Abstract The paper briefly describes the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV-TR) criteria for definitive diagnosis of genderidentity disorder. The paper also discusses the psychoanalytic perspective of the disorder as well as possible biological correlations related to sexual orientation.
From the Paper "Sexual and gender identity disorder, also known as transsexualism, is a disorder in which the individual strongly identifies with the opposite sex. It is a disorder primarily because of the significant physical (actual) and psychological (perceived) disparity existing within the individual, leading to psychosocial distress. The disorder can manifest during childhood or adolescence. Subjectively, this may be described as a "man (or boy) being trapped in a woman's (or girl's) body" or vice versa. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-IV-TR) diagnostic criteria requires four or more conditions to be met."
Abstract The paper examines the essays "I Won. I'm Sorry," by Maria Burton Nelson, "Gender Role Behaviors and Attitudes" by Aaron Devor and "The Gender Blur" by Deborah Blum that explore whether genderidentity is primarily biological or largely socially constructed. The paper discusses how women and men continually receive messages, from advertising to their nurseries, that indicate the roles they should assume in society. The paper then discusses those who struggle with their identities from a young age, whose genderidentity is all about their own unique biology. The paper therefore comes to the conclusion that genderidentity is a blend of social constructs and each person's own unique biological makeup.
From the Paper "Gender identity is most certainly socially constructed in our country, and it begins at the time of birth. Little baby boys come home from the hospital to blue, yellow, red, or green rooms (never pink), decorated with sailboats, jungle animals, or trains, while little girls come home to frilly pink rooms decorated with ruffles, fairies, princesses, and stuffed animals. From then on, the gender roles for little boys and girls become even clearer, and they point children down the "right" paths that little boys and little girls should always follow at a very young age. Little boys grow up learning they do not play with dolls, cook, or care about what they wear, while little girls grow up learning they do not get dirty, do not play competitive sports, and never outshine the boys on the playground or in the classroom."
Abstract This paper discusses genderidentity and the way that the need to classify, label and categorize genderidentity has polarized the push toward civil rights for all genderqueers. It discusses the impact of the pressure to conform to gender roles and expectations that come from early childhood. It concludes by discussing society's view of those that it attempts to categorize into specific genderidentities and the need for more flexible ways to consider gender and sexuality.
From the Paper "One of the most salient points that Wilchins raises in Queer Theory, Gender Theory is that gender seems to have become even more polarized since the LGBT movement has gained momentum. Yet neither Wilchins nor one of the authors who contributed to Genderqueer can aptly explain why gender cuts so deeply to the core of human identity and why the "ick factor" exists to begin with. The authors do explain that eliminating the "ick factor" depends on a wholesale paradigm shift beginning with language and discourse and gradually affecting media manifestations, education, and political policy changes. For example, butch women should no longer be labeled as "freaks," whether they are gay or straight. A woman who chooses to slip back and forth between butch and femme roles need not fear the repercussions of her style of dress, and a man who does the same would also be able to express his gender without having to label himself or describe his sexual preferences."
Abstract The paper provides a review of the literature and recommendations for practitioners. The paper shows how genderidentity disorder (GID) treatment for children is inclusive of individual and group therapy and also separate individual and group therapy for parents. The paper relates that GID treatment for adults is also inclusive of therapy in addition to hormone therapy and reassignment surgery. The paper discusses how the research indicates that there is still a great deal that is unknown about GID. The paper maintains that practitioners must attempt treatments that have realized some positive outcomes.
Outline:
Introduction
Definition of GenderIdentity Disorder
Children with GID
Treatments for Children With GID
Adults with GID
Treatments for Adults with GID
Conclusion
From the Paper "The Natioanl Institutes of Health explains that the symptoms of GID in children include a disdain for their own genetalia, a desire to be the opposite sex, depression, rejection, isolation and anxiety. The symptoms of adult with GID include wanting to destory their genitals, dressing as the opposite sex, the desire to live their life as the opposite sex, rejection, depression and anxiety(Gender Identity Disorder). Now that we have garnered a greater understanding of GID, let us focus on the impact of GID on both children and adults and the treatments that are available for both children and adults."
Tags: transgender, sexuality, depression, anxiety, therapy, surgery
A look at the clinical diagnosis of genderidentity disorder, the cause and prevalence of the disorder, and controversies within the counseling profession related to genderidentity disorder.
Abstract This paper reports the diagnostic criteria and typical course of genderidentity disorder including the theories of this disorder and the etiology and prevalence of this disorder. Evidence-based treatments found to be most effective are also reported as well as a consensus and controversies of the disorder in this field of study.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Clinical Diagnosis
Cause and Prevalence of GID
Controversies in the Field
Evidence-Based Therapies
Summary and Conclusion
From the Paper "The work of Duncan Osborne entitled: "Voices- Identity Crisis" relates the condition and the controversies very well in a story that tells of a five-year-old boy whom he treated. Later the child was treated as an adult. Osborne relates that generally these children who have been diagnosed with gender identity disorder grow up to be homosexual. Osborne reports a study conducted in the early 1980's by Green who finds that, among 44 such boys with gender identity disorder that: "...75% were either gay or bisexual and one wanted sex reassignment.""
According to Osborne, Psychologist Kenneth J. Zucker, head of Toronto's Child and Adolescent Gender Identity Service at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, is a "leading GID expert who has seen roughly 625 children or adolescents since 1978." (2003) According to Osborne, Zucker states that: "The majority of kids will have resolved their gender dysphoria and identify themselves as gay. We're also going to find that around 15% have a significant gender dysphoria that has persisted into adolescence and young adulthood to the point where they are wanting sex reassignment. If we add on to that a small minority of kids who report being heterosexual, we're seeing a real range of outcomes." (Osborne, 2
Tags: theories, assigned sex, cross-sex roles, mood disorders, surgery
Abstract The subject of the paper is gender and geography. The paper argues that genderidentities are determined by the fear of public urban spaces. In order to maintain the patriarchy women are convinced that there is something to be afraid of. Men on the other hand build identities as aggressors or protectors. The paper examines how it is not just the physical environment that determines spaces within cities, but also social, political, ideological, economic and cultural factors.
From the Paper "Spaces within cities are not just determined by the physical environment. Social, political, ideological, economic and cultural factors are just as important. This is what Tracey Skillington is saying in The City as Text when she uses the term "the city as text". Skillington argues, It was by way of a complex system of symbolic interaction that meaning was socially constructed and politically mobilized, that certain cultural codes of interpretation were mediated through the symbolic features of discourse on the city to justify the system of cultural and political authority as it is (Skillington, 1998:458)."
Abstract This paper takes a look at the complex issue of genderidentity. The author of the paper argues that the categories of "man" and "woman" should be viewed from a social perspective and not a biological perspective. An actual legal case involving a married couple, one of whom is a transsexual, is discussed and referenced to help support the author's argument. The author concludes that identity should be considered in a "social" content, rather than a biological one.
From the Paper "Imagine this. You are Josyln, a twenty-seven year old female transsexual. You and your husband, Julius, were happily married for nine years. This is Julius' second marriage, and the both of you are raising his two children from a previous marriage. Julius works overtime to pay for your newly built dream home. One afternoon an intoxicated cab driver collides head-on into Julius, killing him instantly. You file suit against the cab company for negligent hiring under a wrongful death statute as Julius' surviving spouse. Prior to settlement, the cab company requests that you to consent to genetic testing because no state recognizes same-sex marriages. You consent, confident that you are a woman. You have the outer image of a female, have all the organs of a female, and have spent three years in psychological counseling prior to your surgery."
Abstract Louise Erdrich, in her book Love Medicine, and John Neihardt, in his biographical novel Black Elk Speaks, both address the importance of gender in the daily lives of their characters. This paper compares the role of genderidentity to each of the main characters in these novels and how the society in which they live influences their outlook.
From the paper:
"Louise Erdrich, like many of the characters in her novels and short stories, is part Native American, part something else ? in her case, her family is a mixture of a German-American father and a Chippewa mother. Erdrich's parents worked for the Bureau of Indian Affairs as teachers on a nearby North Dakota reservation and she recalls that her father regularly recited memorized poetry ? Frost and Byron ? to her and her six siblings and it is no surprise that Erdrich started her literary career as a poet, supporting herself by working at a Kentucky Fried Chicken and on road construction crews. "
Abstract An exploration of genderidentity of women as their lives evolve from childhood to adolescence to adulthood. The paper discusses various factors that influence the development of this essential self-concept. It discusses the role of society, peers, family, and one's cultural surroundings, which all impact the development of gender awareness.
From the Paper "Gender identity involves not only sexuality and sexual proclivities?as in the establishment of the sexuality of the transgendered. Female gender identity arises from how a woman interacts in and with society. Traditionally, conformation to society's norms was considered paramount. Society says that a young woman should be: assigned female at birth, be feminine, see herself as a woman, and be attracted to men. Therefore, consider the definitions of some basic concepts. Gender refers to the sociocultural facet of being male or female. Sex refers to the biological side of things. Gender Identity is an individual's sense of being male or female. Gender role is the set of expectations that prescribe how females or males should think, feel, and behave."
Abstract In this paper, Sigmund Freud's research into sexuality bisexuality, homosexuality, gender issues) is reviewed. The paper holds that Freud is respected for much of the original research he conducted into the differences between the sexes, the personality issues that are affected by psycho/sexual dynamics, dream psychology, genderidentity and other areas of psychology. It claims, however, that more than a hundred years after his work, there are more than a few questions about the objectivity of his research, the credibility of his theories, and accuracy of his work. The paper concludes that after examining the events that were happening in his life during the time he conducted some of the research, there is room for some doubt.
From the Paper "Meanwhile, according to Myths and Mysteries of Same Sex Love (Christine Downing), Freud himself was involved in "perversions" (e.g., homosexual relationships) with other men, namely Josef Breuer, Wilhelm Fliess (beginning in 1887) and later with Carl Jung, his close associate in research - a third gay relationship which was at its most intense period from 1907-1912, according to Downing (24). Knowing this information could possibly have the potential of casting a shadow of doubt on some of Freud's work in the area of same sex relationships and same sex research."
Abstract This paper explores how man defines himself in terms of gender. Several theories of gender identification are presented, each within its own particular field. The author gives examples of the biological basis of gender, the psychological basis, cultural perspectives, and socially constructed theories. Additionally, the main character from "Six Degrees of Separation" is used as an example of genderidentity through social constructs. The paper concludes that gender is continuously defined through a lifetime of experiences.
Outline
Biological Arguments Gender Psychological Theories of Gender Cross Cultural Perspective and GenderIdentity Socially Constructed Gender Theories and Gender as a Social Institution
Six Degrees of Separation
From the Paper "Kimmel suggests that gender is not something that someone is born with but rather is a social institution that people create as a result of interaction, beliefs and values. Gender is an institution that people either widely accept as one way or another. Within any given society there are cultural norms that people identify with and that help shape their behaviors, values and beliefs. Gender differences thus can be easily created as an institution and can be representative of inequality when that inequality is supported or constructed by society at large (Kimmel, 2000). Kimmel suggests that inequalities are created as norms and arise within relationships, within families and even in the workplace or any other environment in which people work intimately (Kimmel, 2000). "
Analyzes Teresa de Lauretis' book "Technologies of Gender: Essays of Theory, Film, and Fiction" which discusses the role film plays in the forming of genderidentity.
900 words (approx. 3.6 pages), 3 sources, 2002, $ 35.95
Abstract This paper reviews the book "Technologies of Gender: Essays of Theory, Film, and Fiction" by Teresa de Lauretis (1987). De Lauretis analyses the ways that film produces genderidentities. For de Lauretis, this is achieved through the technologies of cinema, so that identity is produced in the contexts of visual tools.
Abstract This paper will delve into how genderidentity and socio-cultural politics of contemporary society are shaped by and reflected in linguistics practices. Using the parameters of language, an attempt will be made to demonstrate how gendered language interacts with the varied dimension of social identity and how it reflects on the relationships between the sexes.
Abstract This paper examines genderidentity based on the statement: The body does not have a gender. The author utilizes sociological and feminist theories to describe the meaning of the phrase in terms of differences between one's biological sex and one's gender. It focuses on both the biological and social aspects and differentiates between them. The paper also discusses the role biological sex plays in identity.
From the Paper "According to Alcoff and Mendieta the term identity typically refers to the way people see themselves the groups they feel a part of and the aspects of themselves they consider significant. However some theorists distinguish ..."
Abstract On-Line discourse today consists in large part of adult users who are essentially "mapping' power relations in terms of gendered language use as they are understood in off-line contemporary society onto computer mediated forums. This paper examines the relationship between gender and language in the medium of the online classroom discussion forum. It also looks at possible contrasts with genderidentities in future generations of Internet users.
From the Paper "The students using the online class forum are in a peculiar position, in that they are the last part of the only group in technological history for whom the Internet will be an indispensable tool in terms of future occupations, but for whom the Internet was not an educational tool learned and familiarized in childhood (learned simultaneously with the acquisition of written language). That computer and Internet use including online messaging is now used by and marketed to very young children, future generations of online users will grow up with a different understanding of identity in online culture. As children use the Internet as an educational and social forum, they will have a greater innate recognition of the power relations inherent in language use, and ways in which to manipulate these linguistic power relations in order to steer online communication."
Tags: female, identity, internet, post, postings, internat
