Dev Psych Paper Should puberty blockers be prescribed to children to treat gender dysphoria?

Here Are the Instructions: The goal of the final project is to assess your advancement in critical thinking, evidence analysis, and finding and evaluating relevant research literature. The requirements for the paper are very similar to debate written arguments. You will write an argumentative essay that answers a policy question based on available scientific research. The main difference between the final project and the debates is that after researching and analyzing the evidence you will choose the point of view you will argue for. You are required to provide 3 arguments supporting your position and 2 arguments opposing your position (including an explanation of any weaknesses you see in the opposing arguments). Each argument supporting your position should include a credible unbiased source. The paper should be no longer than 5 pages double-spaced, not including the reference list. Make sure the references are in APA format (both within the paper and in the reference list). Use the debate written arguments rubric to guide you in writing your paper.

Now the details.

THE QUESTION

Should puberty blockers be prescribed to children to treat gender dysphoria?

BACKGROUND

Puberty blockers are hormonal medicines developed in the 1980s and approved by the FDA in 1993 to treat Precocious puberty (when children start puberty too early, usually around ages 6 or 7). Although they are not approved by FDA to treat gender dysphoria they have been used off-label for that purpose for many years.

HISTORY

In 2000, the Netherlands became the first country to prescribe puberty blockers to young people with gender dysphoria. The “Dutch Protocol” was developed by Peggy Cohen-Kettenis and was based on the idea that the treatment was reversible. The practice of using puberty blockers to treat gender dysphoria has spread to other countries in Western Europe, US, Australia and New Zealand, but there is little documentation of outcomes and no government approval in the United States. In the UK in 2011, the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS) began using puberty blockers experimentally, and then on a larger scale from 2014 onwards. However, some GIDS practitioners raised concerns in 2018 about the hasty prescription of blockers. In 2020, the UK National Health Service asked Dr. Cass, England’s top pediatrician, to do a comprehensive review of the practice. Cass’s report triggered a number of restrictions in the UK and other European countries. In March 2024, NHS England decided that puberty blockers would no longer be routine treatment for children with gender dysphoria. At that point, puberty blockers were only allowed to be used in NHS clinical trials. In 2023 Denmark, Finland, and Sweden also sharply restricted this treatment. Major debates are now ongoing in the Netherlands regarding the implementation of similar restrictions.

In order to kickstart your research, I am including 3 NYT articles on the topic. As you know, NYT is not peer-reviewed and is not considered a proper source, but they do cite sources that may be helpful for you 🙂

I would like to argue puberty blockers should not be prescribed to children to treat gender dysphoria. I will attach the 3 NYT articles and an example essay for this prompt. I will also provide you with the APA citations of source I would like you to use. You must use peer reviewed sources with quantitative sources. You can look up more sources if necessary.

Rew, L., Young, C. C., Monge, M., & Bogucka, R. (2021). Review: Puberty blockers for transgender and gender diverse youth—a critical review of the literature. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 26(1), 3–14. https://doi.org/10.1111/camh.12437

de Vries, A. L. C., Steensma, T. D., Doreleijers, T. A. H., & Cohen‐Kettenis, P. T. (2011). Puberty Suppression in Adolescents With Gender Identity Disorder: A Prospective Follow‐Up Study. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 8(8), 2276–2283. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1743-6109.2010.01943.x

Carmichael, P., Butler, G., Masic, U., Cole, T. J., De Stavola, B. L., Davidson, S., Skageberg, E. M., Khadr, S., Viner, R. M., & Santana, G. L. (2021). Short-term outcomes of pubertal suppression in a selected cohort of 12 to 15 year old young people with persistent gender dysphoria in the UK. PLoS ONE, 16(2), e0243894. http://dx.doi.org.libproxy1.usc.edu/10.1371/journal.pone.0243894

Costa, R., Dunsford, M., Skagerberg, E., Holt, V., Carmichael, P., & Colizzi, M. (2015). Psychological Support, Puberty Suppression, and Psychosocial Functioning in Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 12(11), 2206–2214. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsm.13034

Remember the counter arguments do not both need to be backed up with quantitaive data,.