Comparing the health of non-binary and binary transgender adults in a statewide non-probability sample

In the U.S., non-binary refers to transgender people who have a gender identity not aligned with their assigned sex at birth, and who identify outside of the traditional male-female binary, such as genderqueer, genderfluid, or gender nonconforming. Few data are available to characterize the health of non-binary adults.

The current study sought to fill this gap by conducting a secondary analysis of data from a non-probability sample of transgender and/or gender nonconforming adults in Massachusetts (sample mean age 32.6 years, 63% female assigned sex at birth; 79.4% white non-Hispanic/Latinx). Multivariable models were fit to compare non-binary (e.g., genderqueer) vs. binary (e.g., man/trans man, woman/trans woman) respondents across a range of social and health indicators.

Overall, 40.9% identified their gender identity as non-binary. Non-binary respondents significantly differed from binary respondents on (all p<0.05): demographics (younger age, more female assigned sex at birth); gender affirmation (older age of identity recognition, lower current uptake of and future desires for medical gender affirmation); healthcare utilization (lower rates of being up-to-date in annual wellness visit, less mental healthcare utilization in past year); mental health and substance use (higher past-week depressive distress, higher hazardous alcohol use); social history (more unstably housed, more current students), violence victimization (lower rates of lifetime intimate partner violence), and social support (less family support).

Gender diversity, including whether people endorse a binary or non-binary gender identity, is a prevalent and an important aspect of transgender health. Demographic measures of gender identity that include binary and non-binary response options are recommended to inform future research and clinical care.