Gender Transition on Social Media

Sociotechnical systems, such as social networking sites (SNS), often privilege people who fit within expected, static categories. Thus, designing technology and SNS flexible enough to allow for representation of complex identities that emerge as people embark on major life transitions, such as changing gender, is a particular challenge for HCI. Because little is known about how transgender people navigate gender transition on SNS, this work seeks to understand challenges and opportunities related to this experience. Examining the relationships between issues including self-presentation, stress, disclosure, and support on SNSs for these particular users can inform technology design that will benefit people who struggle with navigating a wide range of major identity changes online.

team : //

Oliver Haimson, Jed Brubaker, Lynn Dombrowski, Gillian Hayes

publish : //

Haimson, O., Brubaker, J. R., Dombrowski, L., Hayes, G. R. Disclosure, Stress, and Support During Gender Transition on Facebook. Proc. CSCW 2015. Vancouver, BC, Canada. March 14-18, 2015. [pdf]