Are Transgender Teens Likely to Engage in Risky Sex?

Whenever anything culturally novel collides with sexuality, many people become anxious. A recent example is sexting. When it first emerged, many parents became frantic. The latest example involves transgender teens, who are more visible than ever—and more of a political issue. Many transgender teens have sex, and many adults, particularly social conservatives, have become stressed over what trans teens do, how often, with whom, and with what consequences. Some studies have raised fears that transgender adolescents might be unusually sexually irresponsible. But a recent survey of 1,223 trans teens shows there’s no cause for alarm. Researchers from several universities found that transgender teens’ sexuality mirrors that of their cis-gender counterparts, that is, the large majority behave sexually responsibly.

Transitions, Whether or Not Teens Transition

Before discussing transgender teen sexuality, it’s important to distinguish gender identity from sexual preference. The former refers to who you are: male, female, transgender, gender nonconforming/queer/non-binary, or intersex. The latter denotes who you want to undress: heterosexual, gay, lesbian, bisexual/pansexual, or asexual.

Independent of gender issues, the teen years involve the tumult of puberty—body changes, raging hormones, awakening sexuality, and the beginnings of personal independence. For almost everyone, adolescence is disorienting, a time of major transitions—even among those who feel fine about the gender they were assigned at birth. Meanwhile, for teens uncomfortable with their assigned gender, adolescence can feel even more wrenching.

Around 1 percent of the population believes their assigned gender does not reflect who they are. Many people realize they are transgender during adolescence. To transition to their genuine gender, transgender teens may change their names and pronouns, dress differently, alter their hair, take hormones, and ultimately opt for surgery.

But the term transitioning is not entirely descriptive. It fails to capture the life upheaval engendered by questioning assigned gender. Transitioning typically causes considerable distress for those on the journey and for their families, friends, teachers, and schoolmates. Possible challenges include:

• Struggles with self-esteem.
• Mental health issues.
• Negative reactions from family and peers.
• Social ostracism.
• Being bullied and other victimizations.
• Shifting sexual preference.
• Alcohol and drug issues.
• Questions about how one presents in public.
• Body dissatisfaction, especially with genitals and secondary gender characteristics (build, breasts, body hair, and voice).
• Difficulties passing as a member of one’s genuine gender.
• And if passing is possible, uncertainties about the safety of disclosing being trans.

Consequently, compared with their cisgender counterparts, transgender teens must contend with more personal turmoil.

Gender transitioning has profound sexual implications. Some transgender folks alter their sexual preference. Others shut down sexually. And some become sexually wild and irresponsible. Much of the research on transgender sexuality has focused on its problematic aspects. Some studies have documented unusually early sexual debut, greater risk-taking, unusually large numbers of sex partners, and higher than typical rates of unprotected intercourse, pregnancy, and sexual infections, including HIV. But most of these reports have involved transgender adults. What transgender teens do, however, has been a mystery—until the recent study.

The Study

The researchers used Facebook and Instagram to offer transgender or gender-questioning teens a chance to win a $50 gift card for participating in an anonymous online survey. The ads recruited 1,223 teens who identified as transgender.

• They ranged in age from 14 to 18—654 trans boys, 68 trans girls, 399 nonbinary teens assigned female at birth, 48 assigned male, and 54 questioning/unsure.
• They lived in all 50 states and Washington D.C.
• • Two-thirds were white, 1 4 percent were racially mixed, 9 percent were Hispanic, 7 percent were Black, and 3 percent were Asian.
• Sexually, 23 percent identified as bisexual, 23 percent as pansexual, 21 percent as gay/lesbian, 6 percent as asexual, and 5 percent as heterosexual, with 5 percent questioning, unsure, or other.
• In terms of transitioning, 23 percent had taken or were taking hormones or hormone blockers, 3 percent had had breast surgery, and 1 percent had had genital surgery.

Participants reported these sexual activities:

• More than half (54 percent) said they’d experienced genital touching, oral sex, vaginal intercourse, and anal play, with no significant differences across gender groups.
• The average age at first genital touching was 14, first oral sex 14.5, first vaginal intercourse 15, and first anal play 15, again with no significant differences among gender groups.
• Participants reported an average of one to two lifetime-sex partners, except that most of the 8 percent who reported anal play claimed three partners. Most partners were cisgender (59 percent), with 41 percent of partners trans or other gender minority.
• Five percent of participants reported being diagnosed with sexual infections.
• Six percent reported being involved in a pregnancy.

Transgender Essential Reads

How Do I Come Out as Trans or Nonbinary?

The Psychological Impacts of Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy

Typical for Their Age

At first glance, these figures may appear troubling. More than half are sexually active! The researchers explain that “transgender teens are exploring their sexuality in ways that are normative,” that is, typical for their age. “Despite prior work focused on this population’s high-risk behaviors, our findings highlight that overall transgender adolescents report normative sexual initiation and experiences.”

Studies of twenty-first-century cisgender teens show an average age at first intercourse of around 16, with slightly fewer than half experiencing intercourse before the end of high school. Among those who are sexually active, the ladder of sexuality starts with kissing and erotic touching at an average of around 14, with genital play commencing around 15 or 16, and intercourse at an average of around 16 to 17. In the study, the transgender teens followed more or less the same path, except that compared with other transgender groups, trans boys tended to start climbing the erotic ladder a year or so earlier.

The most troubling aspect of trans teen sexuality is that an unusually large proportion of study participants—6 percent—claimed involvement in pregnancies. This highlights a need for more intensive contraceptive education.

Otherwise, transgender teen sexuality mirrors the activities of their cisgender counterparts. Hysteria about transgender teen sexuality is unwarranted.