Values And Gender Identity

Internal conflict is something that the transgender community knows all too well. Feeling as though you are living in the wrong body can do serious damage to the way that someone sees themselves. One of the hardest time for transgender teens is puberty. Researchers have said that “This is a particularly hard age, since the body begins to change and adapt gender specific features (breasts, changes in genitals, menses, etc..). Transgender individuals have reported “I was disgusted by (hair, breasts…etc)” (Ami B. Kaplan, 2014). It already puts a child or teen under great stress to see themselves living life as a gender they feel is completely wrong, but, as puberty begins to hit and they see this body changing it only increases that self-hatred that slowly builds. Even though transitioning can be the best decision a transgender person might make, it can still be just as difficult to finalize this. Many transgender youth have said that they have “Fears about finding a partner, feelings about having to experience surgeries, hormones, (and for MTF transsexuals) facial hair removal and voice changes, and fears about violence and prejudice when one is read transgender”(Ami B. Kaplan, 2014). Even when the option to transition arises, doubt may still linger. Some transgender youth that have gone through with transitioning face many issues emotionally such as “Disappointment that transitioning didn’t solve all problems, level of satisfaction with appearance, level of satisfaction

What if you had a child who was experiencing gender dysphoria? A child who didn’t feel that they were comfortable being the gender that they were born into? What would you do if your child wanted to become the opposite gender? In the documentary “Growing up Trans” (TV Episode 2015) Children who are experiencing gender dysphoria tell their stories about what it’s like growing up transgender. The documentary offers insight on the issues and complications the children and their parents face while transitioning.

The part that confuses the majority of the people that are not transgender or don’t quite understand what it is, is when they speak to someone they thought was a certain sex and are asked to refer to them as the opposite sex. For example, meeting someone that appears to be a man and asked to refer to him as she/her. This can be especially confusing if a family member is going through a transition. Family members tend to be the most affected by a transgender in the family, they do not know how to react or how to help because they are most likely the only transgender in the family. Being transgender is not a choice, it is a feeling and almost all people that are transgender are unlikely to be able to feel happiness or find peace in life if they are not who they feel they truly are meant to be.

​​Gender is defined as whatever behaviors and attitudes a group considers proper for its males and females. Unlike sex, gender is something that we learn from the day we are born. “Young children begin to acquire gender role stereotypes at about the same time they develop gender identity and by the age of 3 or 4 most children” (Amanda Youmans). Peers, community, media, religion and our upbringing all play a role in the understanding of our culture and what is considered acceptable for males and females. When the sex of a child is revealed, they are automatically placed into a gender specific role with certain expectations. There are things in this world such as colors, toys, media depiction and taught behaviors that play into these gender roles.

Scholars have been critical of the medical establishment’s and state’s involvement in constructing and policing of transgender identity. These kinds of pressing issues have occupied the small existing literature. There is not much information and studying what is being done on transgender in traditional areas, family studies research, such as their dating behavior and formation of intimate relationships in adulthood. There is little research on the issues around being parents, their children’s experiences with having transgendered parents, as well as relationships in the family as a whole, and relationships in work and school.

Others factors such as health and family are major concerns. In fact, according to youth.gov. “research shows that due to these environmental challenges, LGBT youth are at risk for negative health outcomes and are more likely to attempt suicide, experience homelessness, and use illegal drugs. These issues may also contribute to anxiety, depressive symptoms, and feelings of isolation” (youth.gov, 2016). Therefore, the only positive aspect regarding transgender youth is their courage to express their feelings with loved ones, opposed to undergoing such changes and feelings silently (CNN,

Transgender youth are children and adolescents who consider themselves transgender or transsexual. Transgender youth are usually dependent on their parents for care, shelter, financial support, and other needs. Transgender youth face different challenges compared to adults and other hetereosexual youth. Transgender issues can arise at different times in life and be experienced differently for each individuals. Many of these children experience rejection as a result of their differences and quickly attempt to repress them creating self hate and isolation. People may see these children regularly and be unaware that they are unhappy as members of their assigned gender by birth.

The majority of trans* individuals realize in early childhood (i.e. between the ages of 2 to 4 years) that their assigned gender, by birth and societal expectations, is not congruent with their inner sense of self, as a result their earliest experiences of validation or rejection are rooted within the family system (Bernal & Coolhart, 2012). In 2012, Travers et al., conducted a study for the Children’s Aid Society in Toronto, Ontario. Their goal was to investigate the impact of strong parental support for trans* youth between the ages of 16-34. Through the use of self-report methods trans* youth reporting positive parental support, compared to those reporting little to no support demonstrated significant increases in life satisfaction, mental health, self-esteem and the likelihood of obtaining adequate housing. Of the 433 youth surveyed 34% reported they had parents they considered “very supportive,” leaving 67% of trans* youth rating their level of parental support between “somewhat” to “not at all.” Therefore, in order to address the needs of this large population of unsupported youth a TA-CBT therapist must understand the cognitive blockages underlying discrimination and rejection toward this population.

Gender identity is defined as the identification of a human being as being male or female. The knowledge that we have about gender acquisition is still not as accurate as we would like. Biological and environmental factors are at play and not one or the other seems to be completely wrong. Biological views relating to gender identity are supported by chromosomal and hormonal based differences. Environmental perspectives emphasize on modeling and experience (individual and cultural) affecting gender acquisition. However, the only unbiased way to assess gender identity is by taking into account both biological and environmental factors (McCabe, 2007). This paper focuses on gender identity in early childhood development.

Gender as defined by society as a division between biological sex and the roles you must take on in society. In reality gender is a true spectrum that does not follow a simple linear pattern. There are three major aspects that make a person who they are inside. These aspects are Sex, Gender and Gender Identity.

In a lot of places around the world more and more people are coming out as “Transgender.” The term transgender means that the person’s gender identity does not correspond with the gender they were assigned as having at birth. From personally having a transgender boyfriend I have since realized that these people experience a lot of discrimination in and from society. Many people simply just do not understand what the term transgender means and they see it as someone just “wants to be a man” or “wants to be a woman.” While there may be people who present it this way, it is more so that the individual just “feels” different, and “feels” as if they are “in the wrong body.” Some people experience this feeling at a young age as my boyfriend did in his elementary age. We live in a world who put these people down for being who they truly are, and no human being wants or needs that.

Gender should not be intertwined with the term sex, which refers to the physical differences in individuals. Instead, gender is the idea of being male or female, and it is well understood by the time children reach the preschool years. Differences in gender become more pronounced as children age, and societal expectations are reinforced by parents and peers. Behavioral differences may be evident since parents may treat their child differently according to gender. A big example of this is how parents may react to a child’s first

The traits perceived to be possessed by certain gender identities are instilled to the children while they are growing as the society have strong influence over the preferences and the behaviors of the young ones in that by influencing the interest of children they bring them up in a manner that the children start stereotyping before even they know what the stereotypes actually are since they have been brought up in an environment that they have known that certain traits or activities are appropriate or inappropriate for them. They then tend to internalize and that becomes the way to go or do things in their whole life.

The biggest question asked is how it comes around, however there is not a solid reasoning or proof of one main causal factor. According to Lippa, exposure to testosterone during the second trimester of pregnancy, when the development of both male internal and external genitals and a male-typical nervous system forms, may influence gender identity. (98) Brown counters this argument by saying the formation of a secure unconflicted gender identity and gender role is influenced by social factors, such as the character of parent’s emotional bond or the relationship each parent has with the child; he asserts that the biological factors (genetic complement or prenatal hormones) do largely determine gender identity however they do not act alone, more or less just setting the stage to go one way or the other.

The most obvious challenges I have faced living as a transgender male have been physical, but the hardest I have faced have not only been personal, but emotional. I have encountered countless overly personal inquisitions, questioning looks, and awkward introductions. Existing as a biological female for a large portion of my life imbued that period of time with many challenges. As a child, I fought passionately with my parents to shop in the “boys” section of the store, to play hockey and lacrosse, and to never step foot in a dress. I often wondered why other children would point and snicker at my choice of clothing. I even asked my distraught mother why I was “put in the wrong body” at the age of three. I had to grow up and not only learn, but understand and accept that I am not the same as everyone else. I had to come to terms with the fact that most people do not face the challenge of waking up every day and overcoming the feeling that something is fundamentally “off” that cannot truly be “fixed”. “Average” is a description I often longed to be labeled in the past, but over the years I have discovered that striving to be above average is the true key to success.