Masculinity, femininity, and transsexualism

Anna Herman-Jeglińska , Anna Grabowska , Stanisław Dulko

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between sex role and gender identity in a Polish transsexual population where, unlike in Western countries, male-to-female (MF) transsexualism is much less common than female-to-male (FM) transsexualism. One hundred and three FM (82 primary, 21 secondary) and 29 MF (16 primary, 13 secondary) transsexuals plus 135 control males (CM) and 303 control females (CF) completed a Sex Role Inventory, which measures sex-role identification, that is, the degree to which one self-identifies with masculine and feminine characteristics. Data obtained from primary transsexuals revealed that, on a femininity scale, MF transsexuals scores exceeded not only CM but also CF. On a masculinity scale, MF transsexuals rated themselves significantly lower than CM, but at a level comparable to CF. The comparison of FM transsexuals and controls showed that, on a masculinity scale, transsexuals scored higher than CF but were not different from CM. On the femininity scale, FM