Sedimented Gender Histories: Engaging Phenomenological Perspectives to Understand Gender and Salient Identities of Trans* Academics

• In Event: 25.068 - Roundtable Session 8
  In Roundtable Session: 25.068-17 - Intersectional Identity Development in School and Community Contexts

Abstract

In this qualitative interview study, I used phenomenological perspectives to explore the sedimented gender histories of 13 trans* academics. I selectively included data from 13 participants to create a sub-sample with substantial within sample variation from a larger inquiry featuring the lived experiences of 39 trans* faculty. Drawing on the notion that sedimentation allows one to understand how bodies are shaped by histories, I describe thick and thin layers of gender identity history, identity turning points, and sedimentation of other salient identities. My central argument is that studying trans* academics’ identities can bring to bear the contributions that such histories of identities make to higher education institutions.

Author

• Erich N. Pitcher, Oregon State University