Medicalization of intersex and variations of sex characteristics: an analysis of the medical procedures through narratives of clinicians and intersex individuals in Turkey

Warning The system is temporarily closed to updates for reporting purpose.

Aydın, Ceren (2018) Medicalization of intersex and variations of sex characteristics: an analysis of the medical procedures through narratives of clinicians and intersex individuals in Turkey. [Thesis]

[thumbnail of 10213897_CerenAydin.pdf] PDF
10213897_CerenAydin.pdf

Download (1MB)

Abstract

This thesis analyzes the medical treatment procedures of intersex children and their implications based on the data I collected from interviews with clinicians who are involved in medical treatment of intersex children in research and teaching hospitals in Istanbul as well as intersex individuals who went through these treatments. I explore why, or to what extent, the early, non-consensual, and medically questionable hormonal and surgical interventions currently continue despite the challenges that have been raised against them in the last decades on the basis of principles of informed consent and respect to bodily autonomy. I argue that the conventional medical procedures rely on superficially coherent narratives of treatment based upon a biologically deterministic understanding of intersex traits and variations of sex characteristics that is separate from personhood. Furthermore, I suggest that in the context of Turkey, the dichotomy of “biological” versus “subjective” is associated with the dichotomy of “advanced” versus “backward,” in which medicalization becomes a measure of being “advanced”, or “Westernized.” This research shows the ways in which these dichotomies do not hold and argues that the medical treatments fail to provide what they promise in practice. Finally, I show how the intersex individuals’ experiences can help deepen the discussions around current controversies about medical treatment procedures.
Item Type: Thesis
Uncontrolled Keywords: Intersex. -- Disorders of sex development. -- Medicalization. -- Variation of sex characteristics. -- Gender. -- Sexuality. -- Cinsiyet gelişim farklılıkları. -- Cinsiyet özellikleri. -- Çeşitlilik. -- İnterseks. -- Medikalizasyon. -- Tıbbileşme. -- Toplumsal cinsiyet. -- Cinsellik.
Subjects: H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
Divisions: Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences
Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences > Academic programs > Cultural Studies
Depositing User: IC-Cataloging
Date Deposited: 05 Dec 2018 13:50
Last Modified: 26 Apr 2022 10:27
URI: https://research.sabanciuniv.edu/id/eprint/36720

Actions (login required)

View Item
View Item