(no subject)

[transresearcher.livejournal.com]

I am seeking self-identified transsexual, transgender, genderqueer, and gender variant people to participate in a research study. Currently, the Harry Benjamin Standards of Care recommend that transpeople either participate in therapy for at least three months before taking hormones or that they have a documented real-life experience living as their preferred gender before taking hormones. Many doctors and surgeons require that transpeople provide at least one letter from a mental health professional indicating their readiness to begin hormones or have surgery before they are allowed to do so. Little to no research has been done to examine the perspectives of transpeople and their experiences with therapy and the Harry Benjamin Standards of Care. Through my research, I hope to find out how transpeople feel about the process of seeing a therapist before beginning a physical transition. The research is being conducted through an online survey. It will take 20-30 minutes to fill out. There will be no monetary compensation for your time. There are no known risks to participating in this research. While there are no direct benefits, my hope is that collecting data on this subject could help improve the quality of care that transpeople receive from mental health and medical professionals. The survey is completely voluntary and can be stopped at any time. The survey is completely confidential. It is set up on a secure server that cannot track your e-mail address or other identifiable information. This survey is being conducted by Nyle Biondi, a graduate student in the Marriage and Family Therapy program at Edgewood College in Madison, Wisconsin. Any questions or concerns can be directed to Nyle at transresearcher@yahoo.com.
To access the survey, please visit: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=238652513565

Please cross-post this survey to any e-mail lists or message boards where transpeople can access it.

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