36.

as a kind of "intersexuality. "There may be more or less pronounced irregularity in genetic and endocrine develop- ment with resultant "intersexes" of varying character, de- gree and intensity." Accordingly the male transvestite is expected to possess the female double X sex-chromosome- complex in his body cells, thus presenting an individual with a male physique, but with female genetic and psycho- sexual constitution. Similarly Rosanoff (88) hypothesizes that "factors for psycho-sexual make-up, though they may be more or less linked to the factors for physical sexual- ity, must be to some extent independently transmitted." (If this were so, it might well account for various forms of discrepancy between the actual anatomical sex and the psychosexual drive.)

All these interesting biological considerations have recently received a serious setback by the findings of Moore and Barr (76), Moore, Graham and Barr (77) and Barr and Hobbs (7) that "male transvestites bear the male XY sex-chromosome complex," and also that "all male pseudo- hermaphrodites have typical male-type epidermal nuclei.

Theory of Psychological Conditioning

This theory blames an adverse psychological condi- tioning in childhood for the development of transvestism Here is a brief survey of some of these traumatizing factors Parental Rejection of a child because of his "unwanted" sex leads to feelings of inferiority and insecurity, to an unhealthy precocious preoccupation with problems of masculinity and femininity, to a confusion regarding his own sexual identity, and finally to transvestism. For example: 1. Gutheil's 34 year old female transvestite, rejected by her mother, was well aware of the reason for her rejection: "Had I been a boy, everything would have been different." She lived with a 64 year old woman (a substitute for her real mother), whom she called "mother". 2. The female transvestite of Barahal (6) was rejected by her mother because of her sex. Her cross- dressing was a symbolic appeal to her mother: "Love me. I am a boy, just as you always wanted me to be." 3. Our patient "A" (68) also endeavored to buy his father's