Table 2.

Example lay conceptions of transgender etiology from participants

Biological essentialism	Mental illness	Environmental reasons	Abuse/trauma
Some people are born that way and it is a natural part of being human.	Dysphoria. They have head problems but instead of being treated for it they are given special treatment.	…The social reason can be any combination of things. The environment, the status quo, the prevailing classes can all have some kind of influence.	Traumatic childhood experiences, abuse, bullying…can cause someone to become transgender.
I believe it is genetic and they are born that way.	I believe it is a psychological disorder.	A lack of a proper upbringing.	A long-term mental injury resulting from sexual trauma that was experienced during childhood or adolescence.
I think people are born transgender. It could be inherited or it may caused to influences that occurred while they were still in the womb.	I believe transgender identity is a kind of sexual confusion. It is a disorder that is caused by mental illness.	I think a person’s life experiences causes them to be transgender. People experiment and do different things	Possibly sexual abuse as a child.