Binary Thinking and the Limiting of Human Potential
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 6112197 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Jama Shelton (0000-0001-5990-5072, Hunter College, corresponding author), J Dodd (0000-0002-5418-5229), SJ Dodd (0000-0002-9140-8807, Hunter College), S J Dodd (Hunter College) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 23 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Pages | 624-635 |
| Publication date | 2021-11-02 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Public Integrity (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1558-0989 • E-ISSN: 1099-9922 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/10999922.2021.1988405 |
| OpenAlex | W4200039334 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
| References cited | 16 |
Our society compresses a multitude of human identities into arbitrary categories, many of which are constructed as binaries. Binary constructs offer two mutually exclusive, possible ways of being. Perhaps the most prevalent in US society is the gender binary – the pervasive idea that there are two, rigidly boundaried gender categories, each with an accompanying set of expectations. Binary gender classifications are a foundational element of US social structures that foreclose possibilities for who individuals are and who they can become. Binaries create a hierarchy within which one category is “better” than the other. This hierarchical order is embedded in societal structures and tightly bound with systems of oppression, confirming power and privilege and maintaining a social order rooted in racism, sexism, heterosexism, and cisgenderism. Not only is the maintenance of this social order limiting, it also perpetuates violence and marginalization. This paper examines the ways in which the gender binary produces and maintains the violence against and marginalization of transgender and nonbinary people. It concludes with recommendations for moving beyond binary thinking, particularly within the public sector, in order to create systems and institutions that better support human potential and open possibilities for all people
Binary opposition · Business · Epistemology · Heterosexism · Hierarchy · Homosexuality · Oppression · Political science · Politics · Racism · Social order · Sociology · Transgender · Gender Politics and Representation · Gender Studies · Gender, Feminism, and Media · Law · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Psychology · Social Psychology
Violence against transgender people
The future of sex and gender in psychology
The Subject and Power
Undoing Gender
Cisgenderism in psychology
My Spirit in My Heart”
Queering Management and Organization
Transgender Identities and Public Policy in the United States
Mainstreaming Dissidence
Sex-Classification Policies as Transgender Discrimination
The Violence of Heteronormativity in Communication Studies
Transgender Youth
Hombres Mujeres
Becoming Ever More Monstrous
| Citations per year | 1.67 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2023 - 2026 (4) |
| Highly cited | No |