Massive Study Finds No Available Genetic Cause of Lgbtq+ Sexual Behavior
Few aspects of human biology are as complex—or politically fraught—as sexual orientation. A clear genetic link would suggest that gay people are “born this way,” as opposed to having made a lifestyle choice. Yet some fear that such a finding could be misused to “cure” homosexuality, and most research teams hold shied away from tackling the topic.
Now a fresh study claims to dispel the notion that a single gene or handful of genes make a person prone to gay behavior. The analysis, which examined the genomes of nearly half a million men and women, initiate that although genetics are certainly involved in who people choose to own sex with, there are no specific genetic predictors. Yet some researchers ask whether the analysis, which looked at genes connected with sexual activity rather than attraction, can outline any real conclusions about sexual orientation.
“The message should remain the same that this is a complex behavior that genetics definitely plays a part in,” said study co-author Fah Sathirapongsasuti, a computational biologist at genetic testin
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This articles aims to provide you with factual information to help you form your own opinion.
FAQs
What affects someone’s sexual orientation?
Medical experts believe that sexual orientation is a mix of psychological, environmental, and biological factors. Many others believe that someone’s genes and hormones play a major role too. Many medical professionals believe that sexual orientation isn’t something that a person chooses, instead, it is a natural part of who someone is.
What is sexual orientation?
Sexual orientation refers to who someone is attracted to and/or wants to have relationships with. Some common sexual orientations include: straight, gay, female homosexual, bisexual, or asexual, to name a few. Sexual orientation is different than gender and gender culture as the latter refers to who someone is (male, fe
Not long ago, I had a conversation with a Methodist minister who was lamenting the recent schism in the once “United" Methodist Church. He explained that this split had come about over a disagreement about whether to accept LGBTQ persons into their congregations.
“So, is there really a gay gene?” he asked.
“Well, yes, sort of,” I replied. “But it’s complicated.”
As University of Toronto (Canada) psychologist Doug VanderLaan and his colleagues describe in an article they recently published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior, science now clearly shows that people are born with their sexual orientation. Many people assume that if a trait is something we're “born with,” it must be genetic—but in fact, it’s not that simple.
On the one hand, traits can be determined by multiple genes, such that a single trait may have any number of genetic causes. On the other hand, the way we come out of the womb is determined as much by conditions inside the womb as they are by our genes. That is, the presence of particular hormones during prenatal development, as successfully as the reactions of our mother’s immune system, can have a vast influence in shaping who we are.
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MED prof speaks tonight on whether sexual orientation has genetic basis
Homosexuality was considered a mental illness when Richard Pillard was in medical school. It was the 1950s and the School of Medicine professor of psychiatry was at the University of Rochester. At the time, the American Psychological Association still listed homosexuality as a disorder and psychologists and psychiatrists were trained on ways to manage it.
The first psychological test undertaken to determine whether there was a physiological explanation for homosexuality was in 1957. With a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health, Karen Hooker studied the partnership between homosexuality and psychological development and illness. Hooker studied both homosexuals and heterosexuals—matched for age, intelligence, and learning level. The subjects were then given three psychological tests: the Rorschach, the Thematic Apperception Check (TAT), and the Make-a-Picture-Story Test (MAPS). Hooker found no major differences in the answers given by the two groups. Because of the similar scores, she concluded that sexuality is not based on environmental factors.
In
Biology alone doesn’t cause homosexuality, suggests new epigenetic research
By Peter Tatchell
The latest ‘gay gene’ study gives no comfort to homophobes Daily Telegraph – London, UK – 9 October 2015 READ & COMMENT: http://bit.ly/1OqUW2P
This is an extended version of Peter Tatchell’s Daily Telegraph article:
Vladimir Putin, Robert Mugabe, Pope Francis and other anti-gay world leaders may well rejoice at new scientific research that points to homosexuality as being significantly influenced by pre- and post-birth environmental factors. They’ll no suspect see it as refuting claims that people are born gay and that same-sex attraction is immutable. They may be tempted to conclude that if homosexuality is not fully biologically determined, this explore can be exploited to eradicate it.
But they’d be wrong. The degree and nature of these environmental influences is, as yet, unknown. They are likely to be multiple and complex. So any propose to abuse the novel research and manipulate the environment to eliminate lgbtq+ desire is unlikely to work.
The study by Dr Tuck C. Ngun and his team at the University of California establish that an algorithm using epig