Social explanations
Cards (4)
- ao1: social constructionist - GD explained in terms of socialisation
- Gender identity 'invented' by societies, not biological. Gende confusion (dysphoria) arises because people have to select gender.
- Therefore dysphoria is not pathological (a mental disorder) but due to social factors.
- For example, McClintock (2015) studied biological males in New Guinea born with female genitals due to genetic condition. At puberty genitals change and accepted as kwolu-aatmwol - females-then-males.
- However, after contact with West kwolu-aatmwol are seen as abnormal instead of normal.
- ao1: psychoanalytic theory
- Ovesey and Person (1973) suggest GD in biological males is caused by a child experiencing extreme separation anxiety before gender identity has been established.
- The boy fantasises about a symbiotic fusion with his mother to relieve his anxiety and remove his fear of separation.
- As a result the boy 'becomes' the mother and thus adopts a female gender identity.
- Stoller (1973) found that GD in biological males did describe overly close mother-son relationships that would lead to greater female identification and confused gender identity in the long term.
- ao3: One strength is evidence of more than two gender roles.
- Some cultures recognise more than two genders, e.g. fa'afafine of Samoa, challenging male versus female.
- Increasing numbers of people now describe themselves as non- binary, showing cultural changes now match the lived experience of many.
- This suggests that gender identity (and dysphoria) is best seen as a social construction than a biological fact.
- ao3: One limitation is issues with psychoanalytic theory.
- Ovesey and Person's theory does not explain GD in biological females and only applies to transgender females.
- Rekers (1986) found that GD in transgender females is due to the absence of the father rather than fear of separation from the mother.
- This suggests that psychoanalytic theory does not provide a comprehensive account of gender dysphoria.