Human Development Across the Lifespan - Gender Identity Issues that Essay

Human Development Across the Lifespan - Gender Identity Issues that Adolescents May Face - Essay ExampleThe offer of this paper is to focus on gender identity issues that adolescents face, and how they cope with them.Gender identity is defined as the youngsters internally perceived gender, c areless(predicate) of chromosomal constitution, gonadal/ hormonal secretions, or genitalia (Telingator & Daniolos, 2007 79). Gender includes biological sex but is larger in scope, encompassing the socially prescribed roles which are considered appropriate for each sex, which are different in various cultures (Lee, 2005). Hence, gender role refers to culturally underwritten masculine and maidenly behaviors, attitudes and personality traits which are based on biological factors as well as an individuals environment. Aspects of sex-typed behavior in childhood, adolescence or in adulthood are affected by hormones that crop a part very early in dilatement, as early as age two or three, sometimes by age five or later (Sexson, 2005 Pescovitz & Eugster, 2004). At the core of adolescents development is the separation-individuation process by which adolescents become independent of their parents in a process similar to that which occurs during infancy.Children usually develop a gender identity which is in alignment with with their assigned sex, also known as their sex of rearing. The formation of gender identity is influenced by the combining of childrens temperament and parents qualities and attitudes. Culturally acceptable gender roles are learned stereotypical roles, by which boys are required to be masculine and girls to be feminine in their behavior and conduct. However, over the past few decades there has been increasing toleration for mild cross-gender activity in children (Sadock et al, 2007).Sigmund Freud believed that gender identity problems resulted from conflicts experienced by children within the oedipal triangle (Sadock et al, 2007 718), which may be fueled by ac tual family