Transgender: Perceptions, Attitudes and Acceptance by Family and Society

The study aimed to look into the life of transgender persons in Pakistan and find out how the perceptions and attitudes of their families and society shape their life and how much acceptance they feel in the society. Sample of 10 transgender, aged between 24 to 35 years were selected from the twin cities.To conduct this research two explicit research questions were formulated: 1. How does the perception and attitudes of their families and society shape the life of transgender? 2.  How much acceptance the transgender individuals feel in the society? A qualitative study was designed for the purpose and data was collected through semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions that were audio-taped, transcribed and coded. Themes were derived from the coded data. Transgender in Pakistan are still trying to find a respectable place in the society where majority of them are rejected by parents and dishonored by the society in everyday life.  The current study focused on how perceptions, attitudes and acceptance of family and society affect the life of Transgender. Findings of the study suggests that the rejection transgender face in early years of their life was the reason why they are forced to leave their home in search of acceptance and ultimately join the transgender community. Thus they are secluded from the mainstream society hence deprived of education and basic rights.