Atypical Gender Development - SEX & GENDER Flashcards
define gender dysmorphia
chronic distress due to perception of gender mismatch
excl. interesex conditions
study that found a possible transgender gene
Hare et al (2009)
what did Hare et al (2009) study
112 male to female transexuals’ DNA
findings of Hare et al (2009)
the androgen receptor gene was significiatnly longer in transexuals
what does the longer androgen receptor gene cause
it reduces the ability of testosterone to cause changes in development
when may the brain of transexuals be much less masculine than average
if the threshold level for masculine development is never reached
(biological explanations) what does the BSTc stand for
Bed nucleus of Stria Terminalis
what is the size difference of BSTcs in straight men compared to women
men’s are 2x the size
what do BSTc do
it integrates info from across the limbic system - the info is used to monitor stress-readiness levels
what does BSTc size correlate with
preferred sex rather than biological sex
what did Zhou et al (1995) find - biological explainations
male to female transexuals’ BSTc were similar sizes to female average
what did Kruijver et al (2000) find - biological explanations
female to male transexuals’ BSTc were usually within typical male range
how does stress effect the sex of the brain
it can change the sex of brain regions in less than 15 mins
dendritic spines - female vs male
female neurons tend to have more dendritic spines than male neurons - important for firing/processing speed
what did researchers find happened in the brain after 15 minutes of stress (on rats)
there was a reversal pattern in the rat’s hippocampus
