Dichotomized, narrow concept of gender

• Two genders and that’s it
• Sexes are exclusionary, if you have one, you can’t have another
• Sexs are opposite to each other and complementary to each other
• Sex is static and constant
• Sex is a primarily a biological property and fact
• Gender experience is primarily sexuality and erotic pull towards the opposite sex; I am a man because I love women or I am a woman, because I love men
• Sex is consistent (anatomy, chromosomes, hormones, psychological gender experience, identity, observed gender).
• Emphasis on gender when doing self-contemplation and meeting other people.
• Exceptions are medicalized and classified as disorders
• Outside the binary gender system there is thought to be Others: Queers, freaks, aliens and possibly overly sexual people that live somewhere else than in my home or among extented family and friends, at my work place, in my hobbies/social circles, parish or religious/ideological societies, homeland.

Pluralistic, broad concept of gender

• multiple genders and sexes; women, men, bigenders, transgenders, transvestites, male-to-female and female-to-male transsexuals, intersexuals – also in Finland.
• Gender experience = Human’s way to experience hir gender that extends the dichotomy of two sexes (ze is not either a man or a woman)
• It is possible to experience both genders to be yours at the same time; it is possible for a person to feel belonging to neither genders; a person can feel ze is partly a man or partly a woman.
• Each person is a combination of masculine and feminine characters. Androgyny is a strength enabling a broader personality and self-expression.
• Biologic sex, gender, sexual orientation and sexual preferences are independent qualities.
• The gender expression and experience are cultural and change from one culture to another – the concepts and habits of the Western and Finnish cultures aren’t necessarily the most advanced/best.
• I do not know what gender is; I am ready to be taken by surprize and ask – people can constantly give me new ideas about gender I never knew before and I could never imagine before.
• The dichotomized and the pluralistic concepts of gender are cultural habits in gender classification. Usually people do not follow either concept or the other, but they combine their views
• It is good to be aware of your frame of reference and make notes about client’s frame of reference.
• The transgendered clients can have many sorts of gender concepts. The guilt and shame of the client are usually connected with dichtomized gender concept, because its frame of reference ze is defined as “disordered and perverted”. Also lesbian, bisexual and gay-experiences are “perverted” within the same dichotomized frame of reference.
• Dichotomized, narrow concept of gender is common in our culture and the usual way in handling gender issues. Meeting transgendered individuals challenges the usual frame of reference and the employee might find it difficult/stressful/challenging/confusing. The employee can totally ignore the gender client’s story because ze cannot understand it and it runs smack with hir weltanschauung.
• Questioning your gender concepts and learning a new one can be challenging but rewarding also.
• The features of the pluralistic, broad gender concepts in your thinking enable understanding the gender client’s experience and supporting. When working with males and females it also opens up new scopes and ideas for the employee.