Validation of the Chinese Version of the Gender Identity/Gender Dysphoria Questionnaire for Adolescents and Adults

Yuanyuan Wang; Yi Feng; Di Su; Amanda Wilson; Bailin Pan; Ye Liu; Ning Wang; Bin Guo; Meng Han; Kenneth J Zucker; Runsen Chen

doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2021.05.007

Validation of the Chinese Version of the Gender Identity/Gender Dysphoria Questionnaire for Adolescents and Adults

J Sex Med. 2021 Sep;18(9):1632-1640. doi: 10.1016/j.jsxm.2021.05.007. Epub 2021 Jul 8.

Authors

Yuanyuan Wang¹, Yi Feng², Di Su³, Amanda Wilson⁴, Bailin Pan⁵, Ye Liu⁶, Ning Wang⁷, Bin Guo⁷, Meng Han⁸, Kenneth J Zucker⁹, Runsen Chen¹⁰

Affiliations

¹ Division of Psychology, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, De Montfort University, Leicester, UK.; National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, and China National Technology Institute on Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
² Mental Health Center, Central University of Finance and Economics, Beijing, China; School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
³ Mental Health Center, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, China. Electronic address: sudi@nxu.edu.cn.
⁴ National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, and China National Technology Institute on Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, 410011, Hunan, China.
⁵ Department of Plastic Surgery of Peking University Third Hospital, Transgender Clinic of Peking University Third Hospital.
⁶ Department of Endocrinology and Metabolism of Peking University Third Hospital.
⁷ Beijing Huilonguan Hospital, Beijing, China.
⁸ Dapartment of Medical Psychology, The School of Health Humanities, Peking University, Beijing, China.
⁹ Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
¹⁰ Vanke School of Public Health, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. Electronic address: runsenchen@tsinghua.edu.cn.

PMID: 34247955
DOI: 10.1016/j.jsxm.2021.05.007

Abstract

Background: The number of individuals with potential gender dysphoria (GD) being referred to specialized gender identity clinics or programs is increasing internationally; these cases are initially screened using the Gender Identity/Gender Dysphoria Questionnaire for Adolescents and Adults (GIDYQ-AA).

Aim: The current study aimed to assess the psychometric properties of the GIDYQ-AA in a sample of adolescents and young adults from China.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in October 2020. Sociodemographic information of the participants was first collected. Participants then completed the GIDYQ-AA, the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale, the Patient Health Questionnaire-9, and a suicidal ideation assessment. A total of 2,533 participants with a mean age of 19.30 (SD = 1.19) years were recruited. Of the participants, 841 (33.2%) were cis men, 1,589 (62.7%) were cis women, 66 (2.6%) self-identified as transgender, 17 (0.7%) self-identified as non-binary, and 20 (0.8%) self-identified as gender queer.

Results: The GIDYQ-AA had high internal consistency with a Cronbach's alpha = 0.89. Exploratory factor analysis showed that the GIDYQ-AA had a four-factor structure in China. The GIDYQ-AA was significantly correlated with anxiety symptoms (r = -0.32, P < .01), depressive symptoms (r = -0.33, P < .01), and suicidal ideation (r = -0.20, P < .01).

Clinical translation: The Chinese version of GIDYQ-AA is a useful measurement with high practical value, which could promote the assessment and research of GD across China or among Chinese migrants in other countries.

Strengths and limitations: This is the first study assessing the psychometric properties of the GIDYQ-AA in Chinese adolescents and young adults. The convergent and divergent validity of the GIDYQ-AA were not examined due to the unavailability of data. Also, the sample did not have an equal distribution of male to males and female to females.

Conclusion: The Chinese version of GIDYQ-AA is a useful measure, which could promote both the assessment and research of GD in the Chinese population. Wang Y, Feng Y, Su D, et al. Validation of the Chinese Version of the Gender Identity/Gender Dysphoria Questionnaire for Adolescents and Adults. J Sex Med 2021;18:1632-1640.

Keywords: Chinese Version; GIDYQ-AA; Gender Dysphoria; Gender Identity; Validation.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
China
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Gender Dysphoria* / diagnosis
Gender Identity
Humans
Male
Psychometrics
Reproducibility of Results
Surveys and Questionnaires
Young Adult