@KatyMontgomerie Summarised in this blog growinguptransgender.com/2017/03/04/a-p…
@KatyMontgomerie The majority of the studies from which the 80% average is calculated were published prior to 1988, namely Bakwin 1968; Lebowitz 1972; Zuber 1984; Money and Russo 1979; Green 1987 etc. These papers were based on data from even earlier (50’s, 60’s, 70’s).
@KatyMontgomerie They didn't bother to distinguish between trans girls and feminine boys as both were considered equally pathological. The author of some of the above studies literally had a study called "The Sissy Boy" study.
@KatyMontgomerie The studies weren't interested in how to ensure trans kids grow up happy. Nor how to ensure feminine boys grow up happy. Nor to understand how many assigned boys grow up trans. They wanted to know what 'went wrong' in the mum child relationship to make kids 'deviant'.
@KatyMontgomerie Out of the numerous studies that contribute to the 80% myth, only three were published post 1988. But they were still on kids who were referred for being not manly enough, kids who were diagnosed with Gender Identity Disorder (which is misnamed as didn't focus on gender identity)
@KatyMontgomerie From the 3 studies that were published post 1988, two of them were Canadian studies conducted under the leadership of Zucker: Drummond et al 2008 – Zucker is one of the co-authors – & Singh 2012. Singh is a protégé of Zucker & based this publication on data collected by Zucker.
@KatyMontgomerie Zucker is infamous for his practices on 'taking away barbies', stopping kids playing with their friends (if the friends were girls), even stopping kids seeing their mum (he thought being too close to a mum made an assigned boy confused).
@KatyMontgomerie His studies didn't bother distinguishing between trans girls & boys who like dolls, as it was the 'deviant' behaviour that he was focused on. He went on the BBC in 2018, in talking about trans kids said " “if your 4 year old said they were a dog would you feed them dog food”.
@KatyMontgomerie The fact that toxic cishet white men had so much power over the lives of trans kids for so many decades is a disgrace. The fact that the legacy of their toxic research continues to harm trans kids to this days is shameful.
@KatyMontgomerie The third post-1988 study that contributes to the 80% myth is Wallien & Cohen Kettenis 2008. They started with a sample of 77 children. 19 of these children were not classified as reaching criteria for GID to begin with. Yet the authors mix these kids in to get their percentage.
@KatyMontgomerie There were 58 children in the original sample who were assessed as meeting criteria for GID at the start. From this sample, 16 were not contacted, leaving 42 children who could be traced.
@KatyMontgomerie 6 were unwilling to be interviewed but allowed their parents to be interviewed – the study adds these 6 to the desistance group simply because they match the demographic of the desister sample (in nationality, family income). This is not valid research. These 6 need to be omitted
@KatyMontgomerie That leaves 36 children (both with GID at the start and willing to be interviewed later on) upon which the study needs to rely. Again, important to note these were not all kids who said they were trans. They were not asked. They could have been cis boys who like dresses & dolls.
@KatyMontgomerie From these 36 children, 21 were counted as persisters. 15 were counted as desisters. We can do some very basic math on this. 21/36 persisters, 15/36 desister. This study shows that for children reaching criteria for GID, 21 (58%) persist and 15 (42%) desist.
@KatyMontgomerie Even this study (which has many many flaws), found 58% persistence if you look at the kids who they actually followed up with who were ever diagnosed with GID. And none of those kids were diagnosed with Gender Dysphoria (which focuses on their identity rather than behaviour)
@KatyMontgomerie The older science is so pathologising and shit. It is excruciating to me that this old science is manipulated to encourage the rejection and traumatisation of trans kids. My daughter is thriving since being acknowledged and loved and supported.
@KatyMontgomerie Arguing that trans kids don't know who they are until puberty based on bad science encourages keeping them in a state of trauma and rejection for the majority of their childhood. For the trans kids who are assertive about their identities young, this causes a huge trauma.
@KatyMontgomerie I have spoken to literally hundreds of parents whose trans kids have shone since being supported in early childhood. A very small number who I know have shifted identity. Sometimes several times. Which doesn't even matter.
@KatyMontgomerie Love your trans kids. Listen to them. Be guided by what they need, whatever age they are. Don't reject them until age 12 based on some shit science by people who pathologised and traumatised non-conforming kids. Every kid deserves a happy childhood. End.
