Examining the Relationship Between Personality Traits and Gender Dysphoria in Adolescents and Young Adults

Background: The relationship between personality trait expression and gender identity in adolescents and young adults remains underexplored, particularly through a dimensional framework. This study examines associations between maladaptive personality traits, borderline features, and gender dysphoria across developmental age groups. Methods: A cross-sectional sample of 269 participants aged 14–26, including both gender-conforming and gender-diverse individuals, completed the Personality Inventory for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition – Brief Form (PID-5-BF), Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children (BPFS-C), and the Utrecht Gender Dysphoria Scale. Statistical analyses included t -tests, analysis of variances (ANOVAs), and Pearson correlations, with age-stratified group comparisons. Results: Gender-diverse participants reported modest elevations in negative affect, detachment, and borderline personality features compared to gender-conforming peers. Age-based analyses showed that younger participants (14–16 years) reported higher mean levels of antagonism, disinhibition, psychoticism, and gender dysphoria. While these differences were statistically significant, all scores remained within non-clinical ranges, and effect sizes were small to moderate. Gender dysphoria was weakly correlated with negative affect, detachment, and borderline features. Conclusions: Results suggest that observed variations in trait expression reflect developmental and contextual influences rather than psychopathological characteristics. These findings highlight the importance of non-pathologizing, developmentally sensitive approaches in clinical settings when working with gender-diverse youth.