The Sex Orientation Scale (SOS) was
Harry Benjamin
Harry Benjamin (January 12, 1885 – August 24, 1986) was a German-American endocrinologist and sexologist, widely known for his clinical work with transgender people.
Early life and career
Benjamin was born in Berlin, and raised in a German ...
's attempt to classify and understand various forms and subtypes of
transvestism
Transvestism is the practice of dressing in a manner traditionally associated with the opposite sex. In some cultures, transvestism is practiced for religious, traditional, or ceremonial reasons. The term is considered outdated in Western c ...
and
transsexualism
Transsexual people experience a gender identity that is inconsistent with their assigned sex, and desire to permanently transition to the sex or gender with which they identify, usually seeking medical assistance (including sex reassignmen ...
in biological males, published in 1966.
[Benjamin, Harry (1966). ''The Transsexual Phenomenon.'' The Julian Press, ] It was a seven-point scale (with three types of transvestism, three types of transsexualism, and one category for typical males); it was analogous to the
Kinsey Scale
The Kinsey scale, also called the Heterosexual–Homosexual Rating Scale, is used in research to describe a person's sexual orientation based on one’s experience or response at a given time. The scale typically ranges from 0, meaning exclusive ...
as it relates to sexual orientation, which also had seven categories.
[Pomeroy, Wardell (1975). The diagnosis and treatment of transvestites and transsexuals. '' Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy'' Volume 1, Issue 3, 1975 doi:10.1080/00926237508405291] Much like Kinsey's understanding of sexual orientation, Benjamin understood the nature of gender identity and gender expression not as a discrete scale, but as a spectrum, a continuum with many variations. However the Benjamin scale does not reflect a modern understanding of gender identity and is not useful as a contemporary diagnostic tool, especially due to its conflation of gender identity with sexual orientation.
Sex Orientation Scale (S.O.S.)
Sex and Gender Role Disorientation and Indecision (Males)
Benjamin noted, "It must be emphasized again that the remaining six types are not and never can be sharply separated."
Benjamin added a caveat: "It has been the intention here to point out the possibility of several conceptions and classifications of the transvestitic and the transsexual phenomenon. Future studies and observations may decide which one is likely to come closest to the truth and in this way a possible understanding of the etiology may be gained."
Benjamin's Scale references and uses Alfred Kinsey's sexual orientation scale to distinguish between "true transsexualism" and "transvestism".
Modern views
Contemporary views on gender identity and classification differ markedly from Harry Benjamin's original opinions.
[Ekins, Richard (2005). Science, politics and clinical intervention: Harry Benjamin, transsexualism and the problem of heteronormativity '' Sexualities'' July 2005 vol. 8 no. 3 306-328 doi: 10.1177/1363460705049578] Sexual orientation is no longer regarded a criterion for diagnosis, or for distinction between transsexuality, transvestism and other forms of
gender variant
Gender variance or gender nonconformity is behavior or gender expression by an individual that does not match masculine or feminine gender norms. A gender-nonconforming person may be variant in their gender identity, being transgender or non-bina ...
behavior and expression. Modern views also exclude fetishistic transvestism from the spectrum of transsexual identity/classification, this type of transvestism is not related to gender expression or identity but is a distinctly sexual phenomenon most commonly practised by people who are neither transsexual nor homosexual. Benjamin's scale was designed for use with heterosexual
trans women
A trans woman or a transgender woman is a woman who was assigned male at birth. Trans women have a female gender identity, may experience gender dysphoria, and may transition; this process commonly includes hormone replacement therapy and so ...
, and
trans men
A trans man is a man who was assigned female at birth. The label of transgender man is not always interchangeable with that of transsexual man, although the two labels are often used in this way. ''Transgender'' is an umbrella term that incl ...
's identities do not align with these categories.
[Hansbury, Griffin (2008). The Middle Men: An Introduction to the Transmasculine Identities. '' Studies in Gender and Sexuality'' Volume 6, Issue 3, 2005 doi:10.1080/15240650609349276]
See also
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Classification of transsexual people
The classification of transsexual and gender non-conforming people into distinct groups has been attempted since the mid-1960s.
History
During the 20th century, the Western medical community endorsed a binary concept of gender in which males an ...
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Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association
The World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH), formerly the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association (HBIGDA), is a professional organization devoted to the understanding and treatment of gender identity and ...
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Transgender
A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
Harry Benjamin's Gender Scale
Transgender studies
Scales
Sexology
Cross-dressing