Lesson 9 Gender- Atypical gender development
(Gender Dysphoria)
Gender dysphoria- characterized by the strong, persistent feelings of identifications with the
opposite gender
- Hylen’s study (A01 +A03)
o Genetic predisposition (vulnerability)
o Suggestions of candidate gene
o Diathesis stress model (Suggesting that it is a combination of nature and nurture)
o Twin studies showed – 39% concordance rates in monozygotic twins in 63 pairs
o 0% concordance rates in dizygotic twins in 21 pairs
o Considering that MZ twins share 100% of their DNA and the concordance rate is only
39% suggests a level of interactionism
o Also limited by the small sample size of the DZ twins
- Structures of the Brain
o Dimorphic- parts of the brain that are different in males and females
o The Bed of nucleus of the stria terminalis are 40% in males and has far more neurons
than females (and are fully developed at the age of 5)
o Evidence supporting that people have gender dysphoria have the brain structures
which corresponds with the gender they identify with (Post mortem studies)
o For example – Studies by Ning Zhou showed that a biological male that transitioned
to female had a similar brain structure and neuron count as a woman
- Evaluati on – A03
Point- Brain sex theory has been criticised
Evidence- Mulshoff Pol et al suggested that the differences seen in the transexuals may actually be
due to the hormonal therapy they undergo as a part of their transition
Explanation- this means that the brain structures are not a cause of the gender dysphoria and
instead the differences in brain structures are only correlated with gender reassignment
Link- therefore, the biological explanation of atypical gender development is flawed
- Socially sensiti ve
o Psychologist should be cautious with the language they use when discussing this
o Should also consider whether the patient would benefit from a diagnosis – ‘relief’ vs
‘illness’/ ‘disorders’
o Drummond et al -> 25 girls which expressed gender dysphoria in childhood, aged 24
only 3 continued to express gender dysphoria
o This highlights the social sensitivity of this topic as it may suggest that many
transexuals are merely in a ‘phase’ or will grow out of it.
(Gender Dysphoria)
Gender dysphoria- characterized by the strong, persistent feelings of identifications with the
opposite gender
- Hylen’s study (A01 +A03)
o Genetic predisposition (vulnerability)
o Suggestions of candidate gene
o Diathesis stress model (Suggesting that it is a combination of nature and nurture)
o Twin studies showed – 39% concordance rates in monozygotic twins in 63 pairs
o 0% concordance rates in dizygotic twins in 21 pairs
o Considering that MZ twins share 100% of their DNA and the concordance rate is only
39% suggests a level of interactionism
o Also limited by the small sample size of the DZ twins
- Structures of the Brain
o Dimorphic- parts of the brain that are different in males and females
o The Bed of nucleus of the stria terminalis are 40% in males and has far more neurons
than females (and are fully developed at the age of 5)
o Evidence supporting that people have gender dysphoria have the brain structures
which corresponds with the gender they identify with (Post mortem studies)
o For example – Studies by Ning Zhou showed that a biological male that transitioned
to female had a similar brain structure and neuron count as a woman
- Evaluati on – A03
Point- Brain sex theory has been criticised
Evidence- Mulshoff Pol et al suggested that the differences seen in the transexuals may actually be
due to the hormonal therapy they undergo as a part of their transition
Explanation- this means that the brain structures are not a cause of the gender dysphoria and
instead the differences in brain structures are only correlated with gender reassignment
Link- therefore, the biological explanation of atypical gender development is flawed
- Socially sensiti ve
o Psychologist should be cautious with the language they use when discussing this
o Should also consider whether the patient would benefit from a diagnosis – ‘relief’ vs
‘illness’/ ‘disorders’
o Drummond et al -> 25 girls which expressed gender dysphoria in childhood, aged 24
only 3 continued to express gender dysphoria
o This highlights the social sensitivity of this topic as it may suggest that many
transexuals are merely in a ‘phase’ or will grow out of it.
