➔ Gender and Sexual Identities
◆ Gender Identities
● Gender identity: The degree to which we see ourselves as feminine, masculine,
some other gender or no gender
● Gender expectations: Societal attitudes and behaviors associated with an
individual’s sex assigned at birth
● Gender is fluid – it can change
● Gender is on a continuum
○ Some cultures acknowledge a third or fourth gender
○ More people are identifying as gender non-conforming, nonbinary,
gender fluid, genderqueer
● Cisgender – when gender identity aligns with our sex assigned at birth
◆ Transgeder:
● Someone whose gender identity and/or gender expression differs from what is
typically associated with the sex they are assigned at birth
○ May not mean body discomfort
● Gender-affirming surgery and/or hormone treatment
● Terms to avoid:
○ Transexual (outdated)
○ Transgendered (grammar)
● Many people have gender expressions that are not conventional – but that alone
does not make them transgender
◆ Sex
● Sex
○ Chromosomes
○ Hormones
○ Internal and external reproductive organs
○ Secondary sex characteristics
● Sex is also fluid!
○ Intersex:
◆ Individuals with anatomical, chromosomal, or hormonal
differences from “males” or “females”
○ “Corrective” or “gender-normalizing” surgery on infants and children is
common but attitudes are changing
○ Most intersex persons continue in the gender identity assigned at birth
◆ Gender Expectations:
● Masculine people are thought to have instrumental traits
○ Confidence
○ Assertiveness
○ Ambition
● Feminine people are thought to embody expressive traits
○ Warmth
○ Sensitivity
○ Placing concern for others above self-interest
◆ Gender Identities
● Gender identity: The degree to which we see ourselves as feminine, masculine,
some other gender or no gender
● Gender expectations: Societal attitudes and behaviors associated with an
individual’s sex assigned at birth
● Gender is fluid – it can change
● Gender is on a continuum
○ Some cultures acknowledge a third or fourth gender
○ More people are identifying as gender non-conforming, nonbinary,
gender fluid, genderqueer
● Cisgender – when gender identity aligns with our sex assigned at birth
◆ Transgeder:
● Someone whose gender identity and/or gender expression differs from what is
typically associated with the sex they are assigned at birth
○ May not mean body discomfort
● Gender-affirming surgery and/or hormone treatment
● Terms to avoid:
○ Transexual (outdated)
○ Transgendered (grammar)
● Many people have gender expressions that are not conventional – but that alone
does not make them transgender
◆ Sex
● Sex
○ Chromosomes
○ Hormones
○ Internal and external reproductive organs
○ Secondary sex characteristics
● Sex is also fluid!
○ Intersex:
◆ Individuals with anatomical, chromosomal, or hormonal
differences from “males” or “females”
○ “Corrective” or “gender-normalizing” surgery on infants and children is
common but attitudes are changing
○ Most intersex persons continue in the gender identity assigned at birth
◆ Gender Expectations:
● Masculine people are thought to have instrumental traits
○ Confidence
○ Assertiveness
○ Ambition
● Feminine people are thought to embody expressive traits
○ Warmth
○ Sensitivity
○ Placing concern for others above self-interest
