Graduation Semester and Year

Fall 2024

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Social Work

Department

Social Work

First Advisor

Genevieve Graaf

Second Advisor

Jennifer Murphy

Third Advisor

Micki Washburn

Abstract

Recently, there has been a precipitous rise in anti-TGD legislation across state legislatures, growing from 143 proposed bills in 2021 to 604 in 2023. This pronounced increase in TGD-restrictive legislation may exacerbate existing stressors experienced by TGD youth. This study uses Ecological Systems Theory as a framework to conceptualize how this legislation might worsen the emotional strain and related risks experienced by TGD youth. All proposed and enacted state policies from January 1st, 2023, to December 31st, 2023, impacting the school environments of TGD youth were collected, and the characteristics were categorized according to domain, policy instruments, consequences specified, and protections offered. A total of 219 bills were collected. 91.78% were sponsored by Republicans and 10.96% passed. The most prominent domain restrictions were gender identity (39.73%), sports (28.31%), and parental notification (26.48%). The domains were categorized according to the domain of school life impacted, and the potential implications of risk factors were discussed.

Keywords

TGD Youth, Gender, Transgender, Non-Binary, Gender-Diverse, Ecological Systems Theory, Risk Factors, School, Education

Disciplines

Gender and Sexuality | Human Ecology | Social Policy | Social Work

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