Gender Identity : An Unfamiliar And Confusing Concept

Debates about identity as environmentally or biologically constructed have been on going in several studies. The belief that identity is innate is a form of common sense understanding that is challenged by the constructionist perspective of identity. The sex/gender identity is when a person who is determined as male or female based on biological criteria is required to act according to assigned gender roles of masculinity or femininity (Carrera et al. 2012). That being said, the sex/gender identity creates limitations on the categories a persons identity can fall under. Although we have these fixed categories, gender identity is socially constructed because there are groups outside of being a man and woman. Also, there are different types of gender identities across the world and identity is created over time.

Sex and gender seems to be the primary focus in trying to determine the identity of transgender. Before any form of cohesion can take place to discuss transgender, the biological aspect must first be noted. Origin identification for each individual is biologically identified as male or female, and at times intersex. "Our gender includes a complex mix of beliefs, behaviors, and characteristics. How do you act, talk, and behave like a woman or man? Are you feminine or masculine, both, or neither? These are questions that help us get to the core of our gender and gender identity ("Gender and Gender Identity at a Glance," 2014)". According to society, an individual's sex identity is normally assigned at birth, thus, as a transgender, one will identify him/her self as an expression, i.e., masculine, feminine, male or female, opposite of his/her biological identity. " Some people, for example, may have been born with a penis,

In the 21st century, social formalities in America have been increasingly questioned especially the construct of gender and gender identity. Millennials are pioneering to change gender stigmas and the traditional beliefs of the role of man and woman. This upsurge in breaking gender roles has allowed for a new wave of identity where people aren't satisfied with being boiled down to one textbook definition of masculine or feminine. Across social media platforms such as Instagram where individuals can post pictures of their everyday life, we see men and women preforming non-traditional acts. Women post pictures of them bench pressing at the gym and men are posting pictures of their sweaters they've knitted. Among those advocating against

The development of our gender identity is influenced by both the biological nature of a person and society, but the biology is the foundation of our gender identity. In the following paragraphs I will be discussing the interaction between hormones and behavior, and how these interactions affect the determination of gender identity, the roles of biological factors nature and environmental influences, nurture on sexual differentiation and gender identity and which has the greater influence on gender identity: nature or nurture.

In light of performativity, political transformation via hegemonic cultural practices continues to advocate for gender parody. Overall, the recent exploration of alterity ethics complements performativity politics by exploiting the subversive potential of gender identity as well as female identity. For the oppressed individuals, power should be subverted via political strategy guided by the consequences and punishment with the objective of maximizing the good in the society. In other words, performativity politics described by the recent works of Butler takes the form of action consequentialism. Still, Butler’s politics is reversed by the ethics without coming to a satisfactory position.

Our lives and gender identity are shaped from the moment we are born. Culture, social, and environmental forces influence people’s biological identity. Discovering what it means to be male or female begins very early in people’s life. Most of the time people behavior or attitudes are influence by the gender role expectations by particular culture.

There really haven’t been many times in my life where there was a conflict between my personal experience and the gender identity that I was expected to conform to. Although I am a bit of an introvert. There have been less cases of these because with people that I choose to surround myself with I make sure that they know that I don’t care what anyone expects me to conform to. “Individuality makes its appearance by being differentiated from other individualities” (Buber, pg. 162). In response, they question me about why their likes, dislikes, and choices are different from mine, and not from society’s.

When a child is born the first question asked is whether the newborn is a girl or a boy. The biological sex of a child has a vital impact throughout the course of the it’s life. Gender identity formation is the process of which children translate social and biological facts about their gender into their attitudes, behavior, and individual understanding. This two-step process includes gender identity development (male or female), and gender roles (attitudes, behaviors, interest, and personality traits). Girls and boys typically behave different from each other because they are punished and rewarded different for their behaviors. This form of differentiation conditions the children. Moreover, a child’s behavior becomes sex typed because

This paper will discuss issues dealing with the roles of biological factors, (nature), and environmental influences, (nurture), on sexual differentiation and gender identity. The author, Troy Stutsman, will evaluate and give a determination as to which has the greater influence on gender identity: nature or nurture. Also discussed will be the current arguments about sexual identity and how evidence from biopsychology which may help to resolve the argument.

The construction of a self-identity can be a very complex process that every individual is identity is developed through the lenses of cultural influences and how it is expected to given at birth. Through this given identity we are expected to think, speak, and behave in a certain way that fits the mold of societal norms. This paper aims to explain how gender perform gender roles according these cultural values. I intend to analyze the process in which individuals learned and internalized their respective gender identities, through their cultural background. I will be conducting a set of interviews with the intention to compare my experience as a self-identified male of Mexican descent, to the experience of another male character of Japanese heritage in order to understand how we come to self-identify as masculine in diverged cultures. In this paper, I argue that the construction of gender identities is a direct consequence of societal influential factors such as family values; values that reflect the individual’s culture. This analysis will not only utilize evidence from these identity formations, but also in explaining why and how these self-identities were constructed using both theoretical sources and empirical studies as a framework.

While the terms “gender” and “sex” are often used interchangeably, the two words have significantly different definitions. One could argue that sex refers to biological essentialism and the idea that we are who we are because of our genetic material. On the other hand, gender is associated with the social constructionist theory, which argues that the way we are is dependent on our race, class, and sexuality. Because each person is different in their race, class, and sexuality, their gender becomes socially constructed. To argue that gender is not socially constructed would be to say that all people, for example, that are biologically female have the same goals. However, this cannot be true because within the sphere of being female, that

Gender is commonly conceived as a central part of an individual’s identity that extends further than merely one’s physiological sex. The idea of women and men being separated by innate differences has been scientifically disproved due to the lack of evidence. It is thereby apparent that gender is a discursive construct by means of creating prominent social role identities that hierarchically separate men from women. These classificatory practises have vast effects that tend to propel male authority and restrict female opportunity. The following articles present compelling accounts of the social malleability of gender to support the claim that gender is indeed a social construction.

Gender is imprinted in a person’s identity. A person’s identity is closely connected to the social institutions he or she includes himself in. These social institutions have influence over the lives of individuals in various aspects. One social institution an individual imparts oneself in is religion. Religious institutions use scriptures as the primary basis for life such as the Holy Bible for the Catholics and the Quran for the Muslims. Of the data given, some Christians and Muslim non-heterosexuals experience social exclusion because of some spiritual texts (Yip, 2005). According to a survey by Pew Research Center 's Social & Demographic Trends done in 2013 on the religious affiliations, 48% of the LGBT Americans did not have one. The executive director of the Gay Christian Network, Justin Lee said, "[the study] reflects a lot of my own experience in the LGBT community. Many LGBT people have felt a lack of understanding and love from religious groups-Christians in particular-and, as a result, they often walk away from their childhood faith and may even become very hostile to religion.” That statement is just one of the many sentiments non-heterosexuals experience in today’s contemporary society. The following paragraphs will discuss how Christian and Muslims non-heterosexuals critique the traditional hermeneutics and the credibility of institutional interpretive authority of Judeo-Christian Scriptures and Islam’s Holy Book – the Quran. There are two approaches namely, the

Seeing the riots and protests on the news can help people to put life in perspective, and with there being more and more issues with genders today it makes people wonder why. With there being so many genders that people identify with in this, the 21st century, it can get to be confusing and difficult for some people to follow and understand this ‘why’ behind people’s choices. Changes have been made within communities all around the country; eventually, other groups join into the changes. Some example of these being businesses, colleges, and other organisations. Though there are many people who aren’t involved with any sort of issue having to do with a person’s gender identity, those who are impacted by these decisions go through many different situations. A parent’s decisions while raising their child(ren) have a great impact on what the child identifies themselves as later on in life and the way that they express themselves in public. There being an increased amount of tension around the matter will more than likely continue growing as the publicity on the issue continues.

In the LGBTQ community, there is a tendency to use labels to define oneself. Many find comfort in these titles; they know that, with the existence of a name, there is a community with likeminded people out there in the world. This can mean an unexplainable amount to someone if they feel alone in their sexual or gender identity. A label can contain a very reassuring message: "you are not alone." Because of this, many people depend on these labels to understand who they are, without considering the damage that restriction that may do. According to queer theory developed by Judith Butler, a respected expert in the field, there is fluidity to the way one identifies. In this case, fluidity refers to not having a clear definition of a person's sexual or gender orientation. The film "Soldier's Girl" is a great example of where clear sexual and gender identity only serve to confuse the main protagonists. The story revolves around the murder of Private First-Class Barry Winchell in Fort Campbell, Kentucky because he fell in love with a trans woman.