Current research

To each their sport: support for trans* inclusion and fair play concerns.

I am currently working on sport policies and trans discrimination. The idea for this research came from a hunch that maybe with some sporting competition, people get agitated about trans* inclusionary policies more often, than in other sports. Following this intuition led me to learning a lot of random facts about sporting competitions, but also to a realization that even people who have negative attitudes towards trans* individuals might still show some support for trans* inclusionary policies under certain conditions.

After 2024 Olympics I conducted a survey experiment in the US, where I asked participants to share their opinion on a proposed policy that regulates participation of trans* athletes. I find that the relationship between trans prejudice and support for inclusion is moderated by considerations related to fairness.

The paper got an R&R in Sexuality Research and Social Policy.

Transgressing sex or gender? Support for trans inclusion in sports across two category frames

On January 20, 2025, the White House published a presidential action that aimed to clarify what a “biological reality” of sex is and urging Federal agencies and employees to use “sex” instead of “gender”. “Inspired” by this Executive Order, I investigate whether using “sex”-based vs. “gender”-based language has any effect on support for trans inclusion.

A 2x2 survey experiment is scheduled to run in August 2025. Pre-registration protocol will be posted on OSF in July 2025.