Examining the Relation Between Gender Nonconformity and Psychological Well-Being in Children: The Roles of Peers and Par
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ORIGINAL PAPER
Examining the Relation Between Gender Nonconformity and Psychological Well‑Being in Children: The Roles of Peers and Parents Laura N. MacMullin1 · Lisa M. Bokeloh1,2 · A. Natisha Nabbijohn1 · Alanna Santarossa1 · Anna I. R. van der Miesen1,3 · Diana E. Peragine1 · Doug P. VanderLaan1,4 Received: 14 August 2019 / Revised: 18 June 2020 / Accepted: 1 September 2020 © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract No study to date has simultaneously tested how poor peer relations, generic risk factors, and parental attitudes impact the behavioral and emotional challenges of children who vary in their gender expression. In a community sample, the present study investigated various hypothesized psychosocial and generic risk factors regarding the association between childhood gender nonconformity (GNC) and psychological well-being. Canadian parents/guardians reported on their children aged 6–12 years (N = 1719, 48.8% assigned male at birth) regarding their child’s GNC, measured by the Gender Identity Questionnaire for Children; behavioral and emotional challenges, measured by the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL); and peer relations, measured by the CBCL and Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire. Parent/guardian gender-stereotypical attitudes toward child-rearing were assessed using an adapted version of the Child-Rearing Sex Role Attitude Scale, and attachment between the parent/guardian and child was measured with an adapted version of the Child-Rearing Practices Report. Based on regression analyses, GNC was related to elevated behavioral and emotional challenges, and this association was stronger for those who experienced poor peer relations as well as for those whose parents/guardians endorsed gender-stereotyped attitudes and were less willing to serve as a secure base for the child. Recommendations are provided for ways in which social environments can be altered to improve psychological well-being among gender-nonconforming children. Keywords Gender nonconformity · Psychological well-being · Parental attitudes · Poor peer relations · Child Behavior Checklist
Introduction
Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-020-01832-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. * Doug P. VanderLaan [email protected] 1
Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, ON L5L 1C6, Canada
2
Department of Psychology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
3
Center of Expertise on Gender Dysphoria, VU Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
4
Child and Youth Psychiatry, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, ON, Canada
Gender nonconformity (GNC) describes the extent to which a person’s behavior, appearance, and/or identity do not conform to culturally defined gender norms based on their sex assigned at birth (Institute of Medicine, 2011; Turban & Ehrensaft, 2018). GNC is related to, but distinct from, gender dysphoria—formerly
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