Gender Confusion is More Prevalent Among Urban Adolescents (Dissertation Sample)

Gender Confusion is More Prevalent among Urban Adolescents
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Research Method and Statistics: Mock Study
Gender Confusion is More Prevalent Among Urban Adolescents
Introduction
Clauss-Ehlers (2013) said that gender confusion is a misunderstanding of the sex of a person, in relation to the personality traits exhibited by a particular person to the public (Lynne-Landsman, Graber, Nichols & Botvin, 2011). In one way or another people expect that the behaviour exhibited by a particular gender should conform to certain expected norms. For instance, male should exhibit masculine traits while female are expected to have feminine traits. However, scientific exceptions have overruled this principle and have enabled males to show feminine traits and vice versa.
In 2013, the new edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorder (DSM-5) renamed Gender Identity Disorder to Gender Dysphoria. Both GID and gender dysphoria describe a condition in which someone is intensely uncomfortable with their biological gender and strongly identifies with, and wants to be, the opposite gender. It is important to point out that the older version, DSM-IV, there was a focus on the "identity" issue. While this incongruity is still crucial to gender dysphoria, the drafters of the new DSM-5 wanted to emphasize the importance of the distress about the incongruity for a diagnosis. In a nutshell, the previous diagnosis of GID implied that the problem lies within the individual while the new diagnosis refers to a psychological state that may lead to feelings of anxiety, restlessness and depression. In recent times GID, has gained an excessive amount of media attention, mainly due to Bruce Jenner's story. The 1976 decathlon gold medallist, was interviewed by Diane Sawyer, and explained the confusion he has experienced from a very young age. During his interview he mentioned how gender confusion was "very difficult to deal with" especially during his adolescent years, leading to many years of confusion, feelings of anxiety, and restlessness (Kapungu, Baptiste, Holmbeck, Mcbride, Robinson-Brown, Sturdivant & Paikoff, 2010)
These cases are usually influenced or could be caused by lifestyles that people have in terms of diet, culture and other factors. Such cases are popular among the young generation where their bodily growth through the adolescence stage, exhibits physical changes. They grow to change their body shapes, voices, and mentality, revealing their genes and behaviours of their sexes. These cases have increased over time and are mostly prevalent in urban areas where children adopt to acquire opposite traits by the influence of modernity (Lynne-Landsman, Graber, Nichols & Botvin, 2011). They develop gender confusion because of environmental and social influences which they learn from family members, or friends. Other cases occur because of genetic disorders like cross-genetic disorders, due to diet, or due to diseases. Cultural dilution also plays a role in compromising the values and traditions that teenagers acquire in their growth to adulthood. Unlike earlier life, modernity has neutralized strong cultural lifestyles, beliefs, and teachings that played a prominent role in shaping people along their gender responsibilities and expectations in the society (Collins Fantasia, Sutherland& Kelly-Weeder, 2012).
Statement of the Problem
There is an increase in gender confusion among people living in urban areas over recent years. This effect is most prevalent among urban adolescents. Based on the literature by Collins Fantasia, Sutherland& Kelly-Weeder (2012) adolescence group registers a high number of cases mostly in urban areas. These cases are attributed to the lack of gender identification that is immensely becoming common in most cities. Most adolescents are facing self-identification, which is assigned to the activities that the youth are involved in, among other environmental factors. Gender confusion has affected the relationship and identity of adolescents, causing discomfort among individuals through embarrassment from the confusion (Kapungu, Baptiste, Holmbeck, Mcbride, Robinson-Brown, Sturdivant & Paikoff, 2010). It reduces their personal self-esteem and confidence among peers. Observers have difficulties in differentiating gender and personality traits (Collins Fantasia, Sutherland& Kelly-Weeder, 2012). This predicament has been a threat to peaceful coexistence among people in the urban areas, since individuals experiencing this condition may not take it lightly to being abused through the confusion (Lynne-Landsman, Graber, Nichols & Botvin, 2011). Parents carry blame in teaching their children to adopt what their gender responsibilities define in the society, since it is basic that a child learns from the actions of the adults (Rowland & Incrocci, 2012). Children, teens, and adolescents are supposed to emulate the actions of either males or females and grow to possess those attributes (Collins Fantasia, Sutherland& Kelly-Weeder, 2012). However, in some cases, adolescents may be exposed to unconventional training of opposite sexes, making them grow with different behaviour to their biological gender. Which will culminate in the adoption of unprecedented behaviours and traits that will lead to gender confusion. Gender confusion among the adolescents is universal (Kapungu, Baptiste, Holmbeck, Mcbride, Robinson-Brown, Sturdivant & Paikoff, 2010). This mock study examines the magnitude of gender confusion among urban adolescents, as well as the conditions and factors that influence gender confusion.
The exact cause of urban adolescent gender confusion still remains unknown in most of the literatures. However more studies are being carried out on the topic to understand the amount of gender identity, which is a result of nature (biological factors) or nurture (environmental factors). Adequate evidence exists to support that both of these two factors plays a role (Lynne-Landsman, Graber, Nichols & Botvin, 2011). For instance, scholarly articles have reported that genetic factors together with the hormonal environment of the adolescents may have a great impact on their gender identity. It is however, important to note that gender confusion is mainly shaped by the kind of environment in which the child has been raised (Lynne-Landsman, Graber, Nichols &Botvin, 2011). It is true that children are always socialized in specific gender behaviour from the time of birth. This is based on the fact that most people who are gender-variant are always report as being comfortable with the identity of their gender and do not suffer from gender confusion. Even though gender confusion has been viewed as an issue of mental health within the current history, reports have shown that it was always not the same (Collins Fantasia, Sutherland& Kelly-Weeder, 2012). Historical records contain description of many people coming from different cultures who failed to fit into one category of individual of either female or male. In most of the cases, these individuals were regarded highly and viewed as holy by virtue.
A large majority of the adolescents in sub-urban areas tend to grow up with the mind-set that they are either male or female without questioning their biological gender. However, some adolescents, especially the ones brought up in urban areas view gender as a very complicated concept. Based on the arguments of Kapungu, Baptiste, Holmbeck, Mcbride, Robinson-Brown, Sturdivant & Paikoff (2010) it is possible for young people to experience a wide range of feelings about their individual gender. At times the feelings of the adolescents regarding their gender are never clear, making it very difficult for them to identify with either sex. People may question the genders of such adolescents in the event that their socialising and interest fail to fit with their biological gender. For example, an urban adolescent male who mostly prefers the company of females instead of males. Some urban adolescents at times feel that they are both female and male, while others have a strong sense of being the opposite gender (Kapungu, Baptiste, Holmbeck, Mcbride, Robinson-Brown, Sturdivant & Paikoff, 2010). For the young urban adolescents who are feeling uncomfortable with their biological gender, puberty is always the most challenging time for them.
Purpose of the Study
This study aims at addressing the problems highlighted in the problem statement above. The main purpose of this study is to examine if there are more GID in the urban compared to the sub-urban adolescents. This qualitative study will also examine the reasons gender confusion is more prevalent among urban adolescents and answer the topic questions. The study intends to conduct a research where participants will answer various questions pertaining to the research questions, and then the data will be compiled for a comprehensive report. The report is expected to be made public for enlightening the public and helping individuals who have been impacted by gender confusion.
Research Questions
The research questions will help examine to the topic as well as the research questions under discussion. It will narrow down the problem and specify the outcomes for reliable analysis and comparison of studies done in the past and the future. These questions will be elaborate, precise, and simple to ensure that accurate answers are given by the respondents, in order to avoid ambiguity when deducing an outcome. The questions will provide room for answers suitable for easy analysis and compilation of data, this will allow for logical and reliable findings. These solutions are targeted at examining the problems of discussions in the problem statement and finding out whether they meet the purpose statement. The research questions w...