Psychological Abnormalities of Sexual Identification

The normal process of development of sexual identification slides almost unnoticed through well-defined, but overlapping stages to a definite end point. That end point is an individual who senses that his core gender, male or female, is consistent with the body morphology, the external genitalia, the chromosomal configuration, and the hormonal balance. Also, there must be the development of personality traits, masculine or feminine, consistent with the sense of core gender. Finally, although somewhat outside the scope of our present discussion, there must be the establishment of a role or life style in adulthood in accordance with the first two steps. The end point normally is sexual behavior acceptable to both the individual and to society, that is, heterosexual behavior in an individual who is comfortable with himself