14. Cross-cultural gender beliefs and support for gender-affirming care

Host

University of Amsterdam

Duration

48 months

The research

This PhD project will aim to:

1. Conceptualize and document how people in different countries think about the nature of gender (i.e., differing lay theories of gender that may be based on uniformity, innateness, immutability, sacredness, etc.).
2. Examine how these cultural lay theories of gender, alongside other cultural factors, shape the general public’s support for TGD individuals and different forms of gender-affirming care (e.g., hormones vs. surgery; government funding for gender-affirming care; etc.).

Most research on gender roles to date has focused on Western concepts of gender. However, countries differ in their socio-cultural beliefs about the nature of gender. The project will begin with a scoping review of lay theories of gender and views on gender-affirming care across countries, drawing on psychological, sociological, and anthropological research. Based on this review, we will develop and validate a novel measure of cultural lay theories about gender. We will conduct a large cross-cultural study in 25 countries to document nuanced differences in how people understand gender. We will further examine how such cultural differences in lay theories, along with structural factors such as a country’s religion and political system, shape support for different forms of gender-affirming care. As part of a secondment/internship with TGEU (Transgender Europe), the PhD candidate will prepare a report on cross-cultural differences in beliefs about—and support for—gender-affirming care, tailored to the needs of professionals involved in policymaking or activism related to gender-affirming care.

Your experience

Candidates should have:

• A Master’s degree in psychology
• A major in social or cultural psychology, or at least completed course Work in social and/or cultural psychology
• Experience with basic statistical analyses (R, SPSS, or similar)
• Strong organizational skill and willingness to coordinate large projects
• Excellent higher education track record and scientific curiosity
• Fluent spoken and written English skills

In addition, the following experience would be helpful, but not essential:

• Experience with researchinvolving TGD individuals and/or individuals with VSC
• Advanced statistical course work such as MLM or SEM OR willingness to learn
• Experienceconducting cross-cultural research

The position

The Social Psychology programme group at the University of Amsterdam is a large, international, and vibrant community of PhD candidates, postdocs, and professors within the Department of Psychology. The PhD candidate working on this project will be supervised by Dr. Katharina Block, with Dr. Bertjan Doosje as promoter and Dr. Thomas Morton (University of Copenhagen) as external supervisor. The candidate will be embedded in the Amsterdam Culture and Intergroup Dynamics Lab, a group of scholars focused on understanding how cultural dynamics shape processes such as gender roles, polarization, and intergroup conflict. As part of the Gender-InSIGHT consortium, the candidate will also have the opportunity to collaborate with researchers from other disciplines, as well as with practitioners.

Application process

Please note: the application process for this position consists of 2 steps:

1. Express your Interest by completing the form via the button below
2. Apply for the position: After you submit the Expression of interest, a message will appear in the screen. Please press the “ Continue process” button and you will be redirected to the website of the institution, where you will have to submit your actual application.

Deadline to submit applications: 1st March 2026

Express interest in this position