Thanks go to those who participated in this study and to those who helped distribute the questionnaires. You know who you are, and out of respect for your anonymity, I need not name names here.
The diversity within the gender dysphoric community is investigated, with the goal of developing a model of gender identity that can more adequately describe that diversity than do current conceptualizations of gender identity disorders. Three separate components of gender identity are proposed: personal identity, social identity and sexual identity. Participants were persons born with physically male appearance, raised as male, but who demonstrate some degree of gender dysphoria. Participants completed a questionnaire regarding their beliefs about what contributes to their personal gender identity.
Analysis of the data showed that in this sample, the three components of gender identity were not strongly related to each other. Furthermore, the three components were not strongly related to a person’s sexual orientation. Although those people identified as transsexual identified themselves strongly with the sex opposite to that assigned at birth in one or more of the three areas, there was no single constellation of scores on these three components that are unique to transsexualism.
Introduction
The
Traditional Model
Benjamin’s
Classifications for Gender Dysphoria
Docter’s
Classifications for Gender Dysphoria
A
Proposed Model of Gender Identity
Method
Participants
Design
Results
Participant
Demographics
Gender
Identity Dimension Analysis
Computation
of gender identity scale scores
Analysis of
responses to the hypothetical scenarios
Analysis
of Variance of Gender Identity Scales
Diversity among
transsexuals
Discussion
Participant
recruitment
Personal
and Social Gender Identity Scales
Sexual Gender
Identity Scale
Hypothetical Scenarios
Cross-Dressers
and Transvestites
Transgenderists
and those Undecided about Sex Reassignment
Transsexuals
Comparison to
Other Gender Classification Instruments
Implications for
Treatment
Conclusion
Suggestions
for Future Research
References
Appendix
| Copyright © 1997, 1998, Dawn R. Banks |
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