A qualitative study exploring the experiences of services of parents of pre-pubertal children who identify in gender diverse ways

In recent years, there has been an increased interest in families who raise children that express themselves in gender diverse ways alongside a dramatic increase in the number of referrals to clinics. Research on the experiences of parents is, however, very limited. Furthermore,gender diversity in very young children (i.e. pre-pubertal) raises many emotionally, ethically and morally charged dilemmas, which parents often seek help for. Learning about the experiences of supporting a child during social transition alongside professional help, may help to inform future clinical practice and enable families to be supported in a way they find most helpful. Ten parents (six mothers, four fathers) of pre-pubertal children who expressed themselves in gender diverse ways, and had socially transitioned, were recruited through a specialist gender clinic. Each parent participated in a face-to-face interview where they were asked about their experiences of raising their child while receiving help from professionals. Adopting a Constructivist Grounded Theory methodology, data were analysed through an iterative process of constant comparison, leading to the construction of a substantive theoretical model grounded in the data. The category of „Transition‟ captured the essence of parents‟ experiences. It represents the time during which the parents did, or did not support the child through moving away from their assigned gender to the desired one; firstly on their own, and gradually with the support of friends, their community and professionals. The resultant model explicates the dynamic and relational process of „Transition‟ as the core category which is directly influenced by, and influencing, many other factors. The model is considered in relation to extant literature and implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.