{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,2]],"date-time":"2026-07-02T01:01:01Z","timestamp":1782954061874,"version":"3.54.5"},"reference-count":43,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,17]],"date-time":"2025-03-17T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1742169600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Pediatric Reports"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Studies have consistently shown that gender-diverse youth experience higher rates of internalizing disorders and self-harm behaviors (SH) compared to their cisgender peers. However, there is limited research on how body investment and emotion regulation influence these symptoms, especially in relation to the age of gender dysphoria (GD) presentation. Objectives: This study aimed to explore the relationship between the timing of GD presentation (early vs. late) and psychological distress in adolescents seeking gender affirmation (GA), specifically focusing on internalizing symptoms, emotion regulation, and body investment. The study also investigated how SH during the year preceding the request for gender affirmation might have impacted these factors. Methods: On a total of 80 adolescents (mean age: 14.88 years) at their first request for GA, participants were divided into two groups: early-presentation GD (EP-GD; mean age: 14.93 years) and late-presentation GD (LP-GD; mean age: 14.83 years). Among the sample, 60% exhibited SH. Internalizing symptoms, emotion regulation, and body investment were assessed using the Youth Self-Report (YSR), the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), and the Body Investment Scale (BIS). Results: Results revealed that LP-GD adolescents had significantly higher emotion dysregulation (ED), particularly in the Strategies domain of the DERS (p = 0.040), and more social problems in the YSR (p = 0.047) compared to EP-GD ones. SH were associated with higher internalizing symptoms, including anxiety, withdrawal, and somatic complaints (p &lt; 0.03), as well as increased body dissatisfaction, particularly in the BIS Care and Protection dimensions (p = 0.044; p = 0.034). Conclusions: These findings supported the hypothesis that LP-GD adolescents and youths with a history of SH showed more pronounced emotion regulation difficulties and internalizing symptoms, further emphasizing the need for early intervention programs targeting both GD and co-occurring mental health problems.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/pediatric17020037","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,17]],"date-time":"2025-03-17T07:49:57Z","timestamp":1742197797000},"page":"37","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Influence of the Timing of Gender Dysphoria Presentation and Suicidal Behaviors on Internalizing Symptoms, Emotion Dysregulation, and Body Investment in Adolescents Seeking Gender Affirmation"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"17","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-1734-788X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Giuseppina","family":"Petruzzelli","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Translational Biomedicine and Neuroscience Department (DiBraiN), University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70124 Bari, Italy"},{"name":"Department of Medical and Translational Sciences, Child Neuropsychiatry, Federico II University, Corso Umberto I 40, 80138 Napoli, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0009-2713-3202","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Federica","family":"Annecchini","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Translational Biomedicine and Neuroscience Department (DiBraiN), University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7081-2520","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Flora","family":"Furente","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Translational Biomedicine and Neuroscience Department (DiBraiN), University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-0164-5239","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fabio","family":"Tarantino","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Translational Biomedicine and Neuroscience Department (DiBraiN), University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Valeria","family":"Carruolo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Translational Biomedicine and Neuroscience Department (DiBraiN), University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Elisabetta","family":"Lavorato","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Psychiatry Unit, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Policlinico di Bari, University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70100 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9311-9099","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Maria Pia","family":"Riccio","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Medical and Translational Sciences, Child Neuropsychiatry, Federico II University, Corso Umberto I 40, 80138 Napoli, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3454-1679","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Andrea","family":"De Giacomo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Translational Biomedicine and Neuroscience Department (DiBraiN), University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7541-0616","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Emilia","family":"Matera","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Regenerative and Precision Medicine and Jonic Area (DiMePRe-J), University of Bari \u201cAldo Moro\u201d, 70124 Bari, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,3,17]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"American Psychiatric Association (APA) DSM-5-TR (2023). 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