Professional Documents
Culture Documents
DEBATE ON HUMAN
SEXUAL ORIENTATION
Kevin Brewer
ISBN: 978-1-904542-23-0
PUBLISHED BY
COPYRIGHT
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
INTRODUCTION 3
Terminology 3
Defining Sexual Orientation 6
Nature and Nurture 7
NATURE SIDE 8
Evolution 9
Sex Chromosomes 13
Specific Gene(s) 14
Hormones 16
Instinctive Learning or Imprinting 19
Structures in the Brain 21
NURTURE SIDE 25
CONCLUSIONS 44
FOOTNOTES 46
REFERENCES 48
APPENDIX 1: BISEXUALITY 55
APPENDIX 2: CELIBACY 57
TERMINOLOGY
1. Sex
MALE FEMALE
2. Gender
0 85.0
1 1.4
2 4.9
3 1.5
4 0.8
5 0.7
6 5.0
X 0.7
ACT
FANTASY
AROUSAL
Nature
Nurture
male → female
female → male
male → male
female → female
male → male/female
female → male/female
3. Conception
Evaluation
Evaluation
Evaluation
HORMONES
Pre-natal
Post-natal
Evaluation
Evaluation
LEARNING
Associative Learning
Negative Experiences
Cognitive Learning
Evaluation
FAMILY DYNAMICS
Evaluation
PSYCHODYNAMICS
Evaluation
Sarah: "I can give you no idea how desperately I shall want
you.."
Jeannie: "How I love you and how happy I have been. You are
the joy of my life.. I want you to tell me in your
next letter, to assure me that I am your dearest.."
Cross-cultural differences
Normality/Abnormality
Compulsory Heterosexuality
b) Sexual harassment
Social Control
GROUP FACTORS
eg family norms
and behaviour;
peer group
INDIVIDUAL FACTORS
eg genes; neurochemistry
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Appendix 1: Bisexuality
The degree of bisexuality in a society depends upon
the definition used:
i) Initial confusion
% OF HETEROSEXUAL
US COLLEGE STUDENTS
Bisexual female 50
Lesbian 38
Bisexual male 60
Gay man 42
- disability/illness: either
individual unable to find
partner or others unwilling
towards individual