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Will Beischel

Assistant Professor

Education

Postdoctoral Fellowship: Université de Sherbrooke
Doctorate: University of Michigan
Bachelors: Loyola University Chicago

Research Interests

Please note that I am NOT recruiting a Ph.D. student for Fall 2025.My research focuses on gender/sex and sexual diversity. I am interested in developing new ways of thinking about both majority (e.g., cisgender, heterosexual) and minority (e.g., LGBTQ+) experiences to build more complete psychological theories of social identities and support the flourishing of people of all genders and sexualities. My work is interdisciplinary, taking inspiration from queer theory and trans studies, and multi-method (e.g., surveys, interviews, focus groups). The three major branches of my research program are:

  • The positive aspects of gender and LGBTQ+ life. My work in this area has included qualitative explorations of gender euphoria and what I’ve termed “gender pleasure” as a way to describe any positive experiences of gender (including majority experiences). I am also interested in other forms of queer and trans joy, connection, and thriving and how these relate to intersecting social identities and experiences (e.g., race/ethnicity and racism), as well as what they can teach us about how gender operates more broadly.
  • Methodological innovations to expand understandings of gender and sexuality. This has included using sexual configurations theory (van Anders, 2015) and developing the “Gender/Sex 3x3” (Beischel et al., 2022) with my doctoral advisor Dr. Sari van Anders. I am excited by creative and alternative tools for making sense of the complexities of people’s identities, behaviors, and orientations (e.g., visual, artistic, community-based). I am also interested in biological processes related to gender and sexuality, including hormones and markers of stress.
  • How people’s identities are shaped developmentally by their social experiences. Here I’m interested in the social regulation of gender—how people come to learn what gender is and how they fit into the gender system of their culture. This includes gender-based victimization, minority stress, and gender-affirming experiences. I’m interested especially in adolescence as a time of great turmoil and growth for many in their journeys to understanding their own and others’ genders and sexualities.

I am always seeking to collaborate with students and other scholars who are passionate about taking the field of psychology in new directions, including work that is intersectional, social justice-oriented, and interdisciplinary.

Courses Taught

PSYC 238 Sex and Gender: Similarities and Differences

Publications/Research Listings

Google Scholar

van Anders, S. M., Schudson, Z. C., Beischel, W. J., & Chadwick, S. B. (2023). Feminist and queer science: Principles for research with gender, sex, and sexuality in psychology and beyond. Psychology of sexual orientation and gender diversity. Advance online publication. [link]

Burns, J., Beischel, W. J., & van Anders, S. M. (2022). Hormone replacement therapy and trans sexuality: A review. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity. Advance online publication. [link]

Beischel, W. J., Schudson, Z. C., Hoskin, R. A., & van Anders, S. M. (2022). The Gender/Sex 3x3: Measuring and categorizing gender/sex beyond binaries. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, Advance online publication. [link]

van Anders, S. M., Schudson, Z. C., Beischel, W. J., Abed, E. C., Gormezano, A., Dibble, E. (2022). Overempowered? Diversity-focused research with gender/sex and sexual majorities. Review of General Psychology, 26(1), 3-21. [link]

Beischel, W. J., Schudson, Z. C., & van Anders, S. M. (2021). “This is mind expanding”: Participants’ reactions to an online survey using sexual configurations theory. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 8(1), 14-24. [link]

Beischel, W. J., Schudson, Z. C., & van Anders, S. M. (2021). Visualizing gender/sex diversity via sexual configurations theory. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 8(1), 1-13. [link]

Beischel, W. J., Gauvin, S. E. M., van Anders, S. M. (2021). “A little shiny gender breakthrough”: Community understandings of gender euphoria. International Journal of Transgender Health, 1-21. [link]

Beischel, W. J., Schudson, Z. C., Hoskin, R. A., Mao, J., Zielinski, A., & van Anders, S. M. (2021). Translating knowledge of sexual configurations theory via instructional videos. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 50, 23-43. [link]

Schudson, Z. C., Beischel, W. J., & van Anders, S. M. (2019). Individual variation in gender/sex category definitions. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 6(4), 448–460. [link]

Abed, E. C., Schudson, Z. C., Gunther, O. D., Beischel, W. J. & van Anders, S. M. (2019). Sexual and gender diversity among sexual and gender/sex majorities: Insights via sexual configurations theory. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 48, 1423-1441. [link]

van Anders, S. M., Schudson, Z. C., Abed, E. C., Beischel, W. J., Dibble, E.R., Gunther, O. D., Kutchko, V. J., & Silver, E. R. (2017). Biological sex, gender, and public policy. Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 4(2), 194-201. [link]