Sexual Arousal of Male - to - Female Transsexuals : Male - typical or Female - typical Patterns ?

n Eleven post-operative male-to-female transsexuals were exposed to sexual stimuli on video while physiological (vaginal photoplethysmographic) and subjective measures of sexual arousal were being recorded. The comparison of their responses to male versus female stimuli, combined with their orientations (attracted to men versus women), illustrated a target specific pattern of sexual arousal across transsexuals. This pattern coincides with that of genetic men, and contrasts with the non-target specific pattern found in women. This study provides further support for a target specific pattern of arousal in men by using a new method of measurement (photoplethysmograph) while illustrating that the photoplethysmograph is indeed capable of producing target-specific results. Introduction: Arousal and Transsexuals n Sexual arousal is target-specific in men. Heterosexual men are more aroused by female than male sexual stimuli and homosexual men show the opposite pattern 1. In contrast, recent research suggests that women have a non-specific, bisexual pattern 2. Regardless of their sexual orientation, women experience strong genital arousal to both male and female stimuli 2. Since male and female sexual arousal are assessed differently, it is possible that measurement artifacts contribute to the observed sex differences in arousal patterns. n Transsexuals are individuals who are unsatisfied with their biological sex, want to become members of the opposite sex, and want to be send as the opposite sex to other people 3. n Research implies that there are two distinct types of transsexuals: homosexual and nonhomosexual 4. Introduction: Types of Transsexuals n The category of nonhomosexual transsexuals encompasses men who present as heterosexual, bisexual, or analloerotic (someone who has a lack of sexual interest in other persons) 4. Although not the focus of this paper, Blanchard’s organizing hypothesis is that all of these three nonhomosexual subtypes share a main motivation: autogynephilia 4. Autogynephilic transsexualism is “misdirected heterosexuality” 3, in the following sense: these men are attracted to the idea of women, but instead of focusing on an actual woman they want to be the woman themselves. Their transsexuality exists more on a paraphilic spectrum (4,5). n Homosexual transsexuals are unambiguously attracted to men, and identify as women 5. As boys, they were invariably very feminine and not accepting of typical male gender role behavior 5. These men typically feel like “women trapped in men’s bodies”, and have SRS (Sexual Reassignment Surgery) due to issues based on gender identity and sexual orientation 5. Introduction: Rationale n Postoperative male-to-female transsexuals have neovaginas, and so their sexual arousal must be measured with a vaginal photoplethysmograph as opposed to the penile strain gauge. Schroder showed that the device will provide VPA in transsexuals 6. No one has investigated whether or not the device can measure transsexual’s genital sexual arousal. n Although post-op transsexuals are living as women, their brains are at least partially masculinized. This unique opportunity of using vaginal photoplethysmography on transsexuals will illustrate whether or not the vaginal photoplethysmograph can measure genital arousal in post-operative MtoFs, possibly demonstrate the ability of the vaginal photoplethysmograph to provide target-specific sexual arousal response, as well as aid in differentiating between the two theoretically different types of MtoF transsexuals through a comparison of their sexual response patterns to different erotic stimuli. Female Sexual Arousal (Chivers & Bailey, 2000)2