MyTransitionPartner v 2.0beta

gender identity is the way you understand your gender

  • What it is
  • How it develops
  • Biological sex
  • Binary identities
  • Nonbinary identities
<
>
Most people in the world are cisgender. In other words, cisgender identity is typical. Cisgender individuals feel connected to the gender we assume they will identify based on the sex assigned to them at birth. That is, their gender is the same (i.e., cis) that which was assumed at birth. Unlike transgender identity which is very diverse, cisgender identity is fairly narrow. Cisgender people either identify as a man (i.e., cisgender man) or a woman (i.e., cisgender woman). However, cisgender people can still be gender nonconforming or expansive if their gender expression is atypical of how we would expect a man or woman to express their gender.

Transgender identity, while atypical (i.e., occurring less frequently in the population), is not abnormal (i.e., associated with psychopathology). It is perfectly normal, if not fairly uncommon, for a person to identify as transgender. In fact, transgender identity has been frequently upheld as a normal expression of human identity across time and culture by psychological, medical, sociological, and anthropological research. Every major medical and psychological professional organization in the United States supports the normalcy of transgender identity.

At birth, we are assigned a sex by the physician who delivers us. That assignment is based on our genitalia rather than by our internal understanding of our gender (i.e., our gender identity). We tend to assume that people assigned male and birth will be men and people assigned female at birth will be women. However, our identification with gender is much more complicated than this. Individuals who feel a disconnect from the gender we assume they with identify with based on the sex assigned at birth are transgender. That is, their gender is opposite (i.e., trans) that which was previously assumed.

There are three broad categories of transgender identity:
  • Transgender men are individuals who were assigned female at birth but who identify as a man.
  • Transgender women are individuals who were assigned male at birth but who identify as a woman.
  • Nonbinary people are individuals who were either assigned male or female at birth but who do not identify as either a man or a woman. Sub-types of nonbinary identity include agender, bigender, gender queer/queer, gender fluid, third gender

In the proceeding sections, you will learn more about these individual identities.
Around the age of three, we begin to understand the ways in which society is gendered. That is, we begin to realize that some behaviors, interests, and roles are associated with certain biological sexes. At this time, we also begin to understand that we are classified as either boys or girls, and that we will grow up to be men or women. From this point forward, we begin to see children aligning themselves with gendered behaviors and looking up to and mirroring an older person with the same gendered behaviors.

The thing which draws us toward one set of gendered behaviors over another is our internal sense of who we are in relation to gender. This internal sense is driven by a set of psychological processes which connect our self-concept with our social self. In other words, we have an internal picture of who we are, and we live in an external social reality in which we must perform a specific role. This connection of who we are on the inside with how we relate to our external social role is our gender identity.

This process of identifying our gender and accepting it as our own is not an overnight occurrence. For some children, this process will be largely completed by the age of six or seven. These children are either cisgender (i.e., the gender roles assigned to them at birth are a good fit for them psychologically, emotionally, and socially) or they are transgender (i.e., the gender roles assigned to them at birth are not a good fit for them psychologically, emotionally, and socially) and happen to have supportive parents who help them explore their feelings about their gender. For other children, this process can take a longer time, stretching across the lifespan into late adulthood. For these people, there were no supportive parents. There was no environment of safe exploration. There was a rigid expectation of acceptance of birth-assigned gender identification.

For the last decade or so, the majority of transgender people have come to understand and accept their gender identity in their early twenties to mid-thirties when they have more autonomy to explore their identity. Transgender people who go to college tend to come to this understanding sooner because they usually have access to more support resources. However, thanks to an increase in online support communities, organizations in larger communities, and visibility in the media, learning about gender identity is more accessible than every before. Thus, we should see more and more people coming to understand their gender identity much earlier.
Biological sex is much more complicated than that which is listed on your birth certificate or even the presence of XX or XY chromosomes. Typically, when people talk about biological sex, they are referring to your sex assigned at birth. Sex assigned at birth is highly subjective and takes into consideration one fact: the way your genitalia look. When we are born, the physician or midwife who facilitates delivery looks at our genitalia and makes a decision about whether or not we are male or female. As medical research has shown, this is not always a reliable method.

This is because biological sex is the sum of five factors: chromosomes (i.e., the presence or absence of a Y chromosome), type of gonads (i.e., ovaries or testicles), dominant sex hormone (i.e., androgens or estrogens), internal reproductive organs (e.g., a uterus), and external genitalia (i.e., penis or vagina). Without laboratory tests, chromosomes and hormonal composition is not readily apparent. Without ultrasounds, it is impossible to know what internal reproductive organs (e.g., ovaries, uterus) lie beneath the surface. Consequently, a cursory glance for a penis or vagina is a fairly inaccurate test of biological sex.

Variations do exist on sexual dimorphism (i.e., male vs. female). Intersex people are born with variations of these five factors that makes classification as male or female difficult. These variations include chromosomal, gonadal, hormonal, or genital atypicalities. While being intersex is relatively rare, being born this way is a normal variation of human biological sex. Historically, intersex people have been highly discriminated by the medical profession. It was common practice for physicians, in consultation with parents, to make a determination of biological sex along the male/female divide, and to perform corrective gender surgeries ante-natal. Today, this practice is considered unethical since it has been associated with later severe psychological distress and mental illness among intersex individuals.

Biological sex plays a very small role in gender identity. Gender is a socially and culturally defined practice comprised of roles, attitudes, behaviors, customs, and expectations. While gender is socially and culturally defined, it has traditionally been done so along biological sex lines. Thus, the only role biological sex plays in gender identity is the classification of gender identity as either cisgender or transgender. Other than that, your biological sex plays no further role in determining your gender identity.

Types of Biological Sex
  • Male: Presence of XY chromosomes, testicles, dominant androgen hormones, presence of epididymis, vas deferens, prostate glands, seminal vesicles, and cowper glands, and a penis and scrotum.
  • Female: Presence of XX chromosomes, ovaries, dominant estrogen hormones, presence of vagina, cervix, uterus, fallopian tubes, and a vulva.
  • Intersex: Presence of a variation of sexual dimorphic male or female classification.
  • Transsexual: A transgender person who has undergone medical intervention to alter one or more of the five factors that determine biological sex.
Binary identities are gender identities which fall along the man/woman split that mirrors the male/female split which is commonly associated with a view of two biological sexes. While neither sex nor gender fall on a binary, most western cultures have oversimplified sex to just male and female and the majority of people have gender identities which fall along the binary. There is nothing wrong about identifying as binary, it is just not the only correct way to be.

Man
A man is a person who typically (but not always) associates with a more masculine than feminine expression and who identifies with the roles, behaviors, responsibilities, and expectations typically associated with males in a given society. As a gendered term, man does not, and should not, imply the presence of a penis and testes.

Subtypes
  • Cisgender man: A person who was assigned male at birth and who identifies as a man.
  • Transgender man: A person who was assigned female at birth and who identifies as a man.

Woman
A woman is a person who typically (but not always) associates with a more feminine than feminine expression and who identifies with the roles, behaviors, responsibilities, and expectations typically associated with females in a given society. As a gendered term, woman does not, and should not, imply the presence of a vagina, uterus, or ovaries.

Subtypes
  • Cisgender woman: A person who was assigned female at birth and who identifies as a woman.
  • Transgender woman: A person who was assigned male at birth and who identifies as a woman.
Nonbinary or gender queer identities are gender identities which do not fall along the man/woman split that mirrors the male/female split which is commonly associated with a view of two biological sexes. Nonbinary identities are based both on the fact that neither sex nor gender fall on a binary, as well as the notion that people are not required to adopt either a masculine or feminine identity or to adopt either exclusively. Nonbinary identities are actually more common than people might think, and many people find dissatisfaction with the binary life that many cultures expect. Nonbinary people are not completely void of gendered behaviors, and most demonstrate gender expression that can be classified as either masculine or feminine. A person can be assigned male at birth but identify as nonbinary. They could dress more traditionally feminine most of the time but not identify as a woman though they may describe their appearance as feminine. For nonbinary people, it is about the removal of the label and the gendered restrictions which come with that label that matters. There is nothing wrong about identifying as nonbinary, it is one of many correct ways to be.

Agender
An agender person is someone who does not identify with one particular gender or set of genders. It is not the absence of gender or gendered behaviors, but rather the lack of self-definition using gendered terms.

Other terms used to describe agender identity:  gender neutral, genderless, nongender, gender free, and neutrois.

Genderqueer people may identify as either having an overlap of, or indefinite lines between, gender identity;[2] having two or more genders (being bigender, trigender, or pangender); having no gender (being agender, nongendered, genderless, genderfree or neutrois); moving between genders or having a fluctuating gender identity (genderfluid);[3] or being third gender or other-gendered, a category which includes those who do not place a name to their gender.[4]

Gender fluid
A gender fluid person is someone whose gender identity is fluid and changes depending upon the time, place, context, or situation. A gender fluid person can feel more masculine one day, more feminine on another day, or more androgynous on another day. A gender fluid doesn't change their gender, but rather exist in a space where their gender encompasses multiple gender identities simultaneously.

Third or Other Gender
Third or other gender people do not place a name to their gender identity. In some cases, third or other gender identities may reflect cultural or ethnic traditions such as those seen in Native American, Pacific Islander, Asian, or Balkan peoples.

Two or More Genders
People with two or more genders identify with overlaps in gendered behaviors and norms. These individuals experience their genders simultaneously or at different times.
  • A bigender person is someone who identifies with both binary genders either simultaneously or at different times depending upon the context, time, or situation.
  • A trigender person is someone who identifies with three gender identities either simultaneously or at different times depending upon the context, time, or situation. This is an extremely rare identity.
  • A pangender person identifies with all gender identities simultaneously. This is an extremely rare identity.
This is not a complete list.