Subjective Ratings of Gender Dysphoria Scales by Transgender Individuals

The present research explored transgender individuals’ subjective ratings of two clinical measures of gender dysphoria: the Gender Identity/Gender Dysphoria Questionnaire for Adolescents and Adults (GIDYQ-AA) and the Utrecht Gender Dysphoria Scale (UGDS). Participants read each scale and provided a global rating regarding how well they captured their experiences of gender dysphoria. Participants included 622 transgender individuals who identified as transfeminine (n = 221), transmasculine (n = 206), and non-binary/agender (n = 195). Findings indicated clear patterns of responses across gender identity and assigned sex, but not clinical diagnosis. For the GIDYQ-AA, transfeminine and transmasculine individuals rated the scales more positively than did non-binary/agender individuals. In addition, participants who were assigned male rated the scale to be a more accurate measure of their dysphoria than did participants who were assigned female. For the UGDS, transfeminine individuals rated the scale most positively, followed by transmasculine individuals, and then non-binary/agender individuals. All pairwise comparisons were significant. Likewise, participants who were assigned male rated the scale to be a more accurate measure than did those who were assigned female. It is important to note that subjective ratings were relatively low (M = 3.40, SD = 1.09 for GIDYQ-AA; M = 3.43, SD = 1.22 for UGDS on a 5-point scale) where little more than half of the participants (52.5% GIDYQ-AA; 54% UGDS) agreed or strongly agreed that the scales captured their experience. Discussion focused on the implications for using these measures of gender dysphoria in both clinical and research settings.