Cisgenderism in psychology: pathologising and misgendering children from 1999 to 2008

Abstract

Abstract:We assessed whether recent psychological literature on children reflects or contrasts with the zeitgeist of American Psychological Association's recent non-discrimination statement on 'transgender' and 'gender variant' individuals. Article records (N = 94) on childhood 'gender identity' and 'expression' published between 1999 and 2008 inclusive were evaluated for two kinds of cisgenderism, the ideology that invalidates or pathologises self-designated genders that contrast with external designations. Misgendering language contradicts children's own gender assignations and was less frequent than pathologising language which constructs children's own gender assignations and expression as disordered. Articles on children's gender identity/expression are increasingly impactful within psychology. Cisgenderism is neither increasing nor decreasing overall. Mental health professionals are more cisgenderist than other authors. Articles by members of an 'invisible college' structured around the most prolific author in this area are more cisgenderist and impactful than other articles. We suggest how authors and editors can implement American Psychological Association policy and change scientific discourse about children's genders.

Diversidade de género na infância e na educação: contributos para uma escola sensível ao (trans)género

“…Coexistindo com o privilégio da masculinidade, há ainda que reconhecer o «cisprivilé-gio» (Enke 2012); e ao sexismo que continua a caracterizar as sociedades contemporâneas, deve juntar-se o cisgenderismo como traço das desigualdades de género. O cisgenderismo é a ideologia que invalida ou patologiza as autoatribuições de género que contrastam com as externamente atribuídas (Ansara e Hegarty 2012).…”

Living a fairy tale: the educational experiences of transgender and gender non-conforming youth in Northern Ireland

“…This basic gender division underpins patriarchal social relations, which endow boys/men with power and privilege over girls/women; and, affords advantages and opportunities to heterosexuals over nonheterosexuals. In heteronormative societies cisgenderism, which assumes a person born with a penis/vagina, will identify as a man/woman and will express themselves as masculine/feminine, is naturalised and normalised (see Ansara & Hegarty, 2012).…”

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