Gender identity

"Gender identification" redirects here. For the process of determining the sex of a human, see Sex assignment. For the process of determining the sex of an individual animal, see Sexing.

Gender identity is the personal sense of one's own gender.[1] Gender identity can correlate with a person's assigned sex or can differ from it. In most individuals, the various biological determinants of sex are congruent, and consistent with the individual's gender identity.[2] Gender expression typically reflects a person's gender identity, but this is not always the case.[3][4] While a person may express behaviors, attitudes, and appearances consistent with a particular gender role, such expression may not necessarily reflect their gender identity. The term gender identity was coined by psychiatry professor Robert J. Stoller in 1964 and popularized by psychologist John Money.[5][6][7]

In most societies, there is a basic division between gender attributes associated with males and females, a gender binary to which most people adhere and which includes expectations of masculinity and femininity in all aspects of sex and gender: biological sex, gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation.[8][9][10] Some people do not identify with some, or all, of the aspects of gender associated with their biological sex; some of those people are transgender, non-binary, or genderqueer. Some societies have third gender categories.[11]

The 2012 book Introduction to Behavioral Science in Medicine says that with exceptions, "Gender identity develops surprisingly rapidly in the early childhood years, and in the majority of instances appears to become at least partially irreversible by the age of 3 or 4".[12][13] The Endocrine Society has stated "Considerable scientific evidence has emerged demonstrating a durable biological element underlying gender identity. Individuals may make choices due to other factors in their lives, but there do not seem to be external forces that genuinely cause individuals to change gender identity."[14] Social constructivists argue that gender identity, or the way it is expressed, are socially constructed, determined by cultural and social influences. Constructivism of this type is not necessarily incompatible with the existence of an innate gender identity, since it may be the expression of that gender that varies by culture.[15]

  1. ^ Morrow DF (2006). "Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Expression.". In Morrow DF, Messinger L (eds.). Sexual orientation and gender expression in social work practice: working with gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 3–17 (8). ISBN 978-0-231-50186-6. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2021. Gender identity refers to an individual's personal sense of identity as masculine or feminine, or some combination thereof.
  2. ^ Bhargava A, Arnold AP, Bangasser DA, Denton KM, Gupta A, Hilliard Krause LM, et al. (May 2021). "Considering Sex as a Biological Variable in Basic and Clinical Studies: An Endocrine Society Scientific Statement". Endocrine Reviews. 42 (3): 219–258. doi:10.1210/endrev/bnaa034. PMC 8348944. PMID 33704446.
  3. ^ Summers RW (2016). Social Psychology: How Other People Influence Our Thoughts and Actions [2 volumes]. ABC-CLIO. p. 232. ISBN 9781610695923.
  4. ^ American Psychological Association (December 2015). "Guidelines for psychological practice with transgender and gender nonconforming people". The American Psychologist. 70 (9): 832–864. doi:10.1037/a0039906. PMID 26653312. S2CID 1751773.
  5. ^ "Dr. John Money, pioneer in sexual identity, dies". NBC News. 9 July 2006. Archived from the original on 16 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  6. ^ Bevan TE (2015). The psychobiology of transsexualism and transgenderism: a new view based on scientific evidence. Santa Barbara, California: Bloomsbury. p. 40. ISBN 978-1440831270.
  7. ^ Stoller RJ (November 1964). "The Hermaphroditic Identity of Hermaphrodites". The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. 139 (5): 453–457. doi:10.1097/00005053-196411000-00005. PMID 14227492. S2CID 22585295.
  8. ^ Martin GN, Carlson NR, Buskist W (2009). "Psychology and Neuroscience". Psychology: The Science of Behaviour (4th ed.). Toronto, Canada: Pearson. pp. 140–141. ISBN 978-0-205-64524-4. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  9. ^ Eller JD (2015). Culture and diversity in the United States: so many ways to be American. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. p. 137. ISBN 978-1-317-57578-8. most Western societies, including the United States, traditionally operate with a binary notion of sex/gender
  10. ^ "Sexual Orientation & Homosexuality". American Psychological Association. 2020. Archived from the original on 16 February 2019. Retrieved 6 February 2020.
  11. ^ MacKenzie GO (1994). Transgender nation. Bowling Green, OH: Popular Press. p. 43. ISBN 978-0-87972-596-9. transvestites [who do not identify with the dress assigned to their sex] existed in almost all societies; Zastrow C (2013). Introduction to Social Work and Social Welfare: Empowering People. p. 234. ISBN 978-1-285-54580-6. There are records of males and females crossing over throughout history and in virtually every culture. It is simply a naturally occurring part of all societies. (quoting the North Alabama Gender Center)
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference bukatko was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference IntBehavSciMed was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference endocrine-society-position was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ "Gender identity". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 12 October 2023. Retrieved 13 October 2022.