Emotion work in the public performances of male-to-female transsexuals.
Much research has shown that entering the public sphere is emotionally taxing yet key to male-to-female transsexuals' status passage. Yet, little is known about how transsexuals actively manage their emotions during this important transitional phase. Taking a dramaturgical approach to emotions, we explored how some male-to-female transsexuals managed their emotions in ways that helped generate self-confidence and commitment to their paths. Interviewees engaged in three primary forms of emotion work: (1) preparatory emotion work mitigated anxiety and bolstered confidence, which motivated them to enter public arenas as women; (2) in situ emotion work transformed negative emotions as they arose when performing womanhood in public; and (3) retrospective emotion work reinterpreted past public performances to neutralize negative and accentuate positive emotions.
Department of Sociology, Florida State University, 526 Bellamy Building, Tallahassee, FL 32306-2270, USA. dschrock@fsu.edu
Douglas P
DP
Schrock
Emily M
EM
Boyd
Margaret
M
Leaf
D000328:Adult; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D020249:Hormone Replacement Therapy; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012649:Self Concept; D012919:Social Behavior; D014189:Transsexualism / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000523:psychology*