American Psychologist, Vol 81(6), Sep 2026, 727-737; doi:10.1037/amp0001769
This special issue highlights cutting-edge applications of psychological theory and science to the well-being and health of transgender, nonbinary, and gender diverse (trans) people in the United States in the context of sweeping state and federal-level anti-trans legislation and executive actions. The 16 articles in this special issue demonstrate rigorous, creative, intersectional, and equity-focused approaches across multiple subdisciplines by psychologists working in numerous sectors and settings (e.g., higher education, health care, government) to promote the health and civil rights of trans people. In this introduction, we contextualize these new findings with historical and contemporary considerations impacting the trans community and psychologists’ ethical responsibilities to respond to the structural, institutional, interpersonal, and intrapsychic impacts of anti-trans prejudice, discrimination, and oppression when engaging professionally with gender diverse people, their families, and other professionals and organizations that serve them. We close by highlighting actions that all psychologists can take to support trans people during this period of heightened sociopolitical stress. As state and federal governing bodies continue to advance harmful policies, these developments will likely have profound and long-lasting implications for the health, well-being, and freedoms of trans people, as well as for the education, training, and practice of psychologists. We therefore call on psychologists to actively advocate alongside trans communities, provide meaningful support, and expand access to affirming resources within this increasingly oppressive sociopolitical climate. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved)
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