Psychology of Women: Development/Unit 3
Step 1: The Chromosomes
Step 2: The Gonads
Step 3: Hormones
Step 4: The Internal Reproductive Tract
Step 5: The External Genitalia
Step ?: The Brain
Issues of
Intersexed individuals: Gender and
Development
I. Traditional
Medical Treatment model (Chase, 1999)
·
“Intersexuality is defined as being born with various
combinations of male and female attributes, often but not always with ambiguous
genitals (Chase, 1999).”
·
Until recently doctors felt they had a clear-cut
treatment for this medical problem.
·
Traditional Medical Model holds that sexual ambiguity
is intolerable
·
Two criteria for choosing
·
Wide support amongst clinicians even though there has
been little empirical data on it.
·
Are
surgeon’s legally liable?
II. Complications of
the traditional model
A. Individuals who
have been treated under this model are beginning to speak out.
B. They report the
following....
A personal
experience by an individual
III. Landmark Case
Proved Wrong
·
Case Study:
John/Joan (Video: Brad/Brenda)
·
Commonly sited medical failure: how one experience can change the entire
process (perhaps a good discussion question?)
·
1960’s John’s penis was damage during circumcision,
and thus he was reassigned as a girl as it was deemed impossible for a male to
exist w/o a penis.
·
Used as case in point in reassigning male children
with inadequate penises as girls
·
1997 Milton
Diamond published actual details of this individual’s life.
·
A conversation with
Milton Diamond
IV. Development of
an Intersexed Advocacy
·
Intersexed individuals began to speak out in 1993
(ten years ago)
·
Introduction
to Intersexed Advocacy
V. Is Change
Underway?
What else do you suggest?
Conclusion
Additional Intersexed and Transgendered Links
Intersexed and
Transgendered Website
Glossary of related words (What
does transgendered mean?)
Overview of Transgender, a
PDF File: Great overview/introduction to trans-gendered issues
Overview to the Gender
Variance Model: how to use it.
Intersex Initiative (IPDX): End Medical Abuse of
Intersex Children: PORTLAND, OREGON.
They also have a website for Japan, but it is in Japanese.
Traditional
Values Coalition: Article on Intersexed Individuals. Presents the viewpoint that Intersexed (they
call hermaphrodite) should be considered a birth defect. I find it very
interesting that they do not discuss the pitfalls of the gender reassignment
surgery in either article.
Traditional Values Coalition:
Yet another article on Intersexed Individuals.
Presents the similar viewpoint
as above
Intersex Initiative’s
Rebuttal to TVC: Emi Koyama’s rebuttal
article.
Teaching Intersexuality: A
journal Article by Emi Koyama and Lisa Weasel.
Student Resources for Writing
Intersexed Term Papers
Columbia (International article) and
Intersexed Issues
Part 1: Infancy and
Childhood.
Influences on Gender Development
1. “Socialization refers to the process by
which each generation passes along to children the knowledge, beliefs, and
skills which constitute the culture of the social group (Etaugh & Bridges,
2001).”
2. Parents
GROUP ACTIVITY–what chores were you assigned as
a child and adolescent? What were your
brothers or sisters assigned?
3. School
4. Peers
5. Media
Additional References:
Chase, C. (1999).
Rethinking treatment for ambiguous genitalia. Pediatric Nursing, 25(4), 451-456.
Rossiter, K., & Diehl, S. (1998). Gender reassignment in children: Ethical conflicts in surrogate decision
making. Pediatric Nursing, 24(1),
59-62.
Zucker, K. J. (1999).
Intersexuality and Gender Identity Differentiation. Annual Review of Sex Research, 10,
1-69.