Understanding the Self

Lesson Pack (6)

Unpacking the Self: The Sexual Self

Learning Objectives:
At the end of the lesson, students will be able to:
 Explore the different aspects of self and identity.
 Demonstrate critical, reflective thought in integrating the various aspects of self and
identity.
 Identify the different forces and institutions that impact the development of various
aspects of self and identity.
 Examine one’s self against the different aspects of self discussed in class

“Self-love is about respecting and appreciating every single part of who you are, and being
proud to be you.”
(Miya Yamanouchi, Embrace Your Sexual Self: A Practical Guide for Women)

The Diversity of Sexual Behavior

Like food, sex is an important part of our lives. From and evolutionary perspective, the
reason is obvious-perpetuation of the species. Sexual behavior in humans, however, involves much
more than reproduction.
Sexual orientation is defined as an individual’s general sexual disposition toward partners
of the same sex, the opposite sex, or both sexes. There has been much interest in sexual desire as
an index of sexual orientation. Historically the most important indicator of same-sex (i.e., gay,
lesbian, or bisexual) orientation was same-sex sexual desire. Contemporary scientific studies,
however, found that same – sex desire and sexual orientation are more complicated than previously
thought.
Past studies thought that gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals were the only people who
ever experienced same – sex sexual desires. It was found though that completely heterosexual
persons periodically experience same-sex sexual desires, even if they have little motivation to act

Downloaded by april kyle vidad asido (kyleapril21@gmail.com)

on whose desires. It also did not appear to indicate that a completely heterosexual individual will
eventually want to pursue same – sex sexual behavior or will eventually consider himself or herself
lesbian, gay or bisexual.
Thus, researchers now generally believe that lesbian, gay and bisexual orientations are
characterized by persistent and intense experience of same – sex desire that are stable over time.

Gender Identity
Many people fuse sexual orientation with gender identity into one group because of
stereotypical attitudes that exist about homosexuality. In reality, although these two are related,
they are actually different issues. Sexual orientation is a person’s emotional and erotic attraction
toward another individual. On the other hand, gender identity refers to one’s sense of being male
or female. Generally, our gender identities correspond to our chromosomal and phenotypic sex,
but this is not always the case.

What is LGBTQ+?
LGBTQ+ is an umbrella term for a wide spectrum of gender identities, sexual orientations,
and romantic orientations.
 L stands for lesbian. These are females who are exclusively attracted to women.
 G stands for gay. These can refers to males who are exclusively attracted to any other
males. It can also refer to anyone who are exclusively attracted to his or her same gender.
 B stands for bisexual or someone who is sexually/romantically attracted to both men and
women.
 T or Trans/Transgender is an umbrella term for people who do not identify with the gender
assigned to them at birth. Trans woman is an identity label adapted by male to female trans
people to signify that they identify themselves as women. A trans man is an identity label
adapted by female to make trans people to signify that they identify themselves as men.
 Q stands for queer. It is a useful term for those who are questioning their identities and are
unsure about using more specific terms, or whose simply do not wish to label themselves
and prefer to use a broader umbrella term.
 + The plus is there to signify that many identities are not explicitly represented by the
letters. This includes (but is not limited to) intersex or people who are born with a mix of
male and female biological traits that can make it hard for doctors to assign them a male
or female sex; and asexual or a person who is not interested in or does not desire sexual
activity.
Regardless of how sexual orientation is determined, there is preliminary empirical research
that strongly suggest sexual orientation is not a choice. Rather, it is a relatively stable characteristic
of a person that cannot be changed. Just as the majority of the heterosexual people do not choose

Downloaded by april kyle vidad asido (kyleapril21@gmail.com)

theirs. The only real choice that the LGBTQ+ community has to deal with is whether to be open
about their orientation.
Sexual Orientations and Gender Identity Issues
There’s a lot more to being male, female, or any gender than the sex assigned at birth. Your
biological or assigned sex does not always tell your complete story.
Sex is a label – male or female – that you’re assigned by a doctor at birth based on the
genitals you’re born with the chromosomes you have. It goes on your birth certificate.
Gender is defined by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations as “the
relations between men and women, both perceptual and material. Gender is not determined
biologically, as a result of sexual characteristics of either women or men, but is constructed
socially. It is a central organizing principle of societies, and often governs the processes of
production and reproduction, consumption and distribution” (FAO, 1997).
According to the United Nations Commission and Human Rights, gender identity is one’s
innermost concept of self as male, female, a blend of both or neither – how individuals perceive
themselves and what they call themselves. One’s gender identity can be the same or different from
their sex assigned or birth. On the other’s hand, sexual orientation is an inherent or immutable
enduring emotional, romantic or sexual attraction to some other people. This attraction can be for
someone from the same sex or someone from the opposite sex.
Sociocultural Factors
Sociocultural factors influence the various issues related to sexual orientation and gender
identity. For example, the Philippines and most of its Southeast Asian neighbors view
heterosexuality as the norm. However, there are countries that are culturally not as restrictive with
their human sexual/romantic relationship attitudes. For example, in New Guinea, young boys are
expected to engage in sexual behavior with any other boys for a given period of because it is
believed that doing so is necessary for these boys to become men (Baldwin & Baldwin, 1989). In
the Philippines, an individual is classified as either male or female only. However, Thailand
recognizes more than two categories – male, female, and kathoey. A kathaoey is an individual who
would be described as transgender in western cultures (Tangmunkong, Banwell, Carmichael,
Utomo, & Sleigh, 2010).
Family Influences
There are also studies that asserted how children’s upbringing and social environment
influences their developing gender identities. In summary, this work found that children’s interests,
preferences, behaviors, and overall self-concept are strongly influenced by parental and authority
figure teachings regarding sexual stereotypes. Thus, children whose parents adhere to strict
gender-stereotyped roles are, in general, more likely to take on those roles themselves as adults
than are peers whose parents provided less stereotyped, more neutral models for behaving.

Downloaded by april kyle vidad asido (kyleapril21@gmail.com)

Urban Setting
Another research also discovered that homosexuality positively correlated with
urbanization. The correlation though was more substantial in men than in women. The study
surmised the large cities seem to provide a friendlier environment for same gender interest to
develop and be expressed (Laumann, et al., 1994) than in rural areas. These cities host venues or
areas where people with specific sexual orientations socialize and become a support group. The
number of gays and lesbians residing in large cities may function protectively to generate
resiliency among the LGBTQ+ community in the face of stigmatization, discrimination and
harassment, thus, potentially resulting in positive consequences for the well-being.
On the other hand, existing literature highlighted that the challenges of rural living for
LBGTQ+ people are:
 High levels of intolerance
 Limited social and institutional supports; and
 Higher incidence of social isolation
There are studies that also countered the popular notion of urban versus rural living for the
LBGTQ+ - that is, rural life is actually more beneficial to their well-being than urban life.
However, these studies are newer and less supported than existing literature on LGBTQ+ life,
challenges, and issues.

Downloaded by april kyle vidad asido (kyleapril21@gmail.com)