In the past, especially in the German-speaking world, the term gender referred exclusively to the biological differences between men and women. Meanwhile, the need to include psychological and social aspects of gender has been recognized. In the context of gender research, the transitional forms of gender are increasingly being considered. Increasingly, the picture is emerging of a scale in which the formerly rigid gender categories of male and female can be viewed, for example, like the color gray, ranging from black to white.
What is gender?
The term gender can refer to the biological differences between men and women, but it can also include psychological and social aspects of sex. In the German-speaking world, the term Geschlecht previously denoted the biological differences between men and women. In English usage, however, the concept of sex is broader under the term gender. In addition to the biological aspects, gender also includes psychological and social aspects in the definition of sex. With the purely biological definition, genetic, hormonal, and organic levels of the term are distinguished. Genetic sex is determined by chromosomes. Hormones determine gonadal sex, and sex organs determine genital sex. However, these definitions cannot describe the transitional forms between the sexes. This is because the sex of some people cannot be clearly determined because they possess biological characteristics of both sexes. For example, a person’s chromosomes may indicate a male gender, while hormonal balance assigns the same person to the female gender. Cases of this kind reveal the weaknesses of the classical definition of gender, which can only attest a disorder to those affected without actually having any biological disadvantages. In many cases, however, those affected then suffer psychologically because they are given the impression that they are abnormal.
Function and task
The biological sex of an organism is determined genetically and hormonally. Biological functions are associated with the formation of the primary and secondary sex organs. A woman’s physique allows her to carry a child to term. In this process, the child is taken care of by the mother during pregnancy in the body and after birth through breastfeeding. The male produces sperm for reproduction in the Leydig cells of the testes, which are passed to the female during the sexual act. This emphasizes the importance of different biological sex characteristics. However, it does not mean that, by implication, men and women must be fundamentally different in nature, or that people who are incapable of reproduction have a supposed gender disorder. The genetic sex is determined by the chromosome distribution of the sex chromosomes. The female has two X chromosomes and the male has one X as well as one Y chromosome. On this basis, hormonal processes are triggered during human development, which determine the primary and secondary sexual characteristics. Thus, the sex hormone testosterone is responsible for the formation of the primary and secondary male sex characteristics. The female sex hormones (the estrogens and progestins) determine the formation of the secondary female sex characteristics such as breast growth or menstruation. The female phenotype develops automatically when testosterone is not present or does not act. Thus, primary and secondary sex characteristics can develop through genetic determinations as well as through biological regulatory mechanisms. Intersexual characteristics, in which both female and male characteristics occur, are also subject to these biological processes. However, there are also psychological and social-culturally determined sex differences, which are counted among the tertiary sex characteristics. They express themselves in supposedly gender-specific behavior. However, tertiary gender characteristics vary according to cultural group. Here, society determines male and female role behavior. Gender research therefore examines the influences of society, psychology and biology on gender identification.Transsexual people do not identify with their biological sex and often want to have it adapted by gender reassignment. The role played here by hormonal processes in certain developmental phases or socio-political as well as cultural influences is also being investigated in the context of gender research. Scientifically, it is becoming increasingly clear that the determination of gender depends on several factors. In this context, the differences between intersexuality and transsexuality can also be pointed out: In the case of intersexuality, both female and male gender characteristics are present, or no clear gender characteristics at all. In transsexuality, the biological sex does not coincide with the psychologically perceived sex.
Diseases and complaints
It is not always easy to determine which characteristic deviations from biological sex are attributable to a normal variation in sex or an underlying medical condition. Intersexual expression can be caused by chromosome distribution, gene mutations, or hormonal abnormalities. Chromosome distribution disorders include Turner syndrome, Klinefelter syndrome, or mosaicism. In Turner syndrome, only one X chromosome is present. Another sex chromosome is missing. The affected individual forms a female phenotype externally and is short in stature. Sexual maturity does not occur. Furthermore, lifelong medical treatment is necessary because of the risk of additional developmental disorders. In Klinefeldter syndrome, the affected person has two X chromosomes and one Y chromosome. A male phenotype develops. It is not until puberty that it becomes clear that the typical male phenotype does not develop. Sperm production is reduced due to a testosterone deficiency. Furthermore, there are intersexual people with the formation of both male and female sex organs. In medicine, this is referred to as hermaphroditism verus (true hermaphrodite). Hermaphrodites can also give birth to or father children, although self-insemination is not possible. Little is known about the cause of this form of intersexuality. In complete androgen resistance (CAIS), a person with a male set of X and Y chromosomes develops a female phenotype from the beginning. In this phenomenon, the male sex hormone testosterone is produced, but the receptors that can absorb it are missing. Furthermore, there are so-called hormonal disorders that can lead to masculinization in women and feminization in men.
