Theories Of Gender Identity

Perhaps, you are asking yourself this question, what is gender dysphoria? I have the answer. Gender dysphoria is “ the diagnosis typically given to a person whose assigned birth gender is not the same as the one with which they identify.” However, let’s not confuse this with sexual orientation, this does not mean they are homosexual, this means they do not identify who they are as their given birth

According to the articles, the causes of transgender is a person having vague feelings of not fitting in with people of their same sex, and some experiencing gender-conforming attitudes and behaviors later in life. A controversial cause is gender dysphoria according to the American Psychiatric Association. Gender dysphoria is defined as persistent gender incongruence. This is a very debated topic and its current classification may change in the future.

In a world moving advancing with near instantaneous publication worldwide the fringe edges of society have become more visible. One group of people that has had the spotlight shined on them is those suffering from gender dysphoria–persons who are not comfortable living in the bodies that they are born with and are often referred to as transsexual. As of 2010, there was an estimated population of less than 1,000 of these fringe members of our society incarcerated in state and federal facilities. (Brown)

The word identity has become the most discussed idea in our society. It is described mostly, to be a word that stands for who we are. Therefore, because of who we are, identity has come to be a word that we use to claim and understand people’s actions in our society. So in this paper I will be analysing how social practices surrounding identity relates to gender in social, personal levels, through the work of three authors; by Ian Hacking on “kind making”, Margaret Somers on “Narrative construction of identity” and finally, Frederick Cooper and Rogers Brubaker on “beyond identity” . However, I will tilt more toward Frederick Cooper and Rogers Bruakers article on identity. This is because I feel that their article contributes better to my

There are a variety of vulnerable populations that exist in today’s struggling society. There are groups that are more vulnerable for certain illnesses or death and individuals that are segregated or treated differently because their preferred sexual interests and habits. This discussion will cover the definition of vulnerable population with the focus primarily on transvestites. The transvestite demographics and my personal awareness of this vulnerable population will be viewed with my personal attitudes and the health care delivery can be affected. I will give my own reflection toward this particular group including my perception before and after becoming more familiarized.

Gender Dysphoria is a name given to the condition of children who express a gender that is opposite of their biologically given gender. Children and teens who present and verbalize the desire to be of the opposite gender for at least six months are then diagnosed and treated medically. This issue is ethically controversial due to many parents, medical doctors, mental professionals, and myself believing that biological gender identification is not fully understood until puberty has taken place, noticing that children are exposed to transgender terminology and situations on the internet that are persuasive and confusing, and being concerned about the medications used to treat a disorder that can barely be explained and is misunderstood. Medications such as hormone blockers and opposite-sex hormones have become readily available to them without any long term testing. Not only should parents, doctors, professionals, and society be concerned about the safety of these medications, we should be asking ourselves, is gender dysphoria even a medical condition that should be treated with drugs or is it a psychological disorder that should be treated with therapy? Gender Dysphoria is a condition in children and teens that the general population does not understand, however, after doing research I believe the definition of gender dysphoria is

The article mainly discusses the life of being born as a hermaphrodite and the contradictions that medical management and medical investigators have on them. The author of the article, Anne Fausto-Sterling, believes that hermaphrodites are human too and that the medical field should only worry about the hermaphrodite’s health conditions rather than their physical appearance. The article states that Western culture strongly agrees that there are only two sexes, so being a hermaphrodite is none existing. They are simply unexplored by science itself (pg. 2). Sterling believes that hermaphrodites have needs as well as problems that need to be met and that they deserve to be accounted for as sexes.

Most people that have paraphilic disorder are male and they are most likely to participate in such behavior between the ages of 15 and 25. The most common sexual paraphilia is sexual masochism. Women are less likely to be diagnosed with his disorder. Disorders can occur regardless of ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and sexual orientation (301). It is important to note that certain terms are not scientific, but rather reflects the moral beliefs of the culture. For example, Nymphomania is defined as “abnormal or excessive sexual desire in a woman” (301).

The common term used is transgender. Although transgender or gender dysphoria can be described as a mental disorder, treatment does not include curing the individual. The standard treatment for transgender individuals is help alleviate the significant distress and potential social or functional impairment through transitioning, education or hormonal therapy (APA, 2013). Transgender people experience their gender differently and may choose not to pursue surgery or hormonal therapy. Several terms are included under the comprehensive term of transgender (Erickson-Schroth, 2013). Transsexual, although a dated term, generally refers to individuals that aspire to some form of surgery or hormonal treatment to complete their transformation. Genderqueer individuals may define themselves as either encompassing both genders or neither gender as defined by stereotypical roles and behaviors. Additional, terms that incorporate the conversion from assigned gender to preferred gender are male-to-female (MTF) and female-to-male (FTM). Individuals that do not have a conflict between their assigned gender and expressed gender are referred to as cisgender, which is defined as a congruent gender identity (Erickson-Schroth,

Therefore, a centrality of the biomedical sciences in questions related to transgenderism is observed, which is assimilated from the perspective of the pathological

Gender dysphoria is a complex struggle between a person’s physical gender and who he or she identifies, and this could be an individual physically born as a male that identifies as being female and vice versa. Biological sex is determined at birth based upon the appearance of the infant, but gender identity is how the person feels or how they identify themselves, which is where the dysphoria comes in. It is from highly complex genetic, neurodevelopmental, and psychological factors (Mandal, 2012), and is not the same as homosexuality or gender nonconformity. Symptoms and signs of gender dysphoria may vary depending upon age and gender. Gender dysphoria becomes known as a disorder when it fits certain criteria. Treatment is available when needed. There are speculations on the cause, but no real answer.

Many may wonder what being a transgender person really is, a lot of people may see or refer to it as someone who has gone gender transformation, or is confused with who they are. The word transvestite is very much used when referring to a person who identifies with the opposite gender, the word 'Transvestite' itself originated in 1910 by the well known German sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld, who also founded the Berlin institute which was where the first 'sex change' surgeries took place. 'Transsexual' was not used until 1949, the word 'transgender' not until 1971, and 'trans not until 1996, but they all refer to the same thing. The idea of being transgender goes as far back as 1503 BC to the Egyptians. It was believed that their second

Transsexuality has been variously constructed throughout the latter part of the twentieth century as a psychiatric disorder, identity category, and the basis for a political movement. Throughout history transsexualism was discursively constituted through each of these frameworks of reference, in which different psycho-medical assertions were employed to conceptualize trans identities. Today transsexuality, also known as gender identity disorder (GID), represents a term that is medically used to categorize and diagnose individuals who show a strong and persistent cross-gender identification and discomfort with their anatomical sex. For example, an individual that believes that his and or her assigned sex at birth conflicts with their psychological gender, and is likewise preoccupied with getting rid of their sex characteristics is an individual who suffers from GID. In response to the medicalization of transsexualism, much of society’s current legal and social understanding of trans persons has become rooted in the ongoing medico-scientific discourse. Moreover, modern-day transsexualism has been historically and socio-medically constructed through the growing demand for self-expression and transformation, which correspondingly challenges the sex and gender regime of the West.

The textbook Gender Ideas, Interactions, Institutions defines intersectionality as, the fact that gender is not an isolated social fact about us, but instead intersects with our other identities (Wade & Ferree, 2015). Gender intersects with a variety of factors that essentially shape and create our identities. Some examples of intersectionalities include, race, economic class, gender identity, age, ability and disability, immigration status, and sexuality. The authors’ state these intersectionalities help create our gender strategy, which is they define as “finding a way of doing gender that works for us as unique individual who are also shaped by other parts of our identity and the realities of our lives (Wade & Ferree, 2015)”. We can learn many things by taking into account the factors that create our identities, and how these factors create and shape our lives and our places in society. By exploring this topic, can we broaden our understanding of the way privilege and oppression are experienced in peoples lives by looking at gender and its intersections?

One area of social interaction within a culture that is symbolically dictated by images and expectations is gender identity. Because western society recognizes a two-gendered system, there exists a dichotomy between the characteristics and objects associated with both males and females. Notably, the colour blue frequently conveys masculinity while pink is instead aesthetically feminine. Likewise, where boys traditionally play with action figures as children, girls receive dolls. Belief in these signs—even if they are oversimplified—influences the language surrounding these gender roles and subsequently, produces assumptions of acceptable behaviour and actions. For instance, since action figures usually personify the characters of superheroes or soldiers, men, similarly become seen as being tough or brave. Furthermore, these images encourage them to perpetuate those traits. Contrastingly, dolls as models of babies, illustrate a view of women as being gentle and domestic figures. As such, in communities that distinguish between more than only two gender types, this polarity in the impressions of males and females would probably vary, or not exist at all.