The current study sought to describe the demographic characteristics of individuals who are willing to consider a transgender individual as a potential dating partner. Participants ( N = 958) from a larger study on relationship decision-making processes were asked to select all potential genders that they would consider dating if ever seeking a future romantic partner. The options provided included cisgender men, cisgender women, trans men, trans women, and genderqueer individuals. Across a sample of heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, and trans individuals, 87.5% indicated that they would not consider dating a trans person, with cisgender heterosexual men and women being most likely to exclude trans persons from their potential dating pool. Individuals identifying as bisexual, queer, trans, or non-binary were most likely to indicate a willingness to date a trans person. However, even among those willing to date trans persons, a pattern of masculine privileging and transfeminine exclusion appeared, such that participants were disproportionately willing to date trans men, but not trans women, even if doing so was counter to their self-identified sexual and gender identity (e.g., a lesbian dating a trans man but not a trans woman). The results are discussed within the context of the implications for trans persons seeking romantic relationships and the pervasiveness of cisgenderism and transmisogyny.

References

Bauer, G. R., Hammond, R., Travers, R., Kaay, M., Hohenadel, K. M., Boyce, M. ( 2009 ). “I don’t think this is theoretical; this is our lives”: How erasure impacts health care for transgender people . Journal of the Association of Nurses in AIDS Care, 20, 348 – 361 .

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Bettcher, T. M. ( 2006 ). Appearance, reality, and gender deception: Reflections on transphobic violence and the politics of pretence . In Murchadha, F. Ó. (Ed.), Violence, victims, justifications: Philosophical approaches. Oxford : Peter Lang .

Google Scholar

Bettcher, T. M. ( 2014 ). Trapped in the wrong theory: Rethinking trans oppression and resistance . Signs: Journal of Women in Culture and Society, 39, 383 – 406 .

Google Scholar

Better, A., Simula, B. L. ( 2015 ). How and for whom does gender matter? Rethinking the concept of sexual orientation . Sexualities, 18, 665 – 680 . https://doi.org/10.1177/1363460714561716

Google Scholar

Bibby, R . ( 2007 ). Racial Intermarriage: Canada and the U.S. Press Release . Retrieved from: http://www.reginaldbibby.com/images/PC_9_RACIAL_INTERMARRIAGE_AUG2907.pdf.

Google Scholar

Blair, K. L. ( 2016 ). Ethical research with sexual and gender minorities . The SAGE Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Studies, 3, 375 – 380 .

Google Scholar

Blair, K. L., Holmberg, D. ( 2008 ). Perceived social network support and well-being in same-sex versus mixed-sex romantic relationships . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 25, 769 – 791 .

Google Scholar SAGE Journals | ISI

Blair, K. L., Holmberg, D., Pukall, C. F. ( 2018 ). Support processes in same-sex and mixed-sex relationships: Type and source matters . Personal Relationships, 25.

Google Scholar Medline

Blair, K. L., Hoskin, R. A. ( 2015 ). Experiences of femme identity: Coming out, invisibility and femmephobia . Psychology and Sexuality, 6, 229 – 244 .

Google Scholar

Blair, K. L., Hoskin, R. A. ( 2016 ). Contemporary understandings of femme identities and related experiences of discrimination . Psychology and Sexuality, 7, 101 – 115 .

Google Scholar

Blair, K. L., Pukall, C. F. ( 2015 ). Family matters, but sometimes chosen family matters more: Perceived social network influence in the dating decisions of same- and mixed-sex couples . The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 24, 257 – 270 .

Google Scholar

Bockting, W., Benner, A., Coleman, E. ( 2009 ). Gay and bisexual identity development among female-to-male transsexuals in North America: Emergence of a transgender sexuality . Archives of Sexual Behavior, 38, 688 – 701 .

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Brown, N. R. ( 2009 ). ‘I’m in transition too’: Sexual identity renegotiation in sexual-minority women’s relationships with transsexual men . International Journal of Sexual Health, 21, 61 – 77 . doi:10.1080/193117610902720766

Google Scholar ISI

Brown, N. R. ( 2010 ). The sexual relationships of sexual-minority women partnered with trans men: A qualitative study . Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39, 561 – 572 .

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Brushwood Rose, C., Camilleri, A. ( 2002 ). Brazen Femme: Queering Femininity. Vancouver, Canada : Arsenal Pulp .

Google Scholar

Butler, J. ( 1990 ). Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. New York, NY : Routledge. Print .

Google Scholar

Cannon, M. J., Sunseri, L. ( 2011 ). Racism, Colonialism, and Indigeneity in Canada. Oxford, England : Oxford University Press .

Google Scholar

Canoy, N. A . ( 2015 ). ‘Intimacy is not free of charge’: An intersectional analysis of cultural and classed discourses of intimacy among gay and transgender identities . Sexualities, 18, 921 – 940 .

Google Scholar SAGE Journals | ISI

Coontz, S. ( 2006 ). Marriage, a History: How Love Conquered Marriage. New York, NY : Penguin .

Google Scholar

Dargie, E., Blair, K. L., Pukall, C. F., Coyle, S. M. ( 2014 ). Somewhere under the rainbow: Exploring the identities and experiences of trans persons . The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 23, 60 – 74 .

Google Scholar

Diamond, L. M. ( 2014 ). Gender and same-sex sexuality . In Tolman, D. L., Diamond, L. M. (Eds.), The APA handbook of sexuality and psychology (pp. 629 – 652 ). Washington, DC : APA Press .

Google Scholar

Diamond, L. M., Dickenson, J. A., Blair, K. L. ( 2017 ). Stability of sexual attractions across different timescales: The roles of bisexuality and gender . Archives of Sexual Behavior, 46, 193 – 204 .

Google Scholar Medline

Feeney, B. C., Collins, N. L. ( 2015 ). A new look at social support: A theoretical perspective on thriving through relationships . Personality and Social Psychology Review, 19, 113 – 147 .

Google Scholar SAGE Journals | ISI

Fischer, N. L. ( 2013 ). Seeing “straight,” contemporary critical heterosexuality studies and sociology: An introduction . The Sociology Quarterly, 54, 501 – 510 .

Google Scholar

Foucault, M. ( 1978 ). The History of Sexuality: An Introduction. New York, NY : Random House, Inc .

Google Scholar

Gamarel, K. E., Reisner, S. L., Laurenceau, J. P., Nemoto, T., Operario, D. ( 2014 ). Gender minority stress, mental health, and relationship quality: A dyadic investigation of transgender women and their cisgender male partners . Journal of Family Psychology, 28, 437 – 447 .

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Glaser, C. L., Robnett, B., Feliciano, C. ( 2009 ). Internet daters’ body type preferences: Race–ethnic and gender differences . Sex Roles, 61, 14 – 33 .

Google Scholar Medline

Han, C. S. ( 2008 ). No fats, femmes or Asians: The utility of critical race theory in examining the role of gay stock stories in the marginalization of gay Asian men . Contemporary Justice Review, 11, 11 – 22 .

Google Scholar

Hines, S. ( 2006 ). Intimate transitions: Transgender practices of partnering and parenting . Sociology, 40, 353 – 371 .

Google Scholar SAGE Journals | ISI

Holmberg, D., Blair, K. L. ( 2016 ). Dynamics of perceived social network support for same-sex versus mixed-sex relationships . Personal Relationships, 23, 62 – 83 .

Google Scholar

Hoskin, R. A. ( 2017 ). Femme theory: Refocusing the intersectional lens . Atlantis: Critical Studies in Gender, Culture, and Social Justice, 38, 95 – 109 .

Google Scholar

Hunter, M. L. ( 2002 ). “If you’re light, you’re alright” light skin color as social capital for women of color . Gender and Society, 16, 175 – 193 .

Google Scholar SAGE Journals | ISI

Iantaffi, A., Bockting, W. O. ( 2011 ). Views from both sides of the bridge? Gender, sexual legitimacy and transgender people’s experiences of relationships . Culture, Health and Sexuality, 13, 355 – 370 .

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Jha, S., Adelman, M. ( 2009 ). Looking for love in all the white places: A study of skin color preferences on Indian matrimonial and mate-seeking websites . Studies in South Asian Film and Media, 1, 65 – 83 .

Google Scholar

Katz, J. ( 2007 ). The Invention of Heterosexuality. Chicago, IL : University of Chicago Press .

Google Scholar Crossref

Livingston, G., Brown, A. ( 2017 ). Trends and patterns in intermarriage . PEW Research Centre. Retrieved from: http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2017/05/18/1-trends-and-patterns-in-intermarriage/.

Google Scholar

McDermott, E. ( 2010 ). I wanted to be totally true to myself: Class and the making of the sexual self . In Taylor, Y. (Ed.), Classed intersections: Spaces, selves, knowledges (pp. 199 – 215 ). Farnham, England : Ashgate .

Google Scholar

McDermott, D. T., Brooks, A. S., Rohleder, P., Blair, K. L., Hoskin, R. A., McDonagh, L. K. ( 2018 ). Ameliorating transnegativity: Assessing the immediate and extended efficacy of a pedagogic prejudice reduction intervention . Psychology and Sexuality, 9, 69 – 85 .

Google Scholar

McIntosh, M. ( 1968 ). The homosexual role . Social Problems, 16, 182 – 192 .

Google Scholar ISI

Meier, S. C., Sharp, C., Michonski, J., Babcock, J. C., Fitzgerald, K. ( 2013 ). Romantic relationships of female-to-male trans men: A descriptive study . International Journal of Transgenderism, 14, 75 – 85 .

Google Scholar

Melendez, R. M., Pinto, R. ( 2007 ). ‘It’s really a hard life’: Love, gender and HIV risk among male-to-female transgender persons . Culture, Ealth and Exuality, 9, 233 – 245 .

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Miller, B. ( 2015 ). “Dude, where’s your face?” Self-presentation, self-description, and partner preferences on a social networking application for men who have sex with men: A content analysis . Sexuality and Culture, 19, 637 – 658 .

Google Scholar

Mullinax, M., Herbenick, D., Schick, V., Sanders, S. A., Reece, M. ( 2015 ). In their own words: A qualitative content analysis of women’s and men’s preferences for women’s genitals . Sex Education, 15, 421 – 436 .

Google Scholar Medline

Pfeffer, C. A. ( 2008 ). Bodies in relation–bodies in transition: Lesbian partners of trans men and body image . Journal of Lesbian Studies, 12, 325 – 345 . doi:10.1080/10894160802278184

Google Scholar Medline

Pfeffer, C. A . ( 2014 ). ‘I don’t like passing as straight’: Queer negotiations of identity and social memberships . American Journal of Sociology, 120, 1 – 44 . doi:10.1086/677197

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Reisner, S. L., Pardo, S. T., Gamarel, K. E., Hughto, J. M. W., Pardee, D. J., Keto-Meier, C. L. ( 2015 ). Substance use to cope with stigma in healthcare among U.S. female-to-male trans masculine adults . LGBT Health, 2, 324 – 332 . doi:10.1080/lgbt.2015.0001

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Rich, A. ( 1980 ). Compulsory heterosexuality and the lesbian existence . Signs, 5, 631 – 660 .

Google Scholar ISI

Riggs, D. W., von Doussa, H., Power, J. ( 2015 ). The family and romantic relationships of trans and gender diverse Australians: An exploratory survey . Sexual and Relationship Therapy, 30, 243 – 255 .

Google Scholar

Sedgwick, E. K. ( 2008 ). Epistemology of the closet. Berkeley, CA : University of California Press .

Google Scholar

Serano, J. ( 2007 ). Whipping girl: A transsexual woman on sexism and the scapegoating of femininity. Emeryville, CA : Seal Press .

Google Scholar

Serano, J. ( 2009 , 6 12 ). Psychology, Sexualization and Trans-Invalidations. Keynote lecture presented at the 8th Annual Philadelphia Trans-Health Conference. Retrieved from: http://www.juliaserano.com/av/Serano-TransInvalidations.pdf.

Google Scholar

Serano, J. ( 2013 ). Excluded: Making feminist and queer movements more inclusive. Emeryville, CA : Seal Press .

Google Scholar

van Anders, S. M. ( 2015 ). Beyond sexual orientation: Integrating gender/sex and diverse sexualities via sexual configurations theory . Archives of Sexual Behavior, 44, 1177 – 1213 . doi:10.1007/s10508-015-0490-8

Google Scholar Medline | ISI

Vaughn, M., McEntee, B., Schoen, B., McGrady, M. ( 2015 ). Addressing disability stigma within the lesbian community . Journal of Rehabilitation, 81, 49 – 56 .

Google Scholar