youth within a social-ecological framework to explore how the individual

interacts with relational, community, and societal systems. The qualitative nature of the study

amplified the voices of transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals. Data was collected

through a directive sandtray approach where transgender and gender-nonconforming youth

illustrated their journeys in response to various prompts. The prompts spanned the systems levels

per the ecological framework and were informed by the major themes in research targeting

transgender and gender non-conforming individuals. This research has implications for the

psychological care of transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals and their families. The

directive sandtray prompts and stories that were collected add transgender and gender nonconforming

youth's voices to the conversation about how to best meet this population's needs.