Describe the events that transpired for the case of David and explain how his case has been used to understand the relative contribution of socialization versus biology to sexual identity
What will be an ideal response?
Answer: At 7 months of age, his penis was accidentally removed during a botched circumcision procedure. He was reassigned as a female (Brenda) and underwent a sex change operation (removal of the testes and creation of a vagina). For some time it was thought that he shifted his identity to that of a female, suggesting that social forces are more powerful than are biological. However, after a stormy adolescent period in which she grew to believe that she was a boy, it was revealed to Brenda that she had been born a boy, and the procedure was reversed (mastectomy, creation of a phallus). One view is that David's brain was exposed to circulating levels of androgens, which masculinized his brain, and that socialization could not overcome the impact of androgenization on brain circuitry.
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Nicole is a music lover who, after attending a concert, tells her friends the following: "When I was at the concert, the world seemed to be complete and I was one with it. Life seems different now than it was before the concert. It was really a meaningful experience for me." Maslow would state that Nicole
a) must be self-actualized. b) had a peak experience. c) had filled a physiological need. d) had achieved the dimension of freedom.
People whose sense of gender identity does not match their external appearance are known as
a. intersexed. b. homosexual. c. hermaphrodites. d. transgendered.