Context matters: reconsidering resilience factors in dehumanization pathways to dysfunctional eating among...

Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) individuals experience disproportionately high rates of disordered eating (DE), yet little is known about how resilience factors operate within risk pathways linked to dehumanization. Drawing on the Pantheoretical Model of Dehumanization (PMD) and the Transgender Resilience Intervention Model (TRIM), this study examines whether individual- and group-level resilience factors moderate associations between dehumanization, internalization of beauty standards (IBS), and DE among TGD adults.

Between November 2024 and May 2025, a sample of 122 TGD individuals completed validated measures assessing minority stress and resilience (Gender Minority Stress and Resilience Measure), sexual objectification (Interpersonal Sexual Objectification Scale), IBS (Sociocultural Attitudes Toward Appearance Questionnaire - Social Media), DE symptoms (Eating Disorder Examination - Questionnaire), and psychosocial resilience factors (Comprehensive Hope State Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Transgender Identity Survey, and Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support).

Exploratory moderated mediation analyses revealed several resilience factors (self-esteem, trust, self-realization, TGD pride, acceptance of TGD identity and acceptance of TGD expression) were associated with lower IBS and reduced DE symptoms. However, some factors also showed context-dependent patterns. TGD pride appeared to intensify the dehumanization-IBS association, while community belonging and identity acceptance were associated with amplified links between IBS and DE outcomes, potentially suggesting that intracommunity appearance norms may reinforce cisnormative aesthetic pressures. Conditional indirect effects varied across levels of resilience factors, though the exploratory nature of these analyses warrants cautious interpretation.

These exploratory findings suggest that psychosocial resources may both mitigate and inadvertently intensify vulnerability to body-related distress, depending on sociocultural and community contexts. These findings underscore the potential value of individualized clinical and community interventions that address the heterogeneous needs and lived experiences of TGD people.