Obsessional thinking and autistic traits are each uniquely associated with greater traits of gender dysphoria in clinical and nonclinical adult samples.
Karl Mears, Dheeraj Rai, Punit Shah and 1 others
PMID 40097996WHAT IT FOUND
In adults, higher autistic traits and more obsessional thoughts were each linked with more gender dysphoria features.
The links appeared in general and clinical samples, but the study cannot show either causes gender dysphoria.
Key findings
01In both samples, autistic traits and obsessional thoughts each significantly improved prediction of gender dysphoria questionnaire scores.
02The interaction between autistic traits and obsessional thoughts was not significant in either sample.
03In the clinical sample, the autism group had lower gender dysphoria questionnaire scores than the OCD and control groups, meaning greater gender dysphoria traits, and the diagnosed gender dysphoria group had the lowest scores.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
The study measured people at one time point, so it cannot show that autistic traits or obsessional thoughts cause gender dysphoria, or that gender dysphoria causes them. Diagnoses in the clinical groups were self-reported and not confirmed by diagnostic interviews. Anxiety and depression were not measured, and these conditions are common in autistic people and could influence the results. The study did not measure what the obsessional thoughts were about, so it cannot tell whether they were gender-related. Participants were recruited through social media, university schemes and support groups, so they may not represent all adults with these conditions. Gender dysphoria scores were self-reported and can change over time.
Declared interests
The supplied text does not include an authors' conflicts of interest declaration. The publication metadata notes non-U.S. government research support.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that obsessional thoughts or autistic traits cause gender dysphoria. The study measured associations at one time point, and the OCD group did not show significantly greater gender dysphoria traits than controls.