Showing papers in "Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease in 1968"

The current status of the change of sex operation.

Abstract: The syndrome of male transsexualism is characterized by a life-long preference for the feminine role, predicated on the conviction of belonging to the female sex. This conviction is held and persists despite the painfully obvious fact of normal male anatomy and genitalia, before and after puberty, a

The mystique of "Western" psychotherapy: an Eastern interpretation.

Abstract: THE MYSTIQUE OF “WESTERN” PSYCHOTHERAPY: AN EASTERN INTERPRETATION SHASHI PANDE; The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease

Intracerebral radio stimulation and recording in completely free patients.

Abstract: Diagnosis and treatment of focal brain dysfunction associated with behavioral abnormalities are complex tasks which require more effective exploratory techniques. Intracerebral electrodes, electrocorticographical studies, and subsequent discrete neurosurgery have given the epileptologist and stereotaxic surgeon new possibilities for clinical investigation which as yet have been applied to only a small percentage of the patients suffering from neurological disorders including temporallobe epilepsy and related episodic behavior problems. In these therapeutic studies, recordings and stimulations of any chosen cerebral structure can be performed over a period of days or weeks, and neuronal sites identified as triggers for abnormal electrical patterns associated with behavioral disturbances can be destroyed by electrolysis or resection. Unfortunately, in some patients episodic behavior disorders may be more disabling than their epileptic seizures, and focal lesions may improve one syndrome without modifying the other. Furthermore, recording and stimulation are usually performed under conditions which qualify their usefulness, because the patients’ mobility is limited by connecting leads, and their behavior is likewise altered by the stressful and artificial environment of the recording room. During the last few years, methodology has been developed to stimulate and record the electrical activity of the brain in completely unrestrained monkeys and chimpanzees (Delgado, 1967; Delgado & Mir, in press). This procedure should be of considerable clinical interest because it permits exploration of the brain for unlimited periods in patients without disturbing their rest or normal spontaneous activities. This paper reports instrumentation used and clinical application in four patients with psychomotor epilepsy in whom electrodes had been implanted in the temporal lobes. To our knowledge, this is the first clinical use of intracerebral radio stimulation and recording in man.

Childhood cross-gender identification.

Abstract: Case histories of adult transsexuals reveal that their cross-gender identification and behavior dates back to childhood. There is considerable evidence from several sources, in particular research on anatomically intersexed children, that gender identity is established early in life. As some cross-gender behavior may be seen in many children, the recognition of a significant disorder of gender identity is a complex diagnostic task. Diagnosis takes into consideration qualitative and quantitative factors and considers such behavioral variables as clothing, playmates, activity preferences and aversions, mannerisms, statements, and relationships to parents. Case history data are given for nine boys, each 8 years of age or younger when first diagnosed as manifesting anomalous gender role development. In six cases, parents were able to clearly identify cross-gender behavior at the age of 3 years or younger. When initially evaluated, these boys were behaving in the way adult male transsexuals report having behaved at a comparable age.

Sexual dimorphism and dissociation in the psychology of male transsexuals.

Abstract: Fourteen cases of male transsexualism were studied with respect to certain sexually dimorphic behavior patterns. Twelve of them had completed surgery and the remaining 2 were awaiting surgery. The patients were administered a battery of tests and were interviewed over a 3-day period. Masculinity-femininity test scores indicated a high degree of verbal adherence to feminine stereotypes. Interview questions revealed that the patients had been labeled as “sissies” during childhood. Following puberty, they chose the receptor role in sexual relations, often disregarding their genitals completely. Preoperatively, 5 patients visualized themselves as females while having sexual relations as anal insertees, and 3 others while copulating as men with their wives. Postsurgically, none experienced phantom sensations where the penis had been. All 14 patients desired adoptive motherhood, with a preference for small children, though not newborn babies. In general, the group appeared to possess a feminine gender identity, except for a masculine threshold of erotic arousal in response to visual imagery and an unmotherly disengagement from the helplessness of the newborn.

Sexual behavior of the arl colony chimpanzees.

Abstract: This is a report of studies of the sexual behavior of the ARL Colony chimpanzees from July, 1966, through August, 1967. The ARL Colony has an innovation designated the DPS Chimpanzee Consortium which permits the containment of social groups of chimpanzees on 30 acres of New Mexico desert. The solicitation, mounting and copulatory behavior of the consortium animals was similar in form to that reported in field studies. However, the incidence of both copulatory and masturbatory behavior was much higher than in the wild. In spite of this overall high incidence of copulatory behavior, three of the five adult males, who were cage-reared and presumably sex-segregated until maturity, were not observed to copulate when they had the opportunity to do so. However, they seemed to show no reduction in sexual drive. Two masturbated frequently and all three practiced perverse sexual acts. Both adolescent and juvenile males were interested in estrous females and actively solicited, mounted and copulated with them frequently. Three of the four adult consortium females tended to avoid copulation. However, this reluctance of adult females to copulate could be overcome by a large aggressive male and all of the adult consortium females became pregnant. It is hypothesized that feral-born but cage-reared, sex-segregated chimpanzees are capable of normal mating behavior if they are given an opportunity to experiment and learn before a critical period occurring during late adolescence and early adulthood. An adult who has passed this critical period is either unable to learn to copulate or to orient adequately toward an estrous female, although the sexual drive is manifested in masturbation and other ways. There was also a higher incidence of nonsexual mounting and presenting by consortium animals of both sexes than has been reported in the wild. The older females frequently “mothered” small juveniles, but most noteworthy was the fact that many male chimpanzees also interacted with small juveniles in a maternal-like manner. Unlike wild females, the consortium females frequently displayed aggressive dominance behavior toward males as well as other females. The consortium females were also the frequent victims of male aggression, which has been rarely noted in the field. Hypotheses to explain these apparent gender role shifts are offered.

The morning recall of rapid eye movement period reports given earlier in the night.

Abstract: At least three, and in most cases, not more than four, rapid eye movement period (REMP) reports were obtained from 20 male Ss, all of whom had at least four awakenings. Immediately after their terminal morning awakening and report they were asked, without any prior set to do so, to recall in as much detail as they could the reports they had given during the night. Eleven Ss failed to recall at least one of the first three reports, while 22/60 reports were completely forgotten. Studied were the effects of the following variables on recall of the first three reports: cognitive style, rapid eye movement (REM) density, awakening reaction times, times spent awake after awakenings, report length, report affect scores and repression. Field dependence and lower REM densities favored forgetting, as did higher reaction times, shorter times spent awake and shorter reports. Cognitive style and REM density were interrelated, as were reaction times, time spent awake and report length. However, the last three factors were independent of the first two. Affect scores were not significantly related to delayed recall. A clinician judge who used the Ss‘ original dream reports, personality data on them and criteria involving consideration of factors facilitating repression was able to predict ease of recall better than chance only in the case of the third report. The finding that recallers tended to be field-independent and non-recallers field-dependent agrees with the results of published studies of home dream recall. The fact that 63.3 per cent of the reports Ss gave were subsequently recalled either completely or in part is consistent with the notion that spontaneous awakenings from REMPs may contribute to morning dream reports given under home conditions.