Ego development in female-to-male transsexual couples

The ego development of 22 postoperative female-to-male transsexuals and their spouses or lovers with whom they had been living for a year or more was investigated. The transsexuals, their spouses, and a control group of 22 couples were administered the Washington University Sentence Completion Test of Ego Development, a projective measure of ego functioning. Ego development refers to the framework of meaning that the individual brings to an experience. The construct of ego development incorporates a series of sequential stages that integrate various frames of reference including cognitive style, interpersonal style, conscious preoccupation, and impulse control. These processes have received little attention in studies on female-to-male transsexuals who have successfully negotiated the social barrier of cross-living to the extent that they are living the male role in a heterosexual relationship. No significant differences in the distribution of ego development scores were found between the transsexuals and the control males, or between the transsexuals' spouses and the control spouses. Over 93% of the transsexuals and their spouses scored above the conformist level of ego development. These findings are discussed in terms of some of the previous literature on conformist thinking by transsexuals.