Gender Dysphoria: A Mini-Ethnography

The transsexual subculture of America believes that their gender dysphoria is biological. Transsexuals often take steps to match their physical attributes to their gender identity. Typically, members of this subculture are very isolated and have very few resources from which to draw. According to material provided by the sample group, transsexuality, also called gender dysphoria or Gender Identity Disorder, is "A misery with regard to gender... a state of conflict between gender and physical sex." (…

…change over time and vary from culture to culture. Some of the examples used include the ancient Romans who worshipped the Goddess Cybele, Hijiras from India, the Sioux Winktes, the Navajo's Nadles, Sererr of the Pokots of Kenya, the Xaniths of Islamic Oman, the Mahu of Tahiti, and the Sekrata of Madagascar. In all of these situations, the transsexual culture appears to grasp that gender identity is cultural, yet still maintain that it is biological.