Document Type
Article - post-print
Publication Date
2016
Abstract
This study investigates the lived experience of one transwoman, Claire, a public advocate and a manager with client services responsibilities. We examine Claire’s story in order to discuss how situated contexts, such as different roles, locales, and interactions, shape the way she experiences and perceives her trans body and gender identity. In particular, our analysis centers on how Claire’s lived experience of personal and professional life shift across three different situated contexts, each enabling and constraining opportunities for political transgression. Our findings contribute to existing conversations within queer theory, transgender, and organization studies by highlighting how situated contexts mediate the political potential of queer bodies at work. By developing the concept ‘situated transgressiveness,’ this article challenges notions of transgender as a stable, ideal disruptive category and advances a more contextually sensitive approach to understanding the contingency of transgender lives and politics. Such insights are important in facilitating more nuanced understandings of the situatedness of transgression and transgender bodies within work and professional settings.
Original Publication Citation
Muhr, S. L., Sullivan, K. R., and Rich, C. (2016) Situated Transgressiveness: Exploring One Transwoman's Lived Experiences across Three Situated Contexts. Gender, Work & Organization., 23: 52– 70. DOI: 10.1111/gwao.12093
Digital Commons @ LMU & LLS Citation
Muhr, Sara Louise; Rich, Craig; and Sullivan, Katie R., "Situated Transgressiveness: Exploring One Transwoman's Lived Experiences Across Three Situated Contexts" (2016). Communication Studies Faculty Works. 25.
https://digitalcommons.lmu.edu/comm_fac/25
