Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34484028›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in psychology2021

Defensive Functioning of Individuals Diagnosed With Gender Dysphoria at the Beginning of Their Hormonal Treatment.

Guido Giovanardi, Marta Mirabella, Mariagrazia Di Giuseppe, Francesco Lombardo, Anna Maria Speranza, Vittorio Lingiardi

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in psychology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.3field-weighted citation impact, top 19% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 9 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Guido GiovanardiDepartment of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, and Health Studies, "Sapienza" University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Marta MirabellaDepartment of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, and Health Studies, "Sapienza" University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Mariagrazia Di GiuseppeDepartment of Surgical, Medical and Molecular Pathology, Critical and Care Medicine, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
Francesco LombardoLaboratory of Seminology - Sperm Bank "Loredana Gandini", Department of Experimental Medicine, "Sapienza" University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Anna Maria SperanzaDepartment of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, and Health Studies, "Sapienza" University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Vittorio LingiardiDepartment of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology, and Health Studies, "Sapienza" University of Rome, Rome, Italy.
Sapienza University of Rome · ITUniversity of Pisa · IT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Defense mechanisms are relevant indicators of psychological functioning and vulnerability to psychopathology. Their evaluation can unveil individuals' unconscious strategies for mediating reactions to emotional conflict and external stressors. At the beginning of their journey toward gender reassignment, individuals diagnosed with gender dysphoria (GD) may experience conflict and stressful experiences that trigger a wide range of defense mechanisms. Mature defenses may strengthen these individuals as they travel along this important path, while neurotic and immature defenses may exacerbate their body dissatisfaction (BD) and hinder their processing of change. Only a few studies have investigated self-reported defensive functioning in transgender people, finding a higher frequency of maladaptive defense mechanisms relative to controls. The present study was the first to apply an in-depth clinician-rated tool to assess the entire hierarchy of defense mechanisms within a sample of transgender people. Defensive functioning and personality organization were assessed in 36 individuals diagnosed with GD (14 trans women, 22 trans men, mean age 23.47 years), using the Defense Mechanisms Rating Scales (Perry, 1990) and the Shedler-Westen Assessment Procedure-200 (Shedler et al., 2014). Body uneasiness was assessed using the Body Uneasiness Test (BUT; Cuzzolaro et al., 2006). The findings showed that defensive functioning correlated positively with healthy personality functioning and negatively with BD. Compared to cisgender controls, participants with GD who presented greater defensive functioning were found to be more immature and to demonstrate significant differences in many levels of functioning. The clinical implications of the results suggest that psychological interventions aimed at improving defensive functioning in individuals with GD will be important in helping them manage the challenges posed by their gender transition.

Indexed as

body satisfactiondefense mechanismsgender dysphoriapersonalitytransgender

Identifiers

PMID34484028
PMCPMC8415164
OpenAlexW3195713616

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.