Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 5, 2026

Integrating Computerized Linguistic and Social Network Analyses to Capture Addiction Recovery Capital in an Online Community
Published on: May 31, 2019
Sequins, Survival, and Selfhood: An Emergent Theory of Drag as a Lifelong Identity Process Among Older LGBTQ+ Drag
Laura K M Donorfio1, Brian G Chapman1, Nels P Highberg2
1Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, University of Connecticut, Waterbury, CT, USA.
Abstract:
Older LGBTQ+ drag performers remain largely understudied within gerontology and LGBTQ+ aging scholarship. This qualitative study explored how older LGBTQ+ drag performers make meaning of drag expression across the life course. In-depth interviews were conducted with 21 participants aged 50 to 90 residing in the United States. Analysis revealed seven themes related to drag identity, embodied aging, resilience, marginalization, generativity, and intergenerational relationships. Findings informed an emergent theory of drag as a lifelong identity process. Participants described drag not merely as performance, but as an evolving meaning-making system through which they negotiated identity. Narratives illuminated the coexistence of resilience and vulnerability as participants navigated ageism, dragism, HIV/AIDS survivorship, bodily change, and shifting community dynamics. Findings expand our understanding of LGBTQ+ aging by positioning drag as a relational, adaptive, and culturally situated life-course practice that sustains continuity of self while resisting marginalization and preserving queer cultural memory.
Related Concept Videos
Social Foundations of Self IV: Self in Digital Communication
The Sense of Self: Reflected Self-Appraisal and Social Comparison
Ethnic Identity within a Larger Culture
Marcia's Theory of Identity Status
Social Foundations of Self I: Play and Game
Role-Based Identity
