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Gender and its clinical manifestations.

Wendy Olesker¹

¹New York Psychoanalystic Institute, USA.

The Psychoanalytic Study of the Child

|February 26, 2004

Summary

Gender disturbances are secondary to deeper psychological issues like integration and aggression, not primary. Addressing these core problems is crucial for analyzing gender conflicts effectively.

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Area of Science:

Psychoanalytic Psychology
Psychology of Gender

Background:

Investigated the subjective sense of self and the exaggerated role of gender.
Utilized a modern classical psychoanalytic perspective integrating biology and social forces.

Purpose of the Study:

To explore the psychological significance and function of gender.
To understand why gender assumes a distorted and exaggerated role in the subjective sense of self for some individuals.

Main Methods:

Analysis of five clinical cases (three reported).
Exploration of patients' unconscious fantasies using clinical material.
Application of a modern classical psychoanalytic perspective.

Main Results:

Gender disturbances were found to be secondary to issues of integration, cohesiveness, separateness, and the stability of self and object.
Difficulties with depression, aggression, and rivalry often preceded gender conflicts.
Mothers frequently desired a child of the opposite gender and exhibited ambivalent attitudes towards gender expression.

Conclusions:

Gender conflicts are often a manifestation of underlying psychological integration problems.
Effective analysis requires addressing core issues of self-stability, aggression, and rivalry before focusing on gender.
Therapeutic techniques involving coping with rejection, paternal transference, and ego-building are essential prerequisites.

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