New Report on Transgender Identity Among Youth

A recent report indicates that over 3% of young people aged 13 to 17 identify as transgender. This translates to approximately 724,000 children in this age group across the United States, amidst a broader estimate of 2.1 million transgender adults, according to findings from UCLA’s Williams Institute. To put it simply, that’s about 3.3% of young people and 0.8% of adults.

Younger individuals tend to identify as transgender more frequently than older generations, with 76% of those over 13 identifying as such being under the age of 35.

Interestingly, some research suggests that social dynamics may play a role, particularly for teenage girls. A 2023 study noted that more than half of adolescent girls who identify as transgender are influenced by friends who do the same. Additionally, teenagers of both genders are more likely to embrace a transgender identity if they have peers who identify as transgender.

“The younger generation is likely to identify as transgender, and we expect that trend to continue,” stated Jodie Herman, a senior public policy scholar at the Williams Institute, highlighting the various factors contributing to this disclosure among youth.

The report further reveals that the number of men who identify as women, women who see themselves as men, and those who express a non-binary identity are likely comparable.

The Williams Institute aims to guide legal and policy decisions affecting the LGBT community, striving to move beyond stereotypes. On a somewhat related note, following a Presidential Order by Donald Trump aimed at recognizing only two biological genders, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced it would no longer track transgender identities in its data.