FTMs scored above average in # of autistic traits

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I came across an article last night on the Time website. I'm new so I can't post links, but you can find it by searching for the title: "Study: Why Some Transgendered People Have Higher Levels of Autistic Traits"

Wondering what others think about this:

Which came first - the chicken or the egg? Testosterone or autistic traits?

I recognize AS traits that started long before I understood that boys and girls grew up differently and to which set of expectations I was supposed to conform... but could T have made me more autistic than I would be otherwise? I don't know. I started it before I knew what AS was.

Is there anyone here who started T later in life (or transitioned in the other direction) and noticed a difference? Do you think being on the spectrum drove you toward your transition?

While it doesn't answer your chicken-and-egg question, this latest study does provide an interesting observation into one aspect (specifically, language/communication changes).

Hahn A, et al. Testosterone changes brain structures in female-to-male transsexuals. 28th European College of Neuropsychopharmacology Congress. 2015

"Results revealed real measurable differences in brain structure following exposure to testosterone treatment. For example, the scans revealed that the treatment had decreased the volume of gray matter in two specific language-related areas of the brain: the Broca’s and Wernicke's areas. The scans also showed that, while the physical volume of these two areas decreased in size, the white matter pathways connecting the areas got stronger."

http://www.ecnp-congress.eu/~/media/Fil ... 0FINAL.pdf

Interesting. I'm still ambivalent about studies that look to confirm gender stereotypes though. It'd be interesting to see how they measured any decrease in verbal fluency, or in which way they framed the results.

I agree, researcher bias is such a potential pitfall, especially in fields of study that have to do with gender or sex. So much of our society's structure is build on a hierarchy of the same & hegemony is everywhere. And while the neurologists have done incredibly solid work in discerning the differences (on a spectrum, or actually two highly overlapping ones for any given attribute) between male and female brains, the psychs have pretty much stuck with pet theories and case studies. So when hybrids like this (behavioral + biological) come along, I typically wait until they've been confirmed and built upon before assuming they are useful. Thank you, for the reminder to maintain perspective!

i was wondering this exact thing. like i know for whatever reason women often go undiagnosed because they end up hiding their traits, but the underlying neurological stuff is still there. so then in transguys when testosterone takes over does it come more to the surface? i really think thats whats happening to me and it freaking sucks.

(i mightve missed it in the other replies) but is there any data on afab children? kids obviously aren't hormonally like adults so would around puberty be when their traits become less obvious?

[sorry if this isnt clear, my mind likes to try and leave me right when i attempt to string words together intelligently]

Welcome to having a "guy" brain; you are now the "strong, silent type". On the bright side, your brain as a whole is probably more internally consistent, structure-wise.

The researcher who first identified that, a) brains have sex dimorphic sites and, b) they match identity not assignment (Zhou, 1994) interestingly enough has in recent years focused on the genetic triggers for the changes that take place at puberty. Like many other animals, humans' sex dimorphic sites (including those in the brain) get their direction set in utero and do some basic, gross dimorphic development during fetal development, but the divergence explodes at puberty. It goes a long way toward explaining why so many trans kids reach puberty and suddenly either realize their identity or realize they can't live as assigned at birth - the divergence suddenly becomes huge. But, do those diverging neural changes also include autistic characteristics or observed/reported behaviors diverging further? The autism=male brain theory says yes, but I'm finding nothing so far to actually back it up. I'll keep looking tonight...

Interesting question. I started transition at 35, and had never heard of Aspergers at that time, so it's hard to judge. I think I have become more aware of my differences since my sister was diagnosed around that time. I am also happier and have gained a lot of life experience since then (20 years), yet in the last few years I have been more affected by it than I was say 10 years ago. Whether this is T, age, or just accumulated life stresses (pretty bad in last 6 years) I don't know.
I have heard this report before and it makes sense to me in light of the (stereotypical, I admit) belief that men are not as good as women at self-awareness and at empathy.