Transgressing the Gendered Norms in Childhood: Understanding Transgender Children and Their Families

ABSTRACT

This qualitative study utilized case-study research methodology and ethnographic techniques to highlight the lived experiences of four prepubescent (female affirmed) transgender children and their families. This article presents the exploratory and descriptive findings from a micro perspective of the children, siblings, and their parents, as the prepubescent children transitioned gender and developed their gender identity over time. Through an in-depth portrait of their lives, this article details the strengths and challenges that these families experienced at the micro level, while sharing the limitations, challenges, and areas for future research with trans children and their families.