Journey to the Self: In-Depth Case Studies of Trans Men’s Self-Construction through Body Work and Clothing

Abstract

This research aims to explore transgender men’s embodied experiences of self-construction and discover the role of dress in their journey of outwardly becoming a man. In general, the stigma that sexual and gender minorities experience arises from the perception of appearance that has been institutionalized in a society within the binary gender system. Adopting Deleuzian theory, social comparison theory, and institutional theory as theoretical lenses, we conducted in-depth case studies of four trans males’ influencers’ narratives on YouTube and Instagram. Thematic analysis of the data revealed four themes: (1) Intention for self-documentation and public sharing of the journey of constructing identity, (2) self-consciousness of female body attributes and gender dysphoria as a result of social comparison, (3) reduced gender dysphoria through body modifications, and (4) consuming to conform: Adoption of gendered products for visual conformity and dilemma in fashion choices. Our findings demonstrated the role of dress (i.e. body modification, body supplements) in trans men’s self-construction as they attempt to create congruence between their internal sense of gender and their external presentation. The findings of this study provide theoretical disclosure of how Deleuzian theory and institutional theory are applied to a socially oppressed gender group.