Being trans is not cool, so social contagion makes no sense
Dr Helen Webberley on Robby Starbuck: transition and children, Robby Starbuck
Trans identity is spreading through social influence, especially among young people. If a teenager is surrounded by trans peers, or spends time in spaces where being trans is visible and accepted, they might "catch" it, the way a trend spreads through a school year group.
I made the comparison to going to a gay bar because it cuts through the logic immediately: exposure to something does not make you that thing. We have known this about sexual orientation for decades, and the same principle applies to gender identity. Being trans is not a cool thing to be, not in a world where trans people face discrimination, family rejection, barriers to healthcare, and daily hostility. The idea that young people are choosing it for social cachet does not survive contact with what trans young people actually go through. What we are seeing is not contagion. It is visibility, and visibility means that people who always existed now have the language to say so.
More from this conversation
