Atypical gender development Flashcards
What is gender dysphoria
Used to describe when a person experiences discomfort or distress because there is a mismatch between their sex assigned at birth and their gender
What are two biological explanations for gender dysphoria?
- Brain-sex theory
- Genetic factors
What is the brain sex theory?
The idea that the brain of a transgender individual does not match their genetic sex
What is the BST (bed nucleus of the stria terminalis)?
A structure located in the thalamus responsible for emotional responses - it is twice as large and has twice as many neurons in males compared to females
How has study of the BSTc shown support for brain-sex theory?
It has been found the size of this structure correlates with the gender you identify with not your biological sex
What research has shown support for the brain sex theory?
Zhou et al. (1995) and Kruijver et al. 2000) - two Dutch studies found that the number of neurons in the BSTc of transgender females was similar to that of the females and vice versa for transgender males
What research has shown support for genetic influences of gender dysphoria?
Heylens et al. (2012) found that 39% of MZ twins concordant for gender dysphoria compared to none of the DZ twins
What are two social explanations for gender dysphoria?
- Social constructionism - McClintock (2015)
- Psychoanalytic theory - mother-son (Stoller, 1975) and father-daughter relationships (Zucker, 2004)
What is the social construction perspective for gender dysphoria?
Gender identity is ‘invented’ by societies and is not due to biological differences - it’s not a pathological condition, but a social phenomenon which arises when people are required to choose one of two particular paths
What is evidence for social constructionism?
McClintock (2015):
- The Sambia of New Guinea - genetic condition causing males to be categorised as girls at birth as they have a labia and clitoris, but when hit they puberty they ‘grow’ a penis
- In this culture it is accepted that some people are men, some women and others are kwolu-aatmwol (females-then-males)
What influence does a mother-son relationship have on the development of gender dysphoria?
Stoller (1975) used clinical interviews to find that males with gender dysphoria had an overly close relationships with their mother - this leads to greater female identification and confused gender identity
What influence does a father-daughter relationship have on the development of gender dysphoria?
Zucker (2004) found that females with gender dysphoria suffer from paternal rejections in early childhood - unconsciously think if they become males they might gain acceptance from father
What is the strength for the biological explanations for atypical gender development?
Scientific credibility:
- Majority of research is based on scientific laboratory experiments.
- Biological structures can be objectively verified in controlled and objective conditions. This enhances the scientific credibility of the biological explanation for GD.
Counter argument- Lab experiments lack ecological validity- settings and tasks normally are artificial and may not reflect everyday life settings.
What are the two limitations for the biological explanations for atypical gender development?
Criticisms of brain-sex theory-
- Chung et al. (2002)- noted differences in BSTc volume between men and women does not develop until adulthood, whereas most transsexuals report feelings of gender dysphoria from early childhood.
- Difference found in BSTc could be the effect rather than the cause of transsexualism.
- Pol et al. (2006) - transgender hormone therapy does influence size of the BSTc and the individuals in the Dutch studies had been receiving hormone therapy might explain why their brain sex was more similar to their gender identity rather than their biological sex.
- Counter argument- Rametti et al. (2011)- studied the brains of female to male transsexuals before they started transgender hormone therapy.
- In terms of amounts of white matter in their brains, they had a more similar pattern to their gender identity (males) than those who share their biological sex (females).
Twin studies are inconclusive-
- Twin studies do not yield very high concordance rates (only 39% in Heylens et al. study).
- It is also very difficult to separate the influence of nature and nurture within these investigations.
- Twins (especially MZ twins) may influence each other, and the environmental conditions they are exposed to are likely to be very similar.
What is the strength for the social explanations for atypical gender development?
Research support for mother-son relationships-
- Zucker et al. (1996)- 64% of boys with GID diagnosed with separation anxiety disorder compared to only 38% boys who had gender concerns but symptoms were subclinical (not severe).
- This suggests that some kind of disordered attachment to a mother is a factor in GID.
- Counter argument- Not all research supports these findings. Cole et al. (1997)- studied 435 individuals experiencing GID range of psychiatric conditions displayed was no greater than found in a ‘normal’ population.
