Abstract
Young people experience a variety of mental health concerns, including depression, non-suicidal self-injury, and suicidal ideation. These issues are at even higher rates among transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) young people, due to the additional burden of having to navigate a world in which transphobia impacts them at the individual, organizational, and policy levels. However, much of the extant research focuses only on comparing TGD youth to cisgender counterparts. This study explores the nuance within the TDG youth population regarding mental health, examining how gender, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation change the likelihood of experiencing each of these mental health concerns. Among a sample of over 400 young people, findings indicate that those TGD young people who do not identify themselves within the masculine/feminine binary and those with marginalized sexual orientations were two to three times more likely to experience adverse mental health outcomes, as compared to their peers who are questioning their gender, and who are heterosexual. The implications for mental health professionals and others who work with young people are to recognize that mental health is not a one-size-fits all model for young TGD people, and that the intersection of multiple marginalized identities, must be addressed in order to improve the mental health of this group of young people. Findings can also be used to better understand issues of stigma, discrimination, and victimization in education, health care, and beyond.
Highlights
Young people in society tend to experience a variety of concerns regarding their mental health, including depression, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), and suicidal ideation
In order to add to the literature on transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) youth and the differential experiences of mental health, we pose the questions: (1) How do TDG youths’ experiences of mental health outcomes vary across gender identity?; and (2) How do other identities such as race, age, and sexual orientation affect the likelihood of TGD youth having these experiences?
Over half of youth reporting experienced depression in the last year (n = 217, 54.80%), just over half (n = 200, 50.51%) of students engaged in NSSI, and 28% (n = 112) attempted suicide during the last year
Summary
Young people in society tend to experience a variety of concerns regarding their mental health, including depression, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), and suicidal ideation.These issues are seen at even more elevated rates among transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) young people, given the additional burden of having to live within this world, in which transphobia and cisgenderism impact TGD individuals at the interpersonal (micro), organizational (mezzo), and societal/policy (macro) levels. These terms are understood to indicate a disconnect or lack of perfect fit between the societal expectations associated with a person’s sex designated at birth and an individuals’ sense of self This includes both trans men and trans women, as well as individuals whose experiences of gender do not fit within binary and dichotomous models of gender (i.e., man vs woman). Due to the highly personal and subjective nature of experiences of gender paired with inconsistent data collection practices, the numbers of TGD individuals tend to vary between and across sources and studies As these communities continue to gain access to one another and develop affirming language, and as broader societal environments regarding non-cisgender experiences of gender shift, those with culturally specific identities and those who are transgender and/or nonbinary continue to expand and update the language, terms, and labels used. We will use the acronym throughout this article in order to be as inclusive, and linguistically efficient, as we can
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