What or Who is an Intersex Individual?
and
What are the Counseling Implications?
A WebQuest for Counseling Psychologists
Designed by Jaime Guerrero
University of Kentucky
Introduction | Task | Resources | Evaluation | Conclusion
Once a baby is diagnosed as intersex, the family is faced with a lot of hard decisions in a short amount of time. It is crucial that a consulting psychologist know the issues and medical conditions involved and be able to convey that information to the parents in a timely and sensitive manner. Or, an adult may come to your clinic as an intersex individual seeking your counseling services...what to do? This webquest is designed for the counseling psychology student to gain an understanding of intersex individuals, a little bit of the historical view on how American society viewed the intersex individuals, possible counseling consideration, and advocacy.
In the task portion of this webquest, you will be given three scenarios to ponder and guide you that many intersex individuals and their families have to confront. The resource section provides 4 parts to help you answer these hard scenarios. The evaluation section ask you to discuss intersex issues with your colleagues as a way to deepen your level of understanding.
A couple who just had a baby comes to you in a panic, the doctors told them that their child has both male and female organs and that they need to operate soon to correct the malady...
Parents come to you about their 9 year old daughter. In the intake they tell you that their daughter had ambiguous male/female parts, so they operated to make to the baby consistent as a girl and the doctors told them to socialize their baby as a girl. But, the 9 year old daughter has started to refused to wear dresses and would rather play like a boy...
A 24 year old male comes to your clinic seeking service for severe depression, anxiety in social situations, and confusion about his sexuality. In the intake he tells you he has always felt he was the wrong sex, but doesn't know why...
The Resource section will be broken up into four parts: Defining terms for the intersex individuals; Historical view; counseling considerations when working with intersex clients and/or families; and advocacy.
Part 1 - The importance of learning about intersex individuals is similar to any other minority groups...essentially, knowledge can lead to understanding.
Common intersex terminology:
Native American Perspective on intersex:
Part 2 - In the eighteenth century, hermaphrodite was a recognized sexual identity. Galen, an associate of Hippocratic, viewed hermaphrodites as between genders. But, it was the Aristotelian model that gave the designation of intersex as monstrosity, accident that needs to be surgically corrected to fit into a male/female designation (Hayes, 1999).
Historical View, the case of Joan/John:
Profile of Dr. John Money:
Changing paradigm from medical-centered to patient-centered:
Part 3 - While there are no specific counseling techniques specifically geared to intersex individuals and their families, it is important for counselors to have a good grasp of the intersex condition including parental dilemmas, developmental issues, and medical management issues.
Medical management of intersex conditions:
Genital Surgery considerations:
Gender assignment considerations:
Care and counseling consideration for patients with vaginal agenesis:
APA Guidelines for working with Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Clients:
APA Guidelines for Multicultural Research, Education, Training, and Practice:
Part 4 - Legal considerations and avenues for Advocacy
Learning more about Intersex Issues
You will be expected to be able to answer the following questions and share your learning experience with your colleagues.
1. In the first scenario, what are the ethical issues, and what questions could you tell the parents to ask the doctor?
2. In the second scenario, what are the counseling, ethical issues, and concerns you would discuss with the parents?
3. In the third scenario, what are the counseling issues involved in this case?
4. What are the legal considerations and advocacy options for intersex individuals?
5. What is the difference between a transgender person and an intersex person?
You should now have a basic understanding of intersex issues. Hopefully, this website will encourage you to learn more about intersex issues for your counseling practice and as a supervisor, teaching intersex issues at the university level, and/or advocating intersex rights.
Last Updated 12/14/05
Based on a template from The Webquest Page.