WPWashington Post/UMD

On another topic, people who are transgender identify as a gender that is different from the sex they were assigned at birth.

On another topic, people who are transgender identify as a gender that is different from the sex they were assigned at birth. Aside from acquaintances, do you personally know someone who is transgender, or not? (Select all that apply)

Wording notes: supplies a neutral definition of transgender before asking, which standardizes the referent | 'Aside from acquaintances' raises the threshold relative to earlier PRRI trend wording, so the trend comparison printed beneath it is not strictly like-for-like

neutral — Definition supplied in neutral terms taken from the group's own self-description; response options are exhaustive and non-leading. The Post is explicit in the topline that the pre-2022 trend rows come from PRRI with different wording.

Do you think the greater social acceptance of transgender people is:

Wording notes: explicit middle category 'neither good nor bad', which absorbs 35% and depresses both the good and bad shares | trend row is drawn from a Pew Research Center item with different wording, which the topline discloses

neutral — Symmetric five-point good/bad scale with an explicit neutral midpoint and intensity gradations on both sides. The one caveat is placement: it directly follows the personal-contact item, which the Post's write-up shows is strongly associated with the answer (70% good among those with a trans close friend or family member versus 35% among those without).

Thinking about transgender women and girls - people whose sex was classified as male at birth but who currently identify as female -

Thinking about transgender women and girls - people whose sex was classified as male at birth but who currently identify as female - do you think transgender women and girls should or should not be allowed to compete in sports with other women and girls at each of the following levels?

Wording notes: asks only about transgender women and girls, never about transgender men and boys | defines trans women as 'people whose sex was classified as male at birth', foregrounding natal sex | offers an explicit 'no opinion' option, which 15-17% take | asks each competitive level separately, which is a methodological strength - most polls collapse them

neutral — The definition supplied is clinical rather than pejorative, both response directions are stated, and an explicit no-opinion option is offered rather than forcing a side. Separating professional, college, high school and youth levels is unusually careful and does surface a real gradient (28% to 33% 'should be allowed'). The asymmetry of asking only about trans women is a genuine limitation, though it tracks where the policy debate actually sits.

If transgender girls are not allowed to compete with other girls in youth sports, how concerned are you that the mental health of transgender girls will suffer?

Wording notes: presents the strongest argument against bans and is paired with question 9, which presents the strongest argument for them | conditional framing ('If transgender girls are not allowed...') asks respondents to reason about a counterfactual

neutral — Read alone this item raises only the argument against exclusion, but it is immediately paired with question 9 raising the argument for it, and both come after the participation battery rather than before, so neither can prime the headline measure. The four-point concern scale is balanced with no forced direction.

If transgender girls are allowed to compete with other girls in youth sports, do you think:

Wording notes: includes a formally symmetric but substantively implausible option ('other girls would have a competitive advantage'), which only 2% choose | asks about perceived advantage rather than about any evidence for it

neutral — The response set is formally balanced - advantage in either direction plus 'neither' plus no opinion - and the item is paired with the countervailing mental-health question. The reverse-direction option functions as a symmetry device rather than a live alternative, but including it is better practice than a bare yes/no on whether trans girls have an advantage.

Asked of the 64% who said yes to question 10, 'Are you a parent or guardian of a child of any age, including adult children?'

(AMONG PARENTS) Are any of your children: (Select all that apply)

Wording notes: places transgender, non-binary and gender-nonconforming alongside male and female in a single 'select all that apply' list, so the categories are not mutually exclusive

neutral — A descriptive demographic item with no evaluative content. The select-all format lets a parent report a child as both female and transgender, which is the correct design choice here.