Anti-Transgender Rhetoric and Internet Commenting
Jacob Vargas & Alexander Farquhar-Leicester
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09/17/2020
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Description
Transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) people face prejudice, which is associated with psychological distress (Tebbe and Moradi, 2016). This study seeks to identify the arguments used to de-legitimize TGD identities online. Researchers will conduct a thematic analysis of anti-transgender comments on transgender-related articles taken from the Fox News, Buzzfeed, and The Hill websites. We chose to analyze article comments because a) users can edit comments, allowing them to articulate their meaning without the pressure of social interaction, b) the intentionality of aligning oneself with specific ideologies reveals attitudes, and c) anonymity and lack of consequences encourages honesty. A random number generator will be used to select articles published prior to the 2016 presidential election. Researchers will sort the comments from oldest to newest and select approximately 25 prejudiced comments from each article. The same number of prejudiced comments will be taken from each site despite the number of articles used—166 per site for a total of 500. A commenter exhibits anti-transgender prejudice if they use language expressing negative affect (e.g., aversion) explicitly or implicitly toward TGD people. Lacking an a priori theory, we will use reflexive thematic analysis to analyze the data: it proceeds step-by-step, allows for an iterative process and so limits researcher bias, and systematically allows themes to emerge (Braun and Clarke, 2006). Examples of anticipated themes include gender essentialism (e.g., “Gender is biological”), and the belief that transgenderism is a mental illness (e.g., “Transgender people need therapy”). Much literature on anti-transgender prejudice relies on self-report and so is prone to socially desirable responding (Gerhardstein & Anderson, 2010). This study is innovative in its analysis of public comments that reflect anti-transgender sentiment and also shape societal rhetoric on TGD identities. We will present preliminary study findings as they relate to identifying misconceptions surrounding transgender communities and priorities for educational initiatives.
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- [00:00:00.760]This computer.
- [00:00:03.640]Great.
- [00:00:06.590]Let's share my screen,
- [00:00:14.570]It present.
- [00:00:18.180]We're up in our corners.
- [00:00:22.990]How are you doing? Ready?
- [00:00:25.510]Yeah.
- [00:00:31.400]Hello everyone, thank you for coming to our presentation.
- [00:00:34.200]My colleague Alex and I
- [00:00:35.300]will be discussing our qualitative study
- [00:00:37.100]concerning anti-trans gender rhetoric
- [00:00:39.040]and internet commenting.
- [00:00:40.600]Let's get started.
- [00:00:44.160]So the identities and experiences
- [00:00:46.230]of transgender non-binary and gender diverse or TNG people
- [00:00:51.060]are openly debated by popular news figures
- [00:00:53.620]and on chat rooms like Reddit.
- [00:00:56.170]As interest TNG experience grows,
- [00:00:58.590]much research has explored the association
- [00:01:00.700]between anti TNG prejudice
- [00:01:02.770]and psychological constructs or demographic variables.
- [00:01:06.360]Our study took a different approach however.
- [00:01:08.720]We were interested in evaluating
- [00:01:10.270]the rhetoric of anti TNG sentiment
- [00:01:12.230]and exploring how these arguments
- [00:01:13.700]both reflect and shape our social world.
- [00:01:19.630]Data collection for this research
- [00:01:21.270]involved collecting comments
- [00:01:23.070]from articles published on three different news websites.
- [00:01:25.660]The Hill, Buzzfeed and Fox news were used
- [00:01:28.500]because these three news websites
- [00:01:30.170]reflect different points on the spectrum.
- [00:01:33.600]Fixed search terms, such as transgender and non-binary,
- [00:01:37.600]were used to find the articles.
- [00:01:39.770]Only articles published after November six of 2016,
- [00:01:43.420]were used to control
- [00:01:44.660]for potential effects of the recent presidential election.
- [00:01:48.060]Random selection was used for the articles.
- [00:01:50.090]The oldest first filter was used to reduce the possible bias
- [00:01:53.230]and commenters being influenced by other posts.
- [00:01:56.200]No more than 25 comments were selected from any one article.
- [00:01:59.810]Ron and Clark's thematic analysis
- [00:02:01.460]was used to analyze the data,
- [00:02:03.020]following the six spaces outlined in this slide.
- [00:02:05.960]We met weekly to discuss methodology
- [00:02:09.210]and preliminary code categories
- [00:02:11.300]and alternated between blind and consensus coding
- [00:02:14.090]of each others independently collected data.
- [00:02:17.080]Overall agreement between us was 85% for blind coding.
- [00:02:20.710]During the coding process,
- [00:02:22.240]reflexivity journals were utilized
- [00:02:23.980]to one make notes about which codes
- [00:02:26.200]might be related to another.
- [00:02:27.720]Two, which codes should be collapsed.
- [00:02:30.330]Three, keep track of the ways codes were being used
- [00:02:33.560]based on the agreed upon definitions.
- [00:02:35.740]And lastly, bracket any emotional
- [00:02:38.010]or cognitive reactions to the comment process.
- [00:02:42.210]Overall 500 comments were collected
- [00:02:44.330]and 495 of them were used for data analysis.
- [00:02:52.820]The data analysis process resulted in 12 final themes,
- [00:02:57.260]included in this graph is the percentage of comments
- [00:02:59.800]that are in each theme, based on the 495 comments.
- [00:03:03.840]For clarity, often comments were given multiple coats.
- [00:03:07.000]Therefore the percentages
- [00:03:08.220]don't represent the number of discrete comments,
- [00:03:10.560]but rather the frequency of the idea generally.
- [00:03:13.440]As you can see psychological instability,
- [00:03:15.970]gender centralism, social burden,
- [00:03:18.150]and social/cultural phenomenon
- [00:03:20.700]have a highest numbers of comments.
- [00:03:22.540]As such and for the sake of time,
- [00:03:24.530]we'll be reviewing those themes.
- [00:03:30.100]Here's a quick breakdown of the proportions
- [00:03:32.800]that sub-themes made up of each theme.
- [00:03:35.050]Only five of the 12 themes had sub-themes.
- [00:03:42.460]So our biggest category was gender essentialism.
- [00:03:46.120]Gender essentialist thought make several assumptions.
- [00:03:48.950]First, there are only two genders, male and female.
- [00:03:52.390]Second, these categories are biologically based
- [00:03:54.920]and therefore are mutable.
- [00:03:56.320]And third, each category confers
- [00:03:58.430]unique mutually exclusive psychological
- [00:04:00.630]and behavioral characteristics.
- [00:04:03.330]Comments frequently referenced
- [00:04:04.760]as opposed to mutability of sex on the basis of chromosomes.
- [00:04:08.200]As it's shown on the example comments on the slide.
- [00:04:11.810]The frequent deployment of gender essentialist side,
- [00:04:14.270]indicates a cultural belief
- [00:04:15.610]that biology is or should be
- [00:04:17.750]the organizing mechanism of identity and experience.
- [00:04:21.190]It thus functions to undermine
- [00:04:22.570]the experience and self knowledge of TNG people.
- [00:04:25.660]The physical sex is mutable,
- [00:04:27.440]binary TNG people are not who they say they are.
- [00:04:29.860]And by extension on binary
- [00:04:31.410]and gender diverse individuals do not and cannot exist.
- [00:04:34.830]This rhetoric therefore also
- [00:04:36.160]upholds the concept of the gender binary.
- [00:04:38.880]The dichotomous division of society
- [00:04:40.590]into male and female is a deep rooted belief.
- [00:04:43.497]TNG people threaten the assumed
- [00:04:45.210]naturalness and straightforwardness of this concept,
- [00:04:47.750]which may explain its prevalence in the data.
- [00:04:53.100]The psychological instability theme
- [00:04:54.800]captures commenters believe
- [00:04:56.800]that TNG people are TNG
- [00:04:58.740]as a result of mental illness or confusion.
- [00:05:01.100]Or that TNG itself is a mental illness
- [00:05:03.330]or a manifestation of gender confusion.
- [00:05:05.830]Many commenters asserted that TNG people
- [00:05:09.380]are psychologically unstable,
- [00:05:10.980]often using the diagnosis of gender dysphoria
- [00:05:13.107]and the DSM-5
- [00:05:15.110]as evidence for their statements.
- [00:05:17.473]The belief that TNG people have a mental illness,
- [00:05:20.350]are confused or playing make-believe
- [00:05:22.720]undermines TNG people's identities and live experience.
- [00:05:26.550]By proclaiming that TNG people are confused
- [00:05:29.090]or suffering from a mental illness,
- [00:05:30.730]commenters are subverting the autonomy,
- [00:05:33.070]self knowledge and self determination of TNG people.
- [00:05:36.989]The use of gender dysphoria, specifically functions
- [00:05:39.180]to deny the authenticity of TNG personhood.
- [00:05:42.320]Also creates mental illness stigma
- [00:05:43.810]that justifies bigotry,
- [00:05:45.320]contending that TNG people
- [00:05:46.810]should not be taken seriously
- [00:05:48.440]and are in need of being cured
- [00:05:50.240]of their mental disorientation.
- [00:05:55.000]The third biggest theme was social burden.
- [00:05:57.700]This theme captures the way that TNG people
- [00:06:00.380]rights and issues are viewed as burdensome
- [00:06:02.700]and potentially dangerous to children,
- [00:06:04.360]gender, public spaces and society in general.
- [00:06:07.450]This theme subsumes three sub-themes
- [00:06:09.560]as you can see on the slide.
- [00:06:11.810]The first sub-theme indicates a belief
- [00:06:13.620]that accommodating TNG people
- [00:06:15.640]through appropriate pronoun use
- [00:06:17.160]or trans-affirmative bathroom laws
- [00:06:19.370]constitutes an unjust or unreasonable burden
- [00:06:21.810]on the larger cisgender society .
- [00:06:24.500]Arguments like these reveal
- [00:06:25.750]a cultural belief and supremacy
- [00:06:27.490]that is inflicted on many minority groups.
- [00:06:30.230]It says the dominant groups have no responsibility
- [00:06:32.680]to care for minority groups.
- [00:06:34.340]And minorities have no rights to request accommodation
- [00:06:37.100]due to their inferior social status
- [00:06:39.150]or status as a numerical minority.
- [00:06:42.530]The second sub-theme suggest the believe
- [00:06:44.250]that TNG people are dangerous.
- [00:06:46.070]This argument to is faced by many minority groups.
- [00:06:48.830]We're all familiar with the current administration's
- [00:06:50.970]anti-immigrant rhetoric, for example.
- [00:06:53.580]Framing certain groups is dangerous,
- [00:06:55.130]especially to women and children,
- [00:06:56.800]is often effective in mobilizing support
- [00:06:58.810]for restricting the rights of these groups.
- [00:07:01.100]Historically, similar arguments of segregation
- [00:07:04.120]were made on the basis of race.
- [00:07:06.600]According to segregationists black people,
- [00:07:08.910]specifically black men,
- [00:07:10.320]were held to be dangerous to white women's bodily safety.
- [00:07:13.100]Necessitating in their minds,
- [00:07:14.640]segregation in many public spaces.
- [00:07:17.240]We see this again with TNG people in bathrooms.
- [00:07:21.550]The third sub-theme applies specifically to the military.
- [00:07:25.480]Mental illness based arguments were frequently used
- [00:07:27.820]as a basis for disqualifying
- [00:07:29.210]TNG people from military servants.
- [00:07:32.100]We conceptualize this as a unique sub-theme
- [00:07:34.820]due to the recent trans-military ban,
- [00:07:37.730]which has a concrete reflection of this specific bias.
- [00:07:44.140]The cultural/social phenomenon dean
- [00:07:46.910]represents the belief,
- [00:07:47.973]that the experiences of TNG people
- [00:07:50.350]present a political position
- [00:07:52.080]or social cultural trend or fad
- [00:07:53.800]and therefore it can be disregarded.
- [00:07:55.800]Another part of this theme represents the belief
- [00:07:57.730]that TNG identity is in permanent
- [00:08:00.690]and or a bid for attention.
- [00:08:02.450]They claim that TNG identity
- [00:08:04.050]is a trend or a fad political ideology or social ideology.
- [00:08:07.970]Position such identities
- [00:08:09.530]as something fabricated and thus can be disregarded
- [00:08:12.020]by those who do not agree with TNG people
- [00:08:14.290]or issues they face in society.
- [00:08:16.640]Such assertions serve as a write off
- [00:08:19.170]that supports the continued marginalization
- [00:08:21.660]and questioning of TNG peoples' authenticity and legitimacy.
- [00:08:25.370]They claim that TNG people seek attention,
- [00:08:28.060]act as the mechanism of dismissal,
- [00:08:29.840]asserting that TNG people
- [00:08:31.560]are making up the reality or severity
- [00:08:33.640]of discrimination they face.
- [00:08:35.063]You know, just being self-indulgent.
- [00:08:37.490]Lastly, they claim that TNG identity is impermanent,
- [00:08:40.040]furthers the prejudice notion
- [00:08:41.390]that TNG people are operable and oppose human nature.
- [00:08:49.860]This study is noble
- [00:08:50.830]and its analysis of public comments,
- [00:08:52.772](speaking quietly)
- [00:08:56.055]As the commenters are culturally contextualized beings.
- [00:08:58.788](indistinct) your other comments.
- [00:09:00.270]The rhetorical strategies and themes we've documented
- [00:09:02.910]reveal assumptions about how the world works
- [00:09:05.010]or more importantly, how it should work.
- [00:09:07.890]In the eyes of the commenters.
- [00:09:09.690]As our society strives toward equity,
- [00:09:11.730]bigotry is forced into subtler form.
- [00:09:14.070]Appeals to nature and mental health services
- [00:09:16.190]may appear to be reasonable or even compassionate
- [00:09:18.870]in comparison to slurs or violence.
- [00:09:21.080]Instead they legitimize prejudice
- [00:09:22.680]by dressing it in respectable clothes.
- [00:09:25.470]This tendency may be a symptom of moral disengagement,
- [00:09:28.320]which is a phenomenon where otherwise pro-social people
- [00:09:31.090]use a variety of cognitive strategies
- [00:09:32.930]to distance themselves from any moral action.
- [00:09:35.540]The words I support trans people but...
- [00:09:38.170]Proceed in more than one comment in this study.
- [00:09:40.570]Highlighting the tension between the desire
- [00:09:42.330]to appear tolerant and the desire to maintain the status quo
- [00:09:45.290]through discriminatory practices.
- [00:09:48.180]However, support for TNG rights
- [00:09:49.730]have increased in recent years.
- [00:09:51.330]With 62% of Americans
- [00:09:53.050]indicating that they are more supportive of trans-rights now
- [00:09:56.040]than they were five years ago.
- [00:09:57.870]But this study highlights some of the sources
- [00:09:59.620]of tension and confusion that still stands in our way.
- [00:10:03.710]In the future, It will be important to dispel
- [00:10:05.680]the mental illness stigma attached to TNG identity.
- [00:10:08.670]And to continue educating the public
- [00:10:10.310]on the basic elements of TNG experience,
- [00:10:12.820]such as gender dysphoria
- [00:10:14.470]in order to build empathy
- [00:10:15.620]for a frequently misunderstood community.
- [00:10:18.420]It will also be important
- [00:10:19.570]for the psychological community to own the ways
- [00:10:21.780]we have historically pathologized TNG identity.
- [00:10:24.750]And to help repair the damage
- [00:10:26.250]through empowering therapies,
- [00:10:27.770]transformative research and public education.
- [00:10:33.802]Given the nature of this research,
- [00:10:35.510]the generalizability of the results
- [00:10:37.010]is restricted by timing context.
- [00:10:38.930]The comments on (indistinct)
- [00:10:40.330]the specific randomly selected articles
- [00:10:42.420]that were obtained from Buzzfeed, The Hill and Fox news.
- [00:10:45.800]The date and time they were published
- [00:10:47.600]in the socio-political context
- [00:10:49.190]from which they were written by commenters.
- [00:10:51.550]As what's called qualitative research,
- [00:10:53.200]the quality and accuracy of the data and results
- [00:10:55.210]can be influenced by researcher bias
- [00:10:57.150]in differing world views.
- [00:10:58.690]It is possible that our positions members
- [00:11:00.610]of the TNG community,
- [00:11:01.870]could have had an effect on the data analysis process.
- [00:11:05.150]Despite such steps were taken to minimize
- [00:11:07.460]the impact of personal bias and worldviews
- [00:11:09.850]during the research process,
- [00:11:11.140]as mentioned earlier, during my review of the methods.
- [00:11:14.410]When utilizing comments from public online articles,
- [00:11:17.080]there is always the potential for internet trolls.
- [00:11:19.400]Which are people who purposely post inflammatory depressive,
- [00:11:22.690]or repeated messages or comments.
- [00:11:25.110]To combat some of the potential implications,
- [00:11:27.190]trolls on the data and results,
- [00:11:29.140]we may note of trolls to minimize inclusion in the data.
- [00:11:32.400]More specifically, we kept track of potential trolls
- [00:11:35.030]by highlighting comments
- [00:11:36.410]that appeared in more than one article,
- [00:11:38.350]where they came from the same commenter.
- [00:11:40.150]If a troll made in identical comment,
- [00:11:42.570]only one was included in the final dataset.
- [00:11:45.120]However, it's important to acknowledge
- [00:11:47.100]that whether trolls believe their comments,
- [00:11:49.780]comments made by trolls
- [00:11:50.930]still reflect and mirror the culture that they are apart of.
- [00:11:57.690]That's all we have, here are references.
- [00:11:59.700]Thank you for virtually attending our presentation.
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