Hi, all!

I'm new here, and wanted to let you all know about this gender study currently being done. The questionaire isn't too long, but leaves a lot of leeway for as much depth and detail in your answers as you care to give. Most importantly, it seems to be sincere and free of stereotypical assumptions about those of us who might be better served by an "other" box to check when asked M/F? on forms.

If you have always wished for a study that takes your IS and/or TG status seriously, here's your chance to participate.

Tina

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Sociologist Seeking Volunteers For Interviews

Contemporary social problems directly related to society’s "one-size-fits-all" understanding of gender include the treatment of intersex conditions as medical emergencies in need of a cure, the construction of deviance around gender bending behaviors, and the classification of cross-gender identification as a mental disorder.

This study is directed toward improving our understanding of how gender identity develops at the individual level, as well as to document the impact that rigid definitions of gender have for individuals as members of society. This work expands on work done by Dr. Milton Diamond on gender identity and "self-testing." Dr. Diamond is a member of the advisory committee overseeing this research.

Volunteers of all sexes, races, ethnicities, genders, sexualities, and nationalities are being sought for this study. Participation is strictly confidential. The responses will be aggregated for analysis, protecting the anonymity of participants.

As a volunteer, you will be asked to discuss how you think of yourself as a man, a woman, or occupying an intermediate position in the gender continuum.

If you would like to volunteer for this study please contact me by email at jfortado@socy.umd.edu

Jennifer Fortado
Department of Sociology
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742

I mean this with respect but why do you make this assumption that people with intersex or trans conditions are better served by the "other" box ? I know that some of us feel that we belong in an "other box" but I also know many that don't feel this way.

I know people that are transgendered that would not fit in an "other box" because they truely are born in the wrong gender and it is their goal to trans completely into the gender their brain tells them to be. Many people with intersex medical conditions can and do have a male or female gender. Although, it may not be the one the medical community thought they should have but still they do pick one or the other gender. I wonder if you understand the complex issues behind each intersex condition. Of course, there will be people with intersex conditions that don't feel they are part of any gender but that also can be stated about people that don't have any condition.

Sincerely,

Aimee P. Morgan