Nonbinary identity development in four experiences: Dissonance, catalyst, delay, and actualization
| dc.contributor.author | Woodland, Candace | |
| dc.contributor.supervisor | Devor, Aaron H. | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2025-04-30T21:00:10Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2025-04-30T21:00:10Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2025 | |
| dc.degree.department | Department of Sociology | |
| dc.degree.level | Master of Arts MA | |
| dc.description.abstract | This qualitative master’s thesis project explores the ways in which nonbinary people experience gender identity development. Eleven semi-structured interviews with nonbinary people were conducted and analyzed in order to answer the central research question: How do nonbinary people come to realize that they are nonbinary? Based on the findings from these interviews, the author proposes that nonbinary identity development can be understood through a framework of four common overlapping experiences: (1) Unresolved Dissonance, during which one feels dissonance between their binary gender and their self-concept, but does not meaningfully acknowledge or address it; (2) Catalyst(s) for Change, during which one encounters events or information which prompt them to question their binary gender and consider a nonbinary one; (3) Complication and Delay, during which one encounters internal and/or external barriers that temporarily prevent them from coming into their nonbinary identities; and finally, (4) Identity Actualization, which occurs when one experiences stimuli and/or events that allow them to overcome the aforementioned barriers, and shift their self-concepts to include nonbinary gender identities. | |
| dc.description.scholarlevel | Graduate | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/1828/22066 | |
| dc.language | English | eng |
| dc.language.iso | en | |
| dc.rights | Available to the World Wide Web | |
| dc.subject | Nonbinary | |
| dc.subject | Transgender | |
| dc.subject | Identity development | |
| dc.subject | Gender identity | |
| dc.title | Nonbinary identity development in four experiences: Dissonance, catalyst, delay, and actualization | |
| dc.type | Thesis |