Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Adults’ Recollections of Others’ Reactions to Their Early Gender Non-conformity

Abstract

Globally, gender non-conforming (GNC) behaviours are identified as one of the earliest precursors of same sex orientation. The role of reactions by key persons such as parents, teachers and peers to such behaviours is crucial to sexual identity development. In Sri Lanka, there are currently no scholarly data on LGB adults’ recollections of their early experiences, particularly those involving how others reacted to their early GNC and gender atypical behaviours. Through narratives, this exploratory research paper addresses this gap by presenting how 26 LGB adults recalled the manner in which their parents, teachers, and peers responded to their gender-atypical and gender non-conforming behaviours during childhood and adolescence. A participant-focused thematic analysis highlighted the following findings: permissiveness of adults towards childhood gender non-conformity for both boys and girls; how adults’ attitudes shifted during adolescence to be more regulatory; and how adolescent girls and boys recalled experientially different reactions to their GNC behaviours by their peers. These results suggest the nuances of recollections growing up as GNC children and adolescents, and the impact these experiences had on the acceptance of a sexual identity. Future research could begin by observing actual gender nonconformity and gender atypical behaviours in children and adolescence.