Gov’t Study Finds Link Between Belief In Gender Ideology And Support For Political Violence

Proponents of “radical gender ideology” are more likely to “hold left-wing authoritarian beliefs and believe political violence is justified,” according to a Department of Health and Human Services study out Wednesday.

The HHS-commissioned study also claims that individuals who held left-wing authoritarian beliefs “were more likely to justify political violence as well than non-left-wing participants.”

“This study raises important questions about what happens when ideology is given the authority of medicine,” HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Admiral Brian Christine said in a statement. “The association between sex-rejecting clinical beliefs, authoritarian attitudes, and the justification of political violence warrant serious scientific scrutiny. HHS will continue to pursue rigorous research that examines these relationships and gives the American people the evidence they deserve.”

The preregistered survey of 1,208 U.S. adults found that stronger endorsement of so-called “gender-affirming” clinical positions was significantly associated with higher levels of left-wing authoritarianism, even after controlling for political identity and age. Both measures were also linked to greater acceptance of political violence across six different scenarios, per the news release.

However, the study “does not determine whether belief in radical gender ideology contributes to authoritarian attitudes or vice versa, nor whether an outside factor may contribute to both predispositions,” per the news release. The study also notes that “experimental research is needed to determine causality.”

The study, which was conducted by researchers from Rutgers University, the Manhattan Institute and the Network Contagion Research Institute, notably “did not measure whether respondents committed or intended to commit political violence,” and instead measured “how justified respondents considered six hypothetical or described acts of political violence.”

The study’s findings “therefore establish associations with the justification of political violence, not violent behavior,” per the press release.

LGBTQ activist group Human Rights Campaign (HRC) said in a Thursday press release that the HHS-funded study is a “junk report trying to paint trans Americans as a threat.”

“And let us all be absolutely clear on this point: political violence is not, and must never become, acceptable in our society,” HRC president Kelley Robinson said in a statement. “But neither should demonizing entire groups of people for political gain. Trans people are not an ideology, they are human beings and our fellow Americans who deserve the same dignity as anyone else.”

Reports of gender ideology became more widespread across the U.S. under the Biden administration. An Ohio child welfare agency crafted a “confidential spreadsheet” documenting the sexual orientation and transgender status of kids as young as 5, the Daily Caller News Foundation first reported in October 2024.

The Trump administration has been taking steps to crack down on gender ideology in the U.S. in recent months. In January 2025, President Donald Trump issued an order seeking to “defend women’s rights and protect freedom of conscience by using clear and accurate language and policies that recognize women are biologically female, and men are biologically male.”