Conversion Therapy, Suicidality, and Running Away: An Analysis of Transgender Youth in the U.S.

Abstract

This study provides evidence of the deleterious effects of conversion therapy on the mental health and wellbeing of transgender youth in the U.S. We create a retrospective panel of transgender youth using the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey to test how exposure to conversion therapy affects the likelihood of attempting suicide and running away from home. The empirical approach employs a stacked difference-in-differences design. Results indicate that exposure to conversion therapy substantially increases the likelihood a transgender adolescent will attempt suicide and run away. The average treatment effect on treated (ATT) of conversion therapy on having attempted suicide is an increase of 17 percentage points, which amounts to a 55% increase in the risk of attempting suicide, and the ATT on the risk of running away is an increase of 7.8 percentage points, which amount to a more than doubling in the risk of running away. These effects are largest when exposure to conversion therapy occurs at a young age (11-14).

Note:
Funding Information: No funding was received for this work.

Conflict of Interests: The authors declare they have no conflict of interest.

Keywords: Transgender, Conversion Therapy, Mental Health, Suicide

JEL Classification: I14, I18, I31, J15