Researchers debunk myth that up to 90% of trans children ‘grow out of it’
Trans pride flags. (Getty)
New research has debunked the right-wing argument that most trans children eventually grow out of identifying as trans.
The study, titled ‘Desistance: A multimethod review of the literature on gender identity variability in transgender and gender diverse youth,’ comes from researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University.
“Desistance” refers to the process of people who previously identified as trans during their childhood reverting back to identifying as cisgender following puberty.
The study, which was published in scientific journal ‘Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity’, comes in response to a 2016 blog post that claimed that “60 per cent to 90 per cent of youth presenting for care ‘desist’ from a transgender identity”.
However, that claim has now been debunked through statistical analyses of scientific research.
Phys Org reported on 27 April VCU researchers analysed 11 different studies that were referenced in the controversial blog post as well as five other studies that were published more recently.
The researchers found that “desistance” could be “estimated to be as low as zero per cent to as high as 100 per cent, depending on how the studies’ data were interpreted,” Phys Org reported.
They also concluded that rates of persistence of transgender identity could also be within the same percentage range, depending on the interpretation of the data. It was also noted that many of the studies cited by the 2016 blog post were conducted before 1990 on small sample sizes.
Catherine Wall, Ph.D., assistant professor of psychology in the College of Humanities and Sciences and the study’s lead author, said: “We should rely on accuracy with our science, and we should rely on accurate science to guide legislation.”
Dr Wall continued: “We were particularly interested in examining this idea of the concept of trans identity desistance because it’s a number that has been bandied about for years as if it’s 100 per cent accurate. And we wanted to take a deeper look, especially because it’s currently being used for things like legislation and bans of best-practice gender-affirming care in 26 states.”
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