Decline in Gen Z’s Transgender and Non-Binary Identification
A recent study reveals that the proportion of Gen Z Americans identifying as transgender or non-binary is set to decline significantly beginning in 2023. According to survey findings released this year by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), around 3.6% of U.S. undergraduate students now identify as neither male nor female, which marks a notable drop from previous years.
The data indicates that 5.2% of U.S. undergraduates will identify as transgender or non-binary in 2024, down from 6.8% in both 2022 and 2023. A survey conducted in 2025 shows a further decrease to only 3.6%, illustrating almost a 50% reduction since 2023.
There are various theories suggested to explain this shift. Some speculate that factors like social contagion, the influence of social media, and mental health challenges may be at play. For instance, reports from mental health studies indicate that disorders like depression and anxiety among American college students have started to decline, with 44% showing signs of depression in 2022, falling to 41% in 2023 and 38% in 2024, which is quite a positive change after many years of troubling statistics.
Interestingly, this trend away from identifying with non-binary labels doesn’t seem to align with a larger political shift. A 2025 FIRE report indicates that more students are in favor of using aggressive tactics to combat speech they disagree with.
Another commonly discussed theory involves social influences, particularly among teenage girls. A 2023 study found that over half of those who identify as transgender also have friends who share the same identity, suggesting that peer relationships might influence such choices. While the political landscape seems relatively stable, the identification with transgender labels remains prevalent among social media users, though it appears to be losing its novelty.
Despite these declining numbers in identification for some age brackets, a report from the Williams Institute at UCLA notes a rising trend in transgender identification among younger teens, with about 724,000 children aged 13 to 17, or 3.3%, claiming a gender different from their biological sex.
