{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,25]],"date-time":"2026-09-25T17:17:59Z","timestamp":1790356679501,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":29,"publisher":"Public Library of Science (PLoS)","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,7,20]],"date-time":"2023-07-20T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1689811200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000025","name":"National Institute of Mental Health","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["R25 MH119858"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["R25 MH119858"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000025","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100014155","name":"Royal Government of Bhutan","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","award":["REBH\/Approval\/2019\/051"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["REBH\/Approval\/2019\/051"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100014155","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":["www.plosone.org"],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["PLoS ONE"],"abstract":"<jats:sec id=\"sec001\"><jats:title>Background<\/jats:title><jats:p>While transgender people worldwide face high rates of stigma and discrimination, there are few studies of transgender men (also \u201ctrans men\u201d) in Asia. We measured the prevalence of, and factors associated with, stigma and discrimination faced by trans men in Bhutan to bring visibility to their experiences and inform health and social policy changes.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec id=\"sec002\"><jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>This cross-sectional survey was conducted in nine regions in Bhutan from November 2019 to January 2020. A total of 124 trans men were recruited using a hybrid venue-based and peer-referral approach. Data were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Multivariate logistic regression characterized associations with experiencing stigma and discrimination when accessing health services.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec id=\"sec003\"><jats:title>Findings<\/jats:title><jats:p>Participants were young (48.0% 18\u201324 years) and 48.4% had migrated from a rural to an urban area. The majority (95.2%) experienced stigma because people knew or thought they were trans men. Associations with frequent experiences of stigma were living with their partner as a couple (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] 3.07, 95% CI 1.27\u20137.44) and being unemployed or a student (3.22, 1.44\u20137.19). Nearly half (47.6%) said they experienced discrimination when accessing health care because people knew or thought they were a trans man; this experience was associated with migration (2.42, 1.08\u20135.39) and having &gt;15 trans men in their social network (3.73, 1.69\u20138.26). Most (94.4%) experienced verbal violence, 10.5% experienced physical violence, and 4.8% experienced sexual violence.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec id=\"sec004\"><jats:title>Interpretation<\/jats:title><jats:p>Our study found high rates of stigma, discrimination, and interpersonal violence due to being a trans man in Bhutan. Findings highlight the urgent need for strengthening laws and regulations to protect the rights of transgender persons, particularly when accessing health services, recognizing partnerships, and preventing violence in public spaces.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.1371\/journal.pone.0287745","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,7,20]],"date-time":"2023-07-20T17:43:46Z","timestamp":1689875026000},"page":"e0287745","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1371\/journal.pone.corrections_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["Stigma and discrimination against transgender men in Bhutan"],"prefix":"10.1371","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0008-5182-7872","authenticated-orcid":true,"given":"Vinita","family":"Saxena","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Audrey","family":"Xu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Kinley","family":"Kinley","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tashi","family":"Tsheten","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tenzin","family":"Gyeltshen","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tashi","family":"Tobgay","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Tae 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