Negotiating Space for Gender Affirmation: The Lived Experiences of Transgender and Gender Diverse Young People In Hong Kong

Background Gender affirmation is crucial for the health of transgender and gender diverse (TGD) individuals. However, access to affirmation is frequently compromised for young people by financial strain and housing precarity, particularly in Hong Kong where the high cost of living, high-density housing, and cultural stigma intersect to further exacerbate these barriers. Addressing the scarcity of research on TGD lived experiences within this context, this study utilizes Jack Halberstam’s queer space theory to examine how TGD young people in Hong Kong negotiate space for gender affirmation.

Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 15 TGD young people aged 20-29 (Mean = 23.2, SD = 2.57) between April and October 2025. Most participants co-resided exclusively with their family of origin (n=12) or split time between dormitories and family (n=2); one lived alone.

Results Key themes derived through interpretative phenomenological analysis include: (1) negotiating physical space for gender affirmation; (2) outsourcing physical spaces for TGD identity expression; and (3) maintaining financial distance to secure gender autonomy.

Theme #1 captures how high-density domestic surveillance enforced cisnormativity, compelling participants to suppress their gender identity. To maintain a “low profile” in the domestic space, they adopted non-affirming clothing and suppressed voice changes. The lack of space and privacy in shared bedrooms and bathrooms necessitated clandestine routines; participants hid hormones and binders in secret compartments. Because these precautions did not always guarantee safety from involuntary outing, some participants postponed hormone replacement therapy or shortened the duration to avoid discovery. Fortunately, several participants successfully transformed their domestic space into a gender-affirming space through open dialogue with their families. In these instances, participants felt validated in their desired gender.

Theme #2 highlights strategies used to outsource physical spaces for identity affirmation. Participants utilized external spaces, such as rental lockers, university dormitories, and public restrooms, as transient queer spaces to store affirming items and alter their presentation. Other alternative settings, including hotels and the homes of friends, served as environments where participants could authentically embody their identities free from domestic surveillance. Some participants aspired to share a domestic space with families of choice. Within this space, they could freely present their gender and receive validation.

Theme #3 reflects how participants actively pursued financial distance to mitigate parental control. In anticipation of homelessness due to familial rejection, many viewed savings as a vital safety net. They worked several part-time jobs to accumulate emergency housing funds should their parents evict them. Beyond housing, financial independence allowed them to fund daily expenses and gender-affirming care.

Conclusions This study demonstrated that by navigating cis-heteronormative domestic surveillance through space negotiation and financial autonomy, TGD youth identified a means to negotiate traditional familial expectations and societal gender norms, establishing their own queer time and space for gender affirmation. They sometimes faced difficult tradeoffs between housing/financial stability and gender affirmation. Service providers must prioritize safe and stable housing as a critical component of gender-affirming care. Policy advocacy is essential to offer TGD-inclusive affordable housing options.