Dissociation experienced by transgender people

Dissociation is defined as an experience where you feel in some way disconnected to yourself or your surroundings, or as if there were different, disconnected parts of yourself. These experiences are not always easy to identify, as they can be very subtle or difficult to verbalize. Examples of dissociation include your body, your emotions, or the world around you not feeling real somehow, or as if there were different parts of you that do not communicate with each other, or being unable to remember things you should be able to remember, but it can take other forms.

The study will be conducted through an interview over Zoom, which is estimated to take about 30-60 minutes. During the interview you will be asked questions concerning the dissociative experiences you have had and other areas of your life that are relevant to these experiences. The interview audio will be recorded and then transcribed. You are free to discontinue the interview at any point without any repercussions or having to explain why.

Confidentiality

Your name will not be recorded, but you will be assigned a code or pseudonym with no connection to your name, and when the interview is transcribed all data will be anonymized and unable to be traced back to you. Data that will be kept include self-identified gender, approximate age, and country you live in if it is relevant. After the interview, the pitch and tempo of the recording will be altered to disguise the voice, after which the original recording will be deleted.

The data will be mainly presented at the group level, but quotations from specific individuals may be presented occasionally to illustrate a point, but without any identifying information. The data are confidential and only the researchers will be able to access them. The altered recording will be stored until the end of the project, the transcription will be stored for five years and the files will be encrypted.

Benefits

There are no direct benefits for participating (e.g, you will not be paid in any way), but some people find it emotionally helpful to talk about their experiences. The interview will not involve any diagnostic or therapeutic aspects.

Costs

There are no costs to participating, but if you think you may feel emotionally distressed talking about this topic you should consider not taking part. If after the interview you feel distressed, you are welcome to contact the supervisor, who has clinical training and expertise in dissociation.

Inclusion criteria

We seek adult participants who identify as transgender, feel emotionally stable, and have had at least one experience they believe to be dissociative based on the above description. If you are in therapy, you may consider getting the opinion of your therapist about participating.

To participate in the interview, we ask you to fill out a questionnaire concerning your mental health on this webpage. By doing so, you imply your provisional consent to be included in the project, but at the beginning of the interview you will be asked if you have any questions and will be requested to give your verbal informed consent to participate.

The finished thesis will be posted in the same forums where you were first informed of this study, in case you want to take part of the results.