Dr. Kenneth Zucker: 'Children and Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria'

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0:00 — Veissière: Intro, background on controversy & statement of values

13:14 — Zucker: Background on the science of sex, gender, & gender dysphoria

24:45 — Zucker: Part One: Developmental trajectories of children with gender dysphoria;

41:28 — Zucker: Part Two: Recent changes in the sex ratio of adolescents with gender dysphoria;

53:31 — Zucker: Part Three: Mental health risks associated with gender dysphoria;

1:06:09 — Zucker: Part Four: “Rapid-onset” gender dysphoria as a new clinical phenomenon.

1:17:59 — Veissière: Background on ROGD controversy

Abstract

Over the past 10 years, the field of gender dysphoria has mushroomed at an unprecedented pace: in terms of the number of clients seeking out clinical care, in the number of professionals who have entered the field, and in the number of new research initiatives. At the same time, the field has become even more “political” than it “always” has been, with many “players” involved in its politics. In this talk, I will highlight some of these developments and then focus on several key clinical and research issues that are currently a focus of intense inquiry: (1) developmental trajectories of children with gender dysphoria; (2) recent changes in the sex ratio of adolescents with gender dysphoria; (3) the risk of suicidality associated with gender dysphoria; and (4) “rapid-onset” gender dysphoria as a new clinical phenomenon.

About the Speaker

Dr Kenneth J. Zucker is a certified child psychologist in the province of Ontario, who received his Ph.D. from the University of Toronto in 1982. He is currently a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto and in private practice. Dr. Zucker has worked primarily with children and adolescents with gender dysphoria for over 40 years. He was the Chair of the 2013 DSM-5 Workgroup on Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders, has been the Editor of Archives of Sexual Behavior since 2002, and is a Past President of the International Academy of Sex Research. He has published around 300 peer-reviewed journal papers and book chapters. He is a member of WPATH — the World Professional Association for Transgender health.

Twitter: @ZUCKERKJ

Link to Dr. Veissière's introductory remarks and statement of values:

Twitter: @samuelveissiere

[chadmichael_]

I had gender dysphoria. It is a coping mechanism from trauma. It happens subliminally in the minds of children who unwittingly get the message that their authentic biological sex and the cultural expectations that come with it somehow threaten the attachment relationship with one or more of their caregivers. It happens when that role is at odds within a toxic family structure.

As humans we are extremely dependent on our caregivers. We are wired for attachment. Anything about ourselves that threatens that attachment will be suppressed. It’s a survival mechanism. Other mammals that can walk as soon as they’re born aren’t as dependent but we as humans can’t even crawl that early and as a result we are biologically programmed this way.

This isn’t talked about in the mainstream and therefor many kids grow up confused and bullied for it which only emboldens their false beliefs about who they are and makes them more resistant to anything contrary to the pro transition narrative.

It took me years to connect the dots in my life. The way it showed up for me (in a nutshell / can show up for different reasons in others) was by having a mother who was abused and sexually harassed so much by men that she would demonstrate that hatred in many ways such as (for example) making a big deal out of a movie scene with female nudity. Not covering my eyes like most parents might do as in I’m "not allowed to see this yet" kind of thing but instead by talking out loud about how disgusting and shameful men are for wanting to see this and having a total meltdown over it. Which is understandable given her life experiences but yet very toxic to me her son. I’m not blaming her. How could she have known?

I then (key word) subliminally started associating being a man with something that would threaten my relationship with the most important person in my life and had no idea why it was happening to me. When I heard trans people talk about their experiences with gender dysphoria for the first time and many times after, I was shocked at how similar they clearly felt to me. I started dressing and acting more and more androgynously as it became more and more apparent that I was becoming a man. I rejected it with everything I had and suffered the consequences of ruthless bullying in which only made me even more militant about my lgbt identity.

Now that I know the truth, I am so glad I never took hormones or did anything drastic or life ruining to myself. Now I am a confident adult man who continues to do the trauma work that has helped me virtually eradicate this problem.

I find it very sad to see how many people are lead down the wrong path, especially these days, and even more sad that I have been labeled as transphobic for speaking out about what I have learned from my experience.

I would even venture to say that these experiences were huge reasons why my romantic and sexual attractions developed in the way that they did. I don’t think there is any gene responsible for this. It’s totally a trauma based toxic social environment kind of thing that manifests these issues as made more evident by the many stories I have listened to from others. Much of that toxicity having been so normalized to the person that they don’t even realize what has actually happened to them. So when you hear someone say, "well I had no trauma, why am I trans". All you need to do is have someone who knows what kind of questions to ask them, and the truth always comes out.

[CorrineFerguson]

He was my psychologist when i started transitioning. Started transitioning at 13, started seeing him at 14 or 15 and started medically transitioning on my 18 birthday.

[cordellross]

We need to be talking about this more. Very, very important topic that needs to be handled In love and honesty. Thanks for sharing.

[aSpacetimeAdventurer]

Whoa this is coming around full circle!

[yentavegan]

Zucker was mentioned in the New York Times Magazine article dated 6/19/22 "The Battle Over Gender Therapy",

[kyledawson]

I would argue and say many cultures do not have a third gender but rather a third identification system. It's more of a descriptor like "butch" or "queer" even what gay once was used to describe. We need to be very careful when using language, epesically when using other cultures practices to support somthing in ours.

[stacypastry]

The need for this type of introduction of a speaker at a college campus is emblematic of the cultural issues of today. It seems completely unnecessary to people that remember pre political correctness.
What did this guy say to get cancelled? Probably used logic

[PeterGregoryKelly]

First 13 minutes, a waste of energy. Boring.