Gender dysphoria/Brain sex theory

Biological Theory

One biological explanation is brain sex theory, which argues that there is a particularly part of the hypothalamus which is responsible for sexual behaviour called the BSTc. The BSTc in heterosexual men is twice as large as in heterosexual women containing double the neurons. One theory proposes that the size of the BSTc may correlate with the individuals preferred sex rather than their biologically assigned sex.

Zhou 1995

Zhou et al (95) studied the BSTc and found that in males who wanted to be females, they had a BSTc which was the same size as a heterosexual female, which would support the idea that biological factors are the reason for gender dysphoria.

Zhou 1995 - Evaluation

However, in terms of psychology as a science, the data is correlational and therefore we cannot be certain of cause and effect, as this may be a symptom of gender dysphoria rather than a cause and this explanation may lack internal validity. Plus, the study only studied six male-to-females, and as the sample was small it is not representative of target population, particularly because it doesn't measure female-to-male transsexuals.

Chung et al

Chung et al found that the differences in the BTSc found by earlier studies had developed in adulthood even though people with gender dysphoria say they felt as if they were the transgender from an early age. Chung et al therefore disagrees with Brain Sex Theory

AIS & CAH

Biological explanations such as a mismatch between hormones and genetic sex of individuals. Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS) and Congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) may result in intersex individuals due to prenatal surges in hormones causing external genitalia to not match their genetic sex resulting in them being mislabelled the wrong gender. This then may lead to gender dysphoria later in life.

Family Influence

Family conditions may cause gender dysphoria. It is thought that transgender women may be as a result of an overly close relationship to their mother and a distant relationship to their father. They therefore don't have suitable male roles and according to social learning teory we learn from imitating behaviour.

Gender dysphoria may also be linked to the inability to mourn a parent or important attachment figure in early life. As a result they internalise their personality traits and hence mimic them.

Di Ceglie 2000 - study of James

Di Ceglie studied James who lost his grandmother (who cared for him) at a young age. James then went on to develop gender dysphoria. After therapy and accepting and discussing his grandmothers death the gender dysphoria passed. This therefore supports the idea that gender dysphoria is linked to grieving and internalising.

Di Ceglie 2000 - Evaluation

This study is a case study and therefore could be an exception hence making the result less generalisable. This therefore decreases the studies support of the theory.

Social Learning Theory

Further evidence for social learning theory influence on gender dysphoria comes from Reker who looked at 'gender disturbed boys' in a group of 26. Out of the most disturbed boys 75% had had no father figure compared to 21% in least disturbed boys. This supports the idea of social learning theory leading to gender dysphoria as they had no same sex parent to identify with and as a result developed gender dysphoria.

However, the problem of correlational data arises as it is hard to establish cause and effect in this research. The father could have left because the child was cross dressing rather than the gender dysphoria arising because the father left, and therefore nature could be to blame not nurture.

General Weaknesses

Methods used to investigate gender dysphoria which look at the action of hormones are very reductionist. They do not include the influence of environmental factors. This type of reductionism is too narrow to explain something as complex as differences in behaviour in men and women.

Social sensitivity & nature vs nurture

Research into gender dysphoria is also socially sensitive due to the possible social implications findings may present. If the cause is found to be biological (only due to nature) then this may help society to be more accepting of transsexuals rather than stigmatised negatively as society can see it's not their own preference or choice. On the other hand if evidence suggests a psychological cause such as conditioning or learning (nurture and the environment), such individuals may face further discrimination as they may be seen as choosing to behave in a way that derives from socially acceptable behaviour.