Listening and Learning from Gender-Nonconforming Children.

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  • Author(s): Ehrensaft D
  • Source:
    The Psychoanalytic study of the child [Psychoanal Study Child] 2014; Vol. 68, pp. 28-56.
  • Publication Type:
    Case Reports; Journal Article
  • Language:
    English
  • Additional Information
    • Source:
      Publisher: Taylor & Francis Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 0376472 Publication Model: Print Cited Medium: Print ISSN: 0079-7308 (Print) Linking ISSN: 00797308 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Psychoanal Study Child Subsets: MEDLINE
    • Publication Information:
      Publication: 2017- : London : Taylor & Francis
      Original Publication: New Haven Ct : Yale University Press
    • Subject Terms:
      Gender Identity* ; Psychoanalytic Theory* ; Psychoanalytic Therapy* ; Psychosexual Development*; Transgender Persons/*psychology; Adolescent ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Female ; Humans ; Parenting/psychology ; Sex Reassignment Procedures/psychology
    • Abstract:
      The twenty-first century brings to our clinical doorsteps increasing numbers of children exploring and questioning their gender identities and expressions. This paper begins with a reassessment of the psychoanalytic thinking about gender and then outlines a clinical and developmental model of gender adapted from D. W. Winnicott's concepts of true self, false self, and individual creativity. The underlying premise is that gender nonconformity, when the core psychological issue, is not a sign of pathology but rather a reflection of healthy variations on gender possibilities. Working from that premise, composite clinical material from the author's practice as a psychoanalytic gender specialist is presented of a gender-nonconforming child transitioning from female to male, to demonstrate the psychoanalytic tools applied, including listening, mirroring, play, and interpretation, with the goal of facilitating a child's authentic gender self. Emphasis is placed on learning from the patient, working collaboratively with the family and social environments, and remaining suspended in a state of ambiguity and not-knowing as the child explores and solidifies a True Gender Self.
    • Comments:
      Comment in: Psychoanal Study Child. 2014;68:57-70. (PMID: 26173326)
      Comment in: Psychoanal Study Child. 2014;68:71-8. (PMID: 26173327)
      Comment in: Psychoanal Study Child. 2014;68:79-88. (PMID: 26173328)
    • Publication Date:
      Date Created: 20150716 Date Completed: 20150825 Latest Revision: 20191027
    • Publication Date:
      20240628
    • Accession Number:
      10.1080/00797308.2015.11785504
    • Accession Number:
      26173325