The idea that gender affects an individual's body image cannot be overstated, particularly in the context of the attention that men and women's bodies receive. There is a consensus amongst scholars that concerns with one's gender and body image affect the psychological status ( Brennan et al., 2010 ). Therefore, these aspects should be taken seriously since they may result in psychological disturbances and distress among individuals. For instance, there have been reports of people of different ages committing suicide as a result of body image concerns. Such behavior is closely associated with such factors as hopelessness, depression, and past suicidal behavior among teenagers and adolescents. T he process of identifying oneself as either male or female takes place in stages ( Dietert & Dentice, 2009 ). Firstly, at the age of between one to three years, children learn to call others by sex. Secondly, between ages four to five years, children start to familiarize themselves with the stability of gender. Thirdly, between ages six to seven years, children acknowledge that someone’s sex is a constant factor that is not open to variation over situations. As the children’s sense of identity develops, they exhibit a raised attention to people of the same sex and are motivated to be like members of their sex. Gender identity is established as both environmental and biological factors interact during the development of the children’s brain and body. This paper seeks to explore transsexuality and discrimination against transgender individuals.
Sexual O rientation and G ender I dentity
The basis of human life is attributed to sexual reproduction and sexual attraction. Most species in the animal kingdom are doubled-sexed, allowing respective organisms to select those of the opposite sex for successful reproduction. While a substantial amount of knowledge exists regarding male-female relationships, same-sex relationships are relatively new, and thus not everyone understands them fully. Sexual orientation is defined by such aspects as personal attraction, fantasies, and behaviors ( Brennan et al., 2010 ). The majority of the world’s population are identified as heterosexual, whereby they are sexually attracted to individuals of the opposite sex. A small percentage does not confer to this orientation. This group subscribes to a non-heterosexual orientation and includes gays, lesbian, and bisexuals.
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It is estimated that homosexuals constitute an increasing percentage of the world's population. Men contribute 5-6% of homosexuals, while women comprise 2-3 % ( Brennan et al., 2010 ) . These percentages may vary from one scholar to another, owing to the difficulty associated with determining people's sexual orientation. Not only does measuring sexual orientation pose a challenge, but also explaining it is often problematic. Sociological theories like early childhood developmental disruptions, past unpleasant sexual experiences, and pleasurable same-sex experiences early in life are associated with the rise and development of homosexuality. In biology, the complexity of sexual orientation is attributed to biological and environmental factors. Isolation of the influence of biological factors has been adopted in a variety of approaches, such as genetic studies, correlational studies, and hormonal influences (Brennan et al., 2010) .
Gender identity can be conceptualized as the feeling of being either a female or a male. Consequently, this process involves more than anatomical features but rather encompasses the inner appreciation and outer expression of personal sex. Scholars have established that gender identity is attained in the context of interactions, societal structures, and cultural expectations.
Transsexuals encounter gender identities that are inconsistent with or not culturally conforming to their assigned sexual orientation and often desire to transition to a chosen gender permanently.
An individual’s development is highly dependent on their gender. A large percentage of the people accept a gender identity that is congruent with the sex given to them at birth, and this is likely to remain that way for life. Cases of people not being comfortable with their current gender identity have been on the rise in recent years. Most of these people have adopted the gender assigned to them at birth time. For others, this gender-based dysphoria persists, leading to clinical distress, which leads to Gender Identity Disorder (GID). People with GID undergo an enduring and robust identification with the gender that they were not given at birth. In children, GID is exhibited through non-conforming behavior such as cross-dressing and always playing with individuals of the opposite sex. Adults also go through the same process. However, given due to their freedom, adults may be tempted to change their physical traits and appearance (Calogero & Thompson, 2009) .
Transsexuality
Transgender individuals refer to people whose gender identity and behavior greatly differs from the social norms associated with females and male. This includes individuals who present either as crossdressers or who do not identify with either sex. Currently, members of the transgender community are embracing intersex without any basis for medical diagnosis (Calogero & Thompson, 2009) . Transsexuals are individuals who have changed their gender from either female to male or male to female. Due to the distress that these individuals experience, they may be pushed to make anatomical changes on their bodies so that it is congruent with their chosen gender identity.
Statistics show that one out of every hundred thousand transsexuals has changed his gender from male to female, and one in every four hundred transsexuals has been transformed from female to male (Dietert & Dentice, 2009) . For interventional medical needs, most transsexuals prefer cross-sex hormones and facial reconstructive surgeries such as rhinoplasty. Most of the female to male transsexuals will wish to have mastectomies, and male to female transsexuals possibly will opt for breast augmentation. The degree of variance between the victims of physical alterations lies with the medical status of the patient, fear of losing their established relationships, and their economic stability. Nevertheless, a comprehensive evaluation is necessary before reversing the anatomy of the genitals to prevent any future regrets.
A previous survey that featured fifty-five transsexuals depicted that the majority were happy with their new anatomical bodies. However, 24.2% of the male to female transsexuals and 19.0% of the female to male transsexuals were unpleased. Also, 13.8% of the male to female transsexuals and 10% of the female to male transsexuals claimed their sexual life had diminished with time (Dietert & Dentice, 2009) . Primary transsexuals emerge from ethnic minority communities and exhibit stereotypically feminine behaviors and interests. Majorly of them are sexually attracted to the men. Secondary transsexuals are identified as Caucasian who exhibit stereotypically masculine interests and behaviors and are sexually attracted to women. Furthermore, this group tends to raise children (Dietert & Dentice, 2009) . Despite these demographics not bearing the distinctive characteristics of transsexuals, they are widely reported in numerous research studies.
In sociology, transsexuality has been attributed to theories that include poor parenting and the notion that transsexualism is a constructed narrative. Some theorists have linked transsexualism to lack of a father in a victim's early life, a mother being obsessed with the boy-child, or both parents wishing they had a child of the opposite sex instead of the one they have currently. Likewise, transsexualism has also been linked to biological factors, with most being attributed to brain sex theory. The brain sex theory suggests that male to female transsexuals present with female brains and thinking but embedded inside the male body and vice versa for the female to male transsexuals. On the primary and secondary transsexuals, these theories depict that if secondary transsexuals are attracted to women, the gender dysphoria they experience may be easily sustained (Sánchez et al. , 2009) .
Feel ings of Being f rom the O pposite S ex Amongst Transsexuals
Most often, transsexuals are not in control of their bodies. Their gender identity is attributed to more than just hormonal, biological, correctional studies, and genetic analysis. Other environmental and societal factors also contribute to transsexuality. These factors play significant roles in one's gender identity. Consider a family where the parents keep regretting having a child of a specific sex or admiring one of the opposite sex. These instances may cause the victim to start conforming to the opposite sex to please parents and family. Homosexuality is also predominantly linked to unbalanced hormonal levels in the victim's body. For example, male to female transsexuals are considered to have more testosterone plasma levels than the heterosexual men and higher in female to male transsexuals when compared to heterosexual women. Significant differences exist in the gonadotropic hormones and sex steroid secretions between the men to female transsexuals.
Discrimination against T ranssexuals
Individuals’ transgressive identities place transgender individuals in conflict with norm-driven societal institutions. In return, these individuals are bound to deal with spans of limitations and rejections from access to medical and surgical intervention, healthcare insurance and coverage, policies, and regulations that limit them from changing their legal documents to read the new sex such us in birth certificates, and driver’s licenses. They also face issues with dressing codes on public occasions and workplaces, while their rights to marry are somehow infringed and feel rejected and disowned by their families.
Currently, there are claims that members of the Lesbians, Gay, Bisexual Transsexuals (LGBT) community are facing the varied degree of discrimination and rejection in different places. Despite legal interventions, 78% of transgender people still report experiencing at least one or two forms of harassment or mistreatment at work or home owing to their differing gender identity. Discrimination covers many areas of life, such as housing and public accommodation suites, employment, and even incarceration (Sánchez et al. , 2009) .
Employment
Discrimination in the area of employment manifests in different forms, such as failure to hire, sudden termination, demotion, and unfriendly working conditions. So far, there exists no federal equality act to protect the victims and provide a ground for them to protest for their rights. Examples of discrimination at the workplace include a federal case, Price Waterhouse v. Hopkins. This case entailed a heterosexual woman who was barred from promotion owing to her dressing code and the fact that her way of life did not conform to female characteristics. Decades ago, lesbian workers in New York City reported escalating levels of discrimination. Most of the lesbians experienced real rejection while the remaining percentage was in its anticipation.
Housing
The fair Housing Act covers all residential places. Despite not exclusively enumerating on the sexual orientation, all the housing units that are funded by the federal government are bound by federal housing administration’s basic fairness provisions, which allow the members of the LGBT community to have access to housing.
Public accommodation
This is a commonplace experience where transgender people experience constant discrimination in such places as restaurants, public shops, and banks. So far, discriminated transsexuals have no law to protect them from such settings.
Prison accommodations
Transsexual prisoners experience serious incarceration concerns. Most prisons assign prison houses depending on the birth gender and not the living gender. There is a law that oversees the placement of the prisoners based on their living gender.
Most people discriminate against transgender individuals because of the differences experienced on the bases of religion and exposure. Most religious communities oppose transsexuality and transgender, considering being against God’s will. They judge such individuals, basing on the teachings of the Bible and other religious texts. Secondly, people tend to judge and discriminate the transsexuals because they do not understand the physiological and biological changes that occurred in the victim’s body before they made the decision to change their gender. Often, people make conclusions before understanding the upbringing and family history of the victim. Discrimination is solemnly attributed to the presumed shame that comes with associating with the transsexual individuals. People always want to be associated with normal people as opposed to controversial persons like transsexuals. In this case, people seek to protect their dignity and shielding themselves from being judged too.
Conclusion
Currently, there are calls to accommodate and tolerate all individuals irrespective of their gender or sexual orientation. Despite this, cases of discrimination have been on the rise in different parts of the world. Gender identity and sexual orientation are complex issues that immensely contribute to someone’s ability to enjoy life. Results from correlational, hormonal, and genetic studies provide a glimpse into the underlying cause of these behaviors. Environmental and social factors contribute to determining individuals' sexual orientation and gender identity in equal measures. One of the most controversial aspects with regard to sexual orientation and gender identity is transsexuality. Transsexuals are discriminated in different areas such as employment, public places, and hospitals. In housing, all government build housing units are open for equal occupation by any citizen. However, this provision does not exist in private housing units. Transsexuals majorly witness discrimination in privately developed apartments and residential places. In hospitals, the transsexuals are not guaranteed of medical intervention in private hospitals. People discriminate against transsexuals because they feel it is against societal expectations. They also do so in a bit to avoid the shame that comes from associating with homosexuals. Lack of adequate knowledge is also attributed to the failure of the community to accommodate the transgender, transsexuals, and the homosexuals.
References
Brennan, M. A., Lalonde, C. E., & Bain, J. L. (2010). Body image perceptions: Do gender differences exist. Psi Chi Journal of Undergraduate Research , 15 (3), 130-138.
Calogero, R. M., & Thompson, J. K. (2009). Potential implications of the objectification of women's bodies for women's sexual satisfaction. Body image , 6 (2), 145-148.
Dietert, M., & Dentice, D. (2009). Gender identity issues and workplace discrimination: The transgender experience. Journal of Workplace Rights , 14 (1).
Sánchez, F. J., Bocklandt, S., & Vilain, E. (2009). Gender role conflict, interest in casual sex, and relationship satisfaction among gay men. Psychology of men & masculinity , 10 (3), 237.
