The Concepts

What do these mean? Sex of a person Gender of a person Sexual identity Gender identity *Give examples/ characteristics of each

Sex What is sex of a person? Biological and physiological characteristics that define a human being Male, female, intersex (hermaphrodite, androgynous) About 1/10,000 born intersex Sex characteristics Women menstruate, men do not Men have testicles, women do not Women have developed breasts that are usually capable of lactating, men have not Men generally have more massive bones than women

Intersex Adrenogenital syndrome (AGS) What does ‘syndrome’ indicate? Binary categories; abnormal to have both M/F organs If someone is born intersex, what issue does this present? Social norms pressure parents More difficult to develop male organs Have surgery? Delaying surgery What do you tell people?

Intersex What happens if someone’s ‘assigned’ the wrong sex? Intersex support groups, organizations Some places starting to recognize this status issue Court in New South Wales, Australia recent ruling ‘Sex doesn’t bear a binary meaning of ‘male’ or ‘female’’ Birth, death, or marriage forms- sex identification not mandatory Benefits people who are intersex, with gender reassignment surgery, gender neutral

Gender What is gender of a person? Socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, attributes for males and females Masculine, feminine Binary construct of biological sex ‘Male’ and ‘female’ are sex categories; ‘masculine and ‘feminine’ are gender categories Aspects of sex don’t vary a lot bt. societies Aspects of gender may vary greatly What about transgendered, androgynous? Don’t fit? = Deviant

Gender (cont.) Socioculturally determined characteristics: Baby boys = blue; baby girls = pink Boys wear pants; girls wear skirts Boys play with guns; girls play with dolls Boys become doctors; girls become nurses What is gender identity? How a person defines their perception of being masculine, feminine, androgynous Can challenge society’s construction of gender norms

Gender (cont.) Socialization into these roles Embedded in public and private institutions Economic, political, educational, religious, etc. Familial, domestic realm Boys hang out with dads; girls with moms Society dictates appropriate roles of men/women  what is masculine/feminine Society dictates acceptable relationships between men/women Heterosexual is the norm = what is ‘right’

Gender (cont.) Gender characteristics: In most countries, women earn significantly less money than men for similar work In many Asian and African societies, women smoking is taboo In most societies, men are expected to be ‘manly’ In most of the world, women do more housework than men

Sexual Identity What is sexual identity? How a person defines their sexual orientation/ partner preference Heterosexual, homosexual (gay, lesbian), bisexual, transsexual (FTM, MTF), transgender, androgynous Transsexual- identifies with opposite biological sex, may want to change physical attributes Transgender- personal characteristics that transcend traditional gender boundaries, corresponding sexual norms Androgynous- both biological and identity meanings

Labels Why do we use labels? Easier to communicate Easier to process information Create the ‘other’ Evolve out of social norms

Recap Sex v. gender Sexual identity v. gender identity Gender identity Purpose of labels