The health and wellbeing of transgender and gender non‐conforming people of colour in the United States: A systematic literature search and review

Abstract

AbstractTransgender and gender non‐conforming people (TGNC), individuals whose gender identity differs from the sex they were assigned at birth, experience unique stressors, discrimination, and barriers to health and wellbeing. TGNC People of Colour (POC) navigate the nexus of racism, cisgenderism (and often homophobia) in their daily lives, resulting in uniquely intersecting forms of discrimination, and pronounced disparities in their health and well‐being. In order to examine the current state of knowledge about the health and wellbeing of TGNC POC, we conducted a systematic search and review of peer‐reviewed journal articles published between 1 January 2010 and 1 May 2020 that focused on this population. A systematic search identified (3,575) papers, with 76 of those meeting full inclusion criteria. In our review, we were able to identify physical health and psychological wellbeing (which included resilience), as core clusters of research focused on TGNC POC. We identified specific factors that hindered physical and psychological health (what we call “push” factors) as well as those that promoted it (what we call “pull” factors). Leveraging these findings, we offer ways forward for best practice in clinical work and carrying out research with this population. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement.