Experiences of trans young people and caregivers V1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Exploring experiences of validation in the mental health of trans young people in rural Scotland: Perspectives of young people and caregivers.
IRAS ID
303437
Contact name
Michaela Chesters
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Edinburgh
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 9 months, 0 days
Research summary
What is this research about?
Transgender young people have poorer mental health than their peers. One reason for this is that they are more likely to have experiences where they feel invalidated. Invalidation is where someone’s thoughts and feelings have been rejected, ignored or judged. Caregivers may also experience invalidation in relation to their child’s gender. This research is interested in finding out more about these experiences.
Who will be asked to take part?
Pairs of young people and their caregivers will be asked to take part. Young people will be eligible if they identify with a trans identity, are aged between 16 and 18 and live in a rural area of Scotland. Caregivers will be eligible if they have had parental responsibility for the young person and lived with them for at least 12 months.
What will they be asked to do? How will the information be used?
Those who agree to take part will each be interviewed separately. They will be asked questions about experiences of validation and how this influenced their feelings. Afterwards, the researcher will look in detail at anonymised transcripts of the interviews to find themes and connections with other interviews.
What will happen when the research is completed? How will this be helpful?
This research may help people to better understand the experiences of trans young people and their caregivers. It will give people taking part an opportunity to have their voice heard. The study will be written up and the researcher will aim for it to be published, so that it is widely available. It will also be shared with professionals in the NHS and other relevant organisations through presentations. This means that it can be used to inform policies and services around how best to support trans young people and their families.
REC name
West of Scotland REC 3
REC reference
22/WS/0022
Date of REC Opinion
2 Mar 2022
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion