Genes, Biological Sex, and Gender Identity

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Genes, Biological Sex, and Gender Identity When a little boy grows up, his parents usually buy him trucks, race cars, action figures, and other toys associated with boys. When a little girl grows up, her parents usually buy her Barbie dolls, kitchen sets, and other toys associated with girls. Kids in general tend to be more attracted to toys associated with their sex. That isn’t the case for Jeanne and John Schwarts’ youngest son, Joseph, though. The Shwarts have three children, two boys and a girl. While his brother, Sam, went to play with trucks, Joseph followed his sister, Elizabeth, to the Barbie dolls and continued to carefully dress them. Despite his parents’ attempt to expose Joseph to more masculine activities, he is not interested, which raises a concern in whether they should continue to encourage him to get involved with sports, or if they should support their feminine son. Another question arises when looking at the Schwarts’ family situation: is Joseph’s interest in feminine things due to genetic and biological factors or is there no scientific explanation and it is due to his personal preferences? Everyone has 23 pairs of chromosomes; one of those is a sex chromosome which determines a person’s sex. The mother carries two X chromosomes while the father carries one X chromosome and one Y chromosome. With a Y chromosome present, the developing fetus will develop male genitalia and will become male. With two X chromosomes present, the developing fetus will develop female genitalia and will become female. However, complications may occur that can alter a person’s appearance, making a biological male appear to be female, and a biological female appear to be male. Hormones play a huge role in what a person becomes, and how they feel about themselves. Because the cells that make a clitoris and ovaries for a girl and a penis and testes in a boy are
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