Elle Elson | Practice & Science for LGBTQ+ Health Equity

Dr. Wilson Figueroa (he/him/his)
Research Scientist
3/24/2023

I am originally from Los Angeles, CA (born and raised), I came to Ohio for my PhD program in Psychology (in 2011), then to OSU (in 2017) after graduating to add to my experiences is public health and community engaged research.

What drew you to a public health education?

My work examining stress and health in sexual and gender minorities had previously focused on small, lab-based studies. In order to better understand how stress may lead to the poor health outcomes we see in this population, I needed to examine this phenomenon at the population level.

What makes you passionate about addressing health disparities in your research?

Sexual and gender minorities, especially racially minoritized transgender and gender diverse individuals, are at the highest risk for poor mental and physical health outcomes. Examining factors that may be leading to these poor health outcomes, such as minority stress, as well as factors that bolster health and well-being and therefore may inform future intervention work is what drives my passion for health disparities research.

What are your goals for the future?

To conduct research that lays the groundwork for interventions aimed at improving the health and wellbeing of sexual and gender minorities, particularly racially minoritized transgender and gender diverse individuals.

How do you spend your time outside of academia?

I spend my time having test kitchen nights with my chosen family and friends. I also enjoy the art of drag; I have many close friends who are drag performers and attend as many shows as I can. I have also found a community among other queer bodybuilders and have begun my journey in competitive bodybuilding and hope to compete soon.

Local Resources

OSU Student Organizations: https://lgbtq.osu.edu/community/involvement
Central Ohio: https://lgbtq.osu.edu/support/central-ohio-resources

General Glossary
(updated 05.12.2023)

LGBTQ+: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning (A ”+” sign to recognize the limitless sexual orientations and gender identities used by members of our community.)

LGBTQIA+: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual or Agender (A ”+” sign to recognize the limitless sexual orientations and gender identities used by members of our community.)

AMAB: Assigned Male at Birth

AFAB: Assigned Female at Birth

Agender: A person who does not identify as male, female, or some combination of male and female. Some agender individuals see themselves as genderless or gender neutral.

Ally: A term used to describe someone who actively supports LGBTQ+ people. It encompasses straight and cisgender allies, and those within the LGBTQ+ community who support each other.

Asexual (ace): A spectrum of complete or partial lack of sexual attraction or interest in sexual activity.

Androgynous: A person with characteristics or gender expression that are both or neither masculine and/nor feminine.

BIPOC: Black, Indigenous, and People of Color

Biological sex / Assigned sex: Sex assigned on a birth certificate, typically intersex, male, or female.

Bigender: A person who has two genders they may experience at the same or different times. These identities can be binary, male and female, or include non-binary identities.

Bisexual: Emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to more than one sex, gender, or gender identity. Often interchanged with pansexual.

Butch: A person, usually a lesbian or queer-identified woman, that identifies strongly with “masculinity”. Has been used historically in a derogatory manner.

Cisgender: A person whose gender identity aligns with the sex assigned to them at birth.

Demisexual: Part of the asexuality spectrum. A person whose romantic and/or sexual attraction only develops after an emotional connection has been made.

Enby: Abbreviation for non-binary, the phonetic pronunciation of “NB”, which stands for non-binary. NB also represents Non-Black People of Color and many non-binary people use enby as an abbreviation. [See non-binary for more information.]

Femme: A person, usually a lesbian or queer-identified woman, that identifies strongly with “femininity”. Has been used historically in a derogatory manner.

Fluid / Flexible: A gender identity, often interchanged with gender-fluid, where a person does not identify with a single, fixed gender. Can also reference sexual orientation that is flexible or changing.

Gay: A person who is emotionally, romantically, or sexually attracted to members of the same gender. Men, women, and non-binary people may use this term.

Gender: A social construct used to classify a person as a man, woman, or another identity. Fundamentally different from sex assigned at birth and gender is often closely related to the role a person plays or is expected to play in society.

Gender dysphoria: Clinically significant distress caused when a person’s assigned birth gender is not the same as how they identify.

Gender-expansive: A person with a wider, more flexible range of gender identity and/or expression than typically associated with the gender binary. Often used as an umbrella term when referring to people exploring the possibilities of gender expression and/or gender identity.

Gender expression: External appearance of one’s gender identity, usually expressed through behavior, clothing, body characteristics or voice, and may or may not conform to socially defined behaviors and characteristics, like masculine, feminine, or androgynous.

Gender identity: A person’s own understanding of themselves in gendered categories, such as man, woman, transgender, non-binary, etc. How an individual feels inside and believes themselves to be. Can differ from an individual’s gender expression.

Gender-fluid: A person who does not identify with a single fixed gender or has a fluid or unfixed gender identity/expression.

Gender nonconforming: A person who does not adhere to the traditional gender expectations, in terms of their appearance or behavior, of their assigned gender. Some individuals identify as transgender, but others many not (for example, masculine lesbians).

Genderqueer: A person who rejects notions of static categories of gender and embraces fluidity of gender identity. Can also relate to a fluid sexual orientation. People who identify as genderqueer may see themselves as being both male and female, neither male or female, or falling completely outside of these categories.

Gray: A person who identifies with gray asexuality and exists under the asexuality umbrella. Also referred to as gray-A, gray ace, grace, and gray sexuality. This is a sexual orientation on the asexual spectrum, but individuals feel that there are parts of their experience that aren’t fully described by the word asexual.

Gynesexual: A sexual orientation that describes someone who is attracted to females or female body parts, regardless of whether that person identifies as female.

Heterosexual: A person who has emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to individuals of the opposite sex. Also known as a straight person.

Homosexual: A person who has emotional romantic, or sexual attraction to individuals of the same sex. This term is outdated and disfavored in the LGBTQ+ community.

Intersex: A person born with sex characteristics that do not fit strictly into male or female categories. Sex characteristics are physical features relating to sex (including chromosomes, genitals, hormones, and other reproductive anatomy), as well as secondary features that emerge from puberty. Intersex is an umbrella term, and intersex characteristics or traits are not always apparent or identified at birth.

Lesbian: A woman who is emotionally, romantically, or sexually attracted to other women. Women, non-binary people, and transgender people may use this term to describe themselves.

Non-binary (enby): A person who does not exclusively identify as a man or a woman. They may identify as being both a man and a woman, somewhere in between, or falling outside these categories. While many non-binary people also identify as transgender, not all people do. Non-binary can be used as an umbrella term encompassing identities such as agender, bigender, genderqueer, or gender-fluid.

Pansexual / Omnisexual: Someone who has emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to people of any gender, not necessarily simultaneous. Sometimes used interchangeably with bisexual.

QPOC / QTPOC: Queer Person of Color / Queer and Transgender People of Color

Queer: A term people used to express a spectrum of identities and orientations that are counter to the mainstream. Queer is often used as a catch-all to include many people, including those who do not identify as exclusively straight and/or folks who have non-binary or gender-expansive identities. This term was previously used as a slur but has been reclaimed by many in the LGBTQ+ community.

Questioning: People who are in the process of exploring their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.

Same-gender loving: Term some people prefer to use instead of lesbian, gay, or bisexual to express attraction and love of people of the same gender.

Sexual orientation: An inherent or immutable enduring emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to other people. Sexual orientation is independent of gender identity.

Straight: A person who has emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to individuals of the opposite sex. Also known as a heterosexual.

Transgender (trans): An umbrella term for people whose gender identity and/or expression is different from cultural expectations based on the sex they were assigned at birth. Being transgender does not imply any specific sexual orientation or gender identity. Transgender people may identify as straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, genderqueer, non-binary, etc.

Trans man: A person who was assigned a female sex at birth (or intersex) and identifies as male. This person may or may not actively identify as trans.

Trans woman: A person who was assigned a male sex at birth (or intersex) and identifies as female. This person may or may not actively identify as trans.

Transition: A process that some transgender or gender-expansive people may undergo to live more fully as their true gender. This typically includes social transition (like name changing and pronoun change), medically (like hormone therapy or gender affirming surgeries), and legal transition (like legal name changes and sex changes on government documents). Transgender people may choose to undergo some, all, or none of the processes.

Two-spirit: An identity label used within many American Indian and Canadian First Nations indigenous groups to describe a person that possesses both masculine and feminine spirits. Coined by contemporary LGBTQ+ Native Americans to describe themselves and the traditional roles they are reclaiming.

UndocuQueer: Identity label claimed by some individuals in the United States who are both queer and undocumented to show that these two aspects of their identity are not only intersectional, but also inseparable.

Systems of Oppression

Bias: Negative feelings about a social group based on the person’s life experience or expected stereotype of the group or individual.

Cisnormativity: The assumption that everyone is, or should be, cisgender.

Heteronormativity: The assumption that everyone is, or should be, heterosexual.

Homophobia: Discrimination or prejudice against homosexual individuals or groups.

Intersectionality: A lens to examine how systems of oppression are interconnected and inseparable.

Oppression: The systematic subjugation of a group of people by another group with access to social power, the result of which benefits one group over the other and is maintained by social beliefs and practices.

Privilege: A system of advantages that gives people from more powerful social groups access to resources and opportunities that are denied to others simply because of the groups they belong to.

Prejudice: The process of judging someone or something and making your own facts, instead of knowing the real truth about a person or a thing.

Transphobia: Discrimination or prejudice against transgender individuals or groups.

Research Related

LBQ+: Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer women

MSM: Men who have sex with men, MSM, comprise a diverse group in terms of behaviors, identities, and health care needs. Clinically used to refer to sexual behavior alone, regardless of sexual orientation.

SGM: Sexual and Gender Minority

SMW: Sexual Minority Women

WSW: Women who have sex with women, “WSW” comprise diverse groups with variation in sexual identity, practices, and risk behaviors. Clinically used to refer to sexual behavior alone, regardless of sexual orientation.

WSWM: Women who have sex with women and men, “WSWM”, comprise diverse groups with variation in sexual identity, practices, and risk behaviors. Clinically used to refer to sexual behavior alone, regardless of sexual orientation.

Romantic Orientations

Aromantic (aro): A person who experiences little to no romantic attraction to individuals of any gender.

Biromantic: A person who experiences romantic attraction to more than one gender.

Demiromantic: A person who does not experience romantic attraction until a close emotional bond has been formed.

Gray romantic: A person who does not often experience romantic attractions. Part of the aromantic spectrum.

Heteroromantic: A person who experiences romantic attraction toward people of a different gender.

Homoromantic: A person who experiences romantic attraction toward people of the same gender.

Panromantic: A person who experiences romantic attraction towards a person regardless of gender.

Polyromantic: A person who has romantic attraction to multiple, but not all genders.

Relationship / Lifestyle

Monogamous: Relationship style where the people in the relationship agree to not engage in sexual and romantic relationships outside of each other. Typically involves two people. Society’s expectation for romantic relationships.

Ethically non-monogamous (ENM): Umbrella term that covers relationships where everyone involved agrees they can seek out some combination of sexual and/or romantic relationships. Can be used interchangeably with consensual non-monogamy.

Open relationships: Often involve a hierarchical relationship that has priority, with each person free to pursue sexual relationships outside of the partnership, either one of one or with the hierarchical partner.

Swinging: A sexual practice that can fall under the ENM and/or open relationship spectrum. Typically defined as having multiple sexual partners outside of an established relationship that does not include romantic or emotional attachments. Swingers can engage in sexual activities with or without their established relationship.

Primary relationship: A person’s closest relationship where priority is given in terms of time, energy, attraction, and commitment.

Polyamory: Often involves the potential to be in multiple sexual and/or romantic relationships at the same time. Contains a wide variety of interactions, commitments, and approaches.

Solo poly: Relationship type of polyamory where people consider the most important relationship to be with themselves and relationships with other are important but not necessarily something to make decisions around.

Hierarchical polyamory: ENM practice that gives relationships an order or hierarchy for priority in decision making, time spent together, or certain relationship privileges (like marriage).

Non-hierarchical polyamory: ENM practice that does not give relationships more weight or priority than others. Similar to relationship anarchy type.

Relationship anarchy: ENM practice that is founded on non-hierarchy and non-possession of relationships and honoring each connection as it comes. Relationship anarchists may include familial, friend, work, romantic, and sexual relationships in this practice.

Polyfidelity: Multiple people are in a committed, exclusive relationship with each other, such as a throuple where three partners only have romantic and/or sexual relationships with each other.

Polycule: All of the people linked through their ENM relationships, usually romantic and/or sexual, to one or more members of a polyamorous group.

Metamour: Term in ENM relationships for a one partner’s partner, with whom you have direct or indirect relationships.

Consent: Agreement between participants to engage in an activity, usually sexual activity. Should be given clearly, verbally, enthusiastically, while sober, not while underage, and not under coercion, threat, or intimidation in unequal power dynamics. Consent can be revoked at any time.

Kink: Consensual, non-traditional sexual, sensual, and intimate behaviors.

BDSM: Type of kink behaviors such as Bondage, Discipline, Sadism, Masochism, Domination and Submission.

Pronouns

Pronoun: A word that stands in for a noun, often to avoid the need to repeat the same noun over and over. Individuals can use a variety of pronouns, may prefer one to be used to represent th

eir changing gender expression, have multiple pronouns they alternate with, or use no pronouns. Below are some examples of how to correctly use pronouns. **(Not every individual person uses pronouns the same way, ask for clarification if necessary.)

Neopronouns: A word(s) created to serve as a pronoun without expressing gender, like “ze” and “zir”. Can also be called noun-self pronoun, which a pre-existing word is drafted to use as a pronoun. Noun-self pronoun examples are: “bun/bunself”, “fae/faer/faeself” or “vamp/vampself”.