The number of people identifying as transgender has declined significantly over recent years, according to a new study.
This comes amid national debate over gender ideology and leftist attempts to force their absurd ideas on gender on the public.
The Centre for Heterodox Social Science (CHSS) published a report noting that fewer young people are identifying as transgender or queer than a couple of years ago. This is especially true at elite universities.
The researchers gathered their data from a survey conducted by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE). “After surging in the 2010s and 20s, trans and queer identities are in decline among young Americans,” the author wrote.
The report also notes that “The transgender share among university students peaked in 2023 and has almost halved since, from nearly 7 percent to under 4 percent,” and “The share of students identifying as not heterosexual fell by around 10 points in the same period.”
It turns out ... trans identification really is in free fall among the young. So is nonbinary identity. See below from a nationally representative survey (the CES). @epkaufm was right. 🚨👀 (1/2) 👇 pic.twitter.com/q2W2ZTFunJ
— Jean Twenge (author of 10 RULES, GENERATIONS) (@jean_twenge) October 20, 2025
So what explains this shift? According to the report, it has little to do with politics, religion, or social media. However, researchers propose that improvements in mental health may play an important role.
The report explains that “Trans, queer and bisexual identities are in rapid decline among young educated Americans,” and “Improving mental health, however, appears to be part of the explanation for the decline of BTQ+ identification.”
FIRE’s study surveyed 60,000 undergraduate students. It found that only 3.6 percent identified as a gender other than male or female, a decline from 5.2 percent in 2024 and 6.8 percent in 2022 and 2023.
Another study conducted by San Diego State University psychology professor Jean Twenge found that the number of 18 to 22-year-olds fell from 6.1 percent in 2022 to 3.2 percent in 2024. Those identifying as nonbinary have also decreased by more than 50 percent between 2023 and 2024.
The U.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey revealed similar trends. It found that among 18 to 22-year-olds, transgender identification rose to four percent in 2024. By September of the same year, it had dropped to 2.6 percent.
🚨A new study shows not just a decline in transgender youth it’s in actual free fall…More proof that it’s a social contagion that has been instigated and perpetuated by the left to try and get to our children
— Ashley Hayek (@ashleyhayek) October 22, 2025
They’re exposed
https://t.co/C2T7e899vh
Mental could play an important role in bringing about the decline. But it’s also worth considering the impact of social contagion on the initial increase in younger people identifying as transgender or nonbinary. Much of this was a trend promoted in government-run schools and on the internet. Many younger people were convinced they were transgender even though they were not.
The progressive push for “gender-affirming care” in schools and medical facilities didn’t help. School staff is still actively trying to push minors to embrace transgenderism with the knowledge and consent of their parents. Therapists are rushing to affirm transgender identity among children without even considering talk therapy or dealing with other mental health issues common among those suffering from gender dysphoria.
I believe the backlash against these practices played an important part. When parents realized how progressives were bombarding children with gender ideology in major institutions, they spoke out. They berated government officials at school board and city council meetings. They made their voices heard about the effort to foist gender ideology on the rest of us. If this trend holds, which I think it will, then it will show that mobilizing against the authoritarian left can work as long as we remain vigilant.