In one study, 40% of those classified as "desisters" were subthreshold even for the DSM-IV criteria. The four studies all offered evidence that statement of transgender identity in childhood predicted transgender identity in adolescence andadulthood and the intensity of gender dysphoria in childhood likewise predicted its intensity later in life. The studies published from the 1960-1980's never used the term desistance, instead focusing on "gender-deviant behavior" - childhood femininity in people assigned male at birth - and how this more often predicts homosexuality rather than "transsexualism" in adulthood.
In one investigation, 40% of those classified as 'desisters' were below the DSM-IV threshold, while four studies all demonstrated that early expression of transgender identity predicted later identities and intensities of gender dysphoria. Earlier research from the 1960s to 1980s used terms like 'gender-deviant behavior' instead of desistance, focusing on childhood femininity in males assigned male at birth and its connection to homosexuality rather than adulthood transsexuality.