User:Hannahsmith00/sandbox

Gender-Affirmative Practices
Gender-affirmative practices recognize and support an individual’s unique gender self-identification and expression. Gender-affirmative practices are becoming more widely adopted in the mental and physical health fields in response to research showing that clinical practices that encourage individuals to accept a certain gender identity can cause psychological harm. In 2015, the American Psychological Association published gender-affirmative practice guidelines for clinicians working with transgender and gender-nonconforming people. Preliminary research on gender-affirmative practices in the medical and psychological settings has primarily shown positive treatment outcomes. As these practices become more widely used, longer-term studies and studies with larger sample sizes are needed to continue to evaluate these practices.

Research has shown that youth who receive gender-affirming support from their parents have better mental  health outcomes than  their  peers  who  do  not. Youth who report that their parents “strongly support” their gender identity and gender expression report higher self-esteem, fewer depressive symptoms, lower suicide risk, greater life satisfaction, and improved mental health than those whose parents either “somewhat support” or "do not support" them.

Gender-affirmative practices emphasize gender health. Gender health is an individuals’ ability to identify as and express the gender(s) that feels most comfortable without fear of rejection. Gender-affirmative practices are informed by the following premises :


 * gender variance is not a psychological disorder or mental illness
 * gender expressions vary across cultures
 * gender expressions are diverse and may not be binary
 * gender development is affected by biological, developmental, and cultural factors
 * if pathology occurs, it is due to stigma and discrimination that gender variant people face rather than from a cause of gender variance itself