Cultural aspects to wanting to change one's sex?

[LG]

I read about it recently. Apparently, the sex ratio of transsexuals in much of Eastern Europe is the opposite of what it is in Western Europe. "In the records of the Institute of Sexology at the Charles University in Prague, for instance, there are three times as many female-to-male transsexuals as male-to-female transsexuals. In most Western European gender clinics, twice as many male-to-female transsexuals are reported as female-to-male. Colleagues in Poland report a ratio similar to that in Prague. Different social conditions and gender viewpoints in east and west European countries may be a factor in this difference in ratios".

According to the now infamous Dr Russell Reid, "the statistics available from Eastern Europe are very interesting, because they show there is a cultural aspect to wanting to change your sex...It is possible that life for women in that part of the world was- and is- so grim that they just want to be men."

This doesn't mean that transgenderism can be be explained away by cultural factors, but that cultural factors might play a part in some cases and in some parts of the world. Perhaps the attraction of being a man, together with all the benefits that come from it, has drawn many Eastern European women to decide to have a sex change. I don't know. The statistics certainly leave many question marks.

Perhaps these women were already experiencing gender dysphoria, perhaps not. Maybe some of them did it just so they could get ahead in life. But it seems like a pretty painful and permanent thing go through just to open a few doors or get past that glass ceiling in the corporate world.

Maybe some male-to-female transsexuals go through their transformation for similar reasons- we've already had some girls suggesting that this happens.

I'd be interested in hearing what people think.

[muhmuh]

my initial though on this is that in a way it does happen in the west as well
most women that get ahead in the corporate world lose most if not all their femininity

the question here would be where in the world are both sexes seen as equal and poverty isnt enough of an issue to make ts prostitution a rewarding option to get an unbiased sample

[LG]

my initial though on this is that in a way it does happen in the west as well
most women that get ahead in the corporate world lose most if not all their femininity

the question here would be where in the world are both sexes seen as equal and poverty isnt enough of an issue to make ts prostitution a rewarding option to get an unbiased sample

On your first point, I'd say that a woman dressing in trouser suits, cutting her hair short and being a bitch in the boardroom will probably get ahead further in the corporate world than a feminine girl, because she will be taken more seriously and taken advantage of less, but losing one's femininity is nowhere as drastic as losing one's genitalia.

On the second point, I just don't know...

It just seems like an interesting set of statistics that may point to something of academic or social value...

[odelay24]

In Iran, the government actually covers all costs for sex change procedures.
This is for two reason:
Firstly being a heteronormative society, being a heterosexual male or female is encourage. Therefore it is more acceptable to be MtF than to be a gay man (even though the two don't connect, I know).

And Secondly because Muslim clerics like the Ayatollah have stated that: "the right of transsexuals to change their gender is a human right".

You may gripe about the fact that Iran calls sex change a human right, but stone gay men. This is simply because the Koran says nothing on the matter of sex changes.