Bodies in relation--bodies in transition: lesbian partners of trans men and body image.
Presenting published narratives of transgender and transsexual men (henceforth "trans men"), along with case study interview narratives from five lesbian-identified partners of trans men, I consider how body image issues may surface both individually and interpersonally in relation to the body dysphoria of a trans partner. In addition to self-reports of negatively shifting body image among some interviewees, I also discuss how negative body image may adversely affect these relationships in terms of sexual and non-sexual intimacy, bodily self-expression, and self-confidence. I term these processes and effects relational body image in order to trouble dominant conceptualizations of negative body image as primarily an individual issue arising from external, macro-sociological forces and pressures. I present these cases as a starting point for future sociological theorizing and empirical work with this under-studied population.
Pfeffer
Carla A
CA
University of Michigan, Department of Sociology, 500 South State Street, 3001 LSA Building, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1382, USA. cpfeffer@umich.edu
D000328:Adult; D001828:Body Image; D005260:Female; D018452:Homosexuality, Female / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D007989:Libido; D008297:Male; D012649:Self Concept; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D012933:Social Identification; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014189:Transsexualism / Q000523:psychology*