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Cited by 57LGBTQ Health, Identity, and PolicyMental Health Treatment and AccessGender Roles and Identity Studies

Mental Health Inequities among Transgender People in Aotearoa New Zealand: Findings from the Counting Ourselves Survey

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Tan, Kyle K.H., Ellis, Sonja J., Schmidt, Johanna M., Byrne, Jack L., Veale, Jaimie F.·2020·International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
DOI 10.3390/ijerph17082862PMC PMC7216046
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Abstract

There has been little international research looking at differences in mental health across different age groups. This study examines mental health inequities between transgender people and the Aotearoa/New Zealand general population from youth to older adulthood. The 2018 Counting Ourselves survey (N = 1178) assessed participants’ mental health using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10) and diagnoses of depression and anxiety disorders, questions that were the same as those used in the New Zealand Health Survey. Our results showed significant mean score differences for transgender people on K10, and these differences were almost two standard deviations higher than the general population (Cohen’s d = 1.87). The effect size differences, however, decreased from youth to older adults. Regression analyses indicated trans women were less likely to report psychological distress than trans men and non-binary participants. There was an interaction effect for age and gender, with lower psychological distress scores found for younger trans women but higher scores for older trans women. The stark mental health inequities faced by transgender people, especially youth, demonstrate an urgent need to improve the mental health and wellbeing of this population by implementing inclusive institutional practices to protect them from gender minority stress.

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  • Where mental ill health intersects with its known drivers (such as poverty and poor living standards, gender-based violence, discrimination based on sexuality, gender identity, and ethnicity), and where there is trauma from colonisation, displacement, and violations of human rights, opportunities for power are even more diminished.

    “Where mental ill health intersects with its known drivers (such as poverty and poor living standards, gender-based violence, discrimination based on sexuality, gender identity, and ethnicity), and where there is trauma from colonisation, displacement, and violations of human rights, 491-496 opportunities for power are even more diminished.”

    From The Lancet Psychiatry Commission on youth mental health (2024) · cites this paper as [496]

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Authors
Tan, K. K. H., Ellis, S. J., Schmidt, J. M., Byrne, J. L., & Veale, J. F.
Affiliations
University of Waikato (NZ)
Corresponding author
Tan, Kyle K.H.
ORCID
Venue
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Publisher
MDPI AG
Published
2020-04-21
Volume
17
Issue
8
Pages
2862
ISSN
1660-4601 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.3390/ijerph17082862
PMC
PMC7216046
OpenAlex
W3019746566
Cited by
57
References
3
Citations by year
2026: 5 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 1
FWCI
10.38
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Research Commons (University of Waikato) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
Funders
Health Research Council of New Zealand (17/587)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
  • Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Gender Roles and Identity Studies
Keywords
transgender people, mental health inequities, psychological distress, age differences, transgender women, transgender men, non-binary people, gender minority stress, depression, anxiety disorders, youth mental health, older adults, New Zealand
MeSH terms
Adolescent, Adult, Female, Health Surveys, Humans, Male, Mental Health, Middle Aged, New Zealand, Surveys and Questionnaires, Stress, Psychological, Young Adult, Transgender Persons

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