Citizendia
Your Ad Here

One version of a Heterosexuality symbol
One version of a Heterosexuality symbol
Sexual orientation
Part of sexology
Distinctions

Asexuality · Autosexuality · Bisexuality · Heterosexuality · Homosexuality · Pansexuality · Paraphilia · Pomosexual · Zoosexuality
Labels

Gay · Lesbian · Queer · Questioning
Methods

Kinsey scale · Klein Grid
Study

Biology · Demographics · Medicine
Animal

Homosexuality in animals
See also

Intersex · Transgender · Transsexual
This box: view • talk • edit


Heterosexuality is sexual or romantic attraction between opposite sexes, and is the most common sexual orientation among humans. Sexual orientation is believed to refer to "an enduring pattern of emotional romantic and/or sexual attractions to men women or both sexes Sexology is the study of sexual interests behavior and function Asexuality is a Sexual orientation that describes individuals who do not experience Sexual attraction. Autosexuality refers to Sexual orientation and sexual behavior of attraction or romance that one holds exclusively and expresses towards oneself Bisexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of both sexes or to a bisexual orientation Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. Pansexuality or anthrosexuality ( anthro- literally meaning human human sexual (sometimes referred to as omnisexuality) is a Sexual orientation Pomosexual, or undefined sexual orientation, is a Neologism used to describe a person who shuns Sexual orientation labels (such as heterosexual and homosexual Zoophilia Zoosexuality is a term used to describe a Sexual orientation towards non-human animals In the English language, gay is an Adjective that in modern usage refers to Homosexuality. A lesbian is a Woman who is romantically or sexually attracted only to other women Queer has traditionally meant odd or unusual but is now also used to refer to anyone who is not heteronormative. Questioning is a term that can refer to a person who is questioning their Gender, Sexual identity or Sexual orientation. The Kinsey scale attempts to describe a person's sexual history or episodes of their sexual activity at a given time The Klein Sexual Orientation Grid attempts to further measure Sexual orientation by expanding upon the earlier Kinsey scale which categorizes sexual history from 0 Biology and sexual orientation is research into possible biological influences on the development of human Sexual orientation. Measurement difficulties Measuring the prevalence of various Sexual orientations is difficult because there is a lack of Reliable data. Intersexuality is the state of a living thing of a gonochoristic species whose Sex chromosomes, Genitalia, and/or Secondary sex characteristics Transgender (trænzˈdʒɛndɚ from ( Latin) derivatives Transsexualism is a condition in which a person identifies with a physical Sex different from the one with which they were born NOTICE TO WOULD-BE-ROMEOS*************** NOTICE TO WOULD-BE-ROMEOS*************** An organism's sex is defined by the gametes it produces males produce male gametes (spermatozoa or Sperm) while females produce female gametes (ova or Egg cells; individual Sexual orientation is believed to refer to "an enduring pattern of emotional romantic and/or sexual attractions to men women or both sexes The current use of the term has its roots in the broader 19th century tradition of personality taxonomy. These continue to influence the development of the modern concept of sexual orientation, gaining associations with romantic love and identity in addition to its original, exclusively sexual meaning. Sexual orientation is believed to refer to "an enduring pattern of emotional romantic and/or sexual attractions to men women or both sexes NOTICE TO WOULD-BE-ROMEOS*************** Sexual identity is a term that like sex, has two distinctively different meanings

The adjective heterosexual is used for intimate relationships and/or sexual relations between male and female individuals, who may or may not identify themselves as straight. An intimate relationship is a particularly close Interpersonal relationship. Human sexual behavior or different human sexual practices encompass a wide range of activities such as strategies to find or attract partners ( Mating and display Heterosexuality, as an identifier, is usually contrasted with homosexuality, bisexuality, and asexuality. Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. Bisexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of both sexes or to a bisexual orientation Asexuality is a Sexual orientation that describes individuals who do not experience Sexual attraction. The term straight is used predominantly to refer to self-identified heterosexuals of either sex. Unlike lesbian, there is no sex-specific term that is only used for self-identified heterosexual females. Female (♀ is the Sex of an Organism, or a part of an organism which produces ova (egg cells

Contents

Etymology

Hetero- comes from the Greek word heteros, meaning "different" (for other uses, see heterozygote, heterogeneous), and the Latin for sex (that is, characteristic sex or sexual differentiation). Zygosity refers to the genetic condition of a Zygote. In genetics zygosity describes the similarity or dissimilarity of DNA between Homologous Heterogeneous is an adjective used to describe an object or system consisting of multiple items having a large number of structural variations See Sex differences in humans for permanent sex differences Sexual differentiation is the process of development of the differences between The term "heterosexual" was coined shortly after and opposite to the word "homosexual" by Karl Maria Kertbeny in 1868 and was first published in 1869. A neologism (from Greek neo = "new" + logos = "word" is a word that although devised relatively recently in a specific time period has been Karl-Maria Kertbeny or Károly Mária Kertbeny (born Karl-Maria Benkert) (1824 &ndash 1882 was born in Vienna, the son of a writer and a painter Year 1868 ( MDCCCLXVIII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap Year 1869 ( MDCCCLXIX) is a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year [2] "Heterosexual" was first listed in Merriam-Webster's New International Dictionary as a medical term for "morbid sexual passion for one of the opposite sex" but in 1934 in their Second Edition Unabridged it is a "manifestation of sexual passion for one of the opposite sex; normal sexuality". Heterosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the opposite sex or to a heterosexual orientation (Katz, 1995)

The term heterosexual can be used to describe individuals' sexual orientation, sexual history, or self-identification. Some reject the term "heterosexual" as the word only refers to one's sexual behavior and does not refer to non-sexual romantic feelings. As a result, the terms straight is sometimes preferred when discussing a person of this sexual orientation, whose sexual history is predominated by this behavior, or who identifies as such. Sexual orientation is believed to refer to "an enduring pattern of emotional romantic and/or sexual attractions to men women or both sexes Some opposite-sex oriented people personally prefer the term "heterosexual" rather than "straight", as they may perceive the former as describing a sexual orientation and the latter as describing a cultural or socio-political group with which they do not identify. ,

New terms are arising for use in situations where specificity is important. For example, men who have sex with men, or MSM for short, is sometimes used in the medical community when specifically discussing sexual behavior (regardless of sexual orientation or self-identification). Men who have sex with men or males who have sex with males ( MSM) refers to men who engage in sexual activity with other men whether Non-straight is another attempt at neutrality that is gaining currency. Some other terms are now becoming more prevalent, including heteroflexible to refer to a person who identifies as heterosexual, but occasionally engages in same-sex sexual activities, or metrosexual which denotes, according to the term's tongue-in-cheek coiner Mark Simpson, someone 'who might be officially straight, gay or even bisexual but this is immaterial since he has clearly taken himself as his own love-object'. Bi-curious is a term used to refer to someone who does not identify as Bisexual or Homosexual but feels or shows some interest in a relationship or sexual activity Metrosexual is a Neologism generally applied to heterosexual men with a strong concern for their appearance or whose lifestyles display attributes stereotypically seen among

Academic study

Heterosexuality, like any forms of identity is very subjective. In Western society, one is generally thought of as heterosexual if he or she derives his or her erotic and/or sexual stimulation from people of the opposite sex. In other cultures a heterosexual man may engage in homosexual intercourse provided that he keeps the role traditionally assigned to his sex during intercourse and his gender during the surrounding relationship. An organism's sex is defined by the gametes it produces males produce male gametes (spermatozoa or Sperm) while females produce female gametes (ova or Egg cells; individual Gender comprises a range of differences between men and women extending from the biological to the social Also, in some cultures a heterosexually identifying man may assume any role during homosexual congress as a social action provided he maintain a relationship with a woman in his family life. Cultural allowances such as this have been historically rarer amongst women, but more recently have been tolerated more than the male equivalents largely because of its connection to some schools of feminism. Feminism is a discourse that involves various movements theories, and Philosophies which are concerned with the issue of Gender difference, advocate

Biological

Main article: Biology and sexual orientation

Prenatal hormonal theory

Main article: Prenatal hormones and sexual orientation

The neurobiology of the masculinization of the brain is fairly well understood. Biology and sexual orientation is research into possible biological influences on the development of human Sexual orientation. The hormonal theory of sexuality holds that just as exposure to certain hormones plays a role in fetal Sex differentiation, such exposure also influences the Sexual orientation Estradiol and testosterone, which is catalyzed by the enzyme 5α-reductase into dihydrotestosterone, act upon androgen receptors in the brain to masculinize it. If there are few androgen receptors (people with Androgen insensitivity syndrome) or too much androgen (females with Congenital adrenal hyperplasia), there can be physical and psychological effects. Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS also referred to as androgen resistance syndrome, is a set of disorders of Sexual differentiation caused by Mutations Congenital adrenal hyperplasia ( CAH) refers to any of several Autosomal Recessive Diseases resulting from Mutations [1] It has been suggested that both male and female heterosexuality are results of variation in this process. [2] In these studies heterosexuality in females is linked to a lower amount of masculinization than is found in lesbian females, though when dealing with male heterosexuality there are results supporting both higher and lower degrees of masculinization than homosexual males. (See the main article for further details. )

Physiological differences in heterosexual persons

See: Physiological differences

Natural selection

An array of opinion holds that much human behavior is ultimately explainable in terms of natural selection. Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. Natural selection is the process by which favorable Heritable traits become more common in successive Generations of a Population of From this point of view, the shifting social balance between heterosexual and homosexual desire has evolved more as a fitter survival strategy for the species than either an exclusively heterosexual or homosexual configuration of desire.

Heterosexual behaviors in animals

In the animal kingdom, sexual reproduction results from heterosexual coitus between sexually mature partners. The Evolution of sexual reproduction is a major puzzle The first Fossilized evidence of sexually reproducing Organisms is from Eukaryotes of the Stenian Sexual intercourse, in its biological sense is the act in which the male reproductive organ (in humans and other higher animals enters the female reproductive tract

Psychological

Main article: Sexual orientation

Behavioral studies

Main article: Kinsey Reports

At the beginning of the 20th century, early theoretical discussions in the field of psychoanalysis posited original bisexuality in human psychological development. Sexual orientation is believed to refer to "an enduring pattern of emotional romantic and/or sexual attractions to men women or both sexes The Kinsey Reports are two books on Human sexual behavior, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male (1948 and Sexual Behavior in the Human Female Psychoanalysis is a body of ideas developed by Austrian physician Sigmund Freud and his followers which is devoted to the study of human psychological functioning and behavior Bisexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of both sexes or to a bisexual orientation Quantitative studies by Alfred Kinsey in the 1940s and Dr. Fritz Klein's sexual orientation grid in the 1980s find distributions similar to those postulated by their predecessors. Alfred Charles Kinsey (June 23 1894 &ndash August 25 1956 was an American Biologist and professor of Entomology and Zoology, who in 1947 Fred (Fritz Klein ( December 27, 1932 May 24, 2006) was an American

Many modern studies, most notably Sexual Behavior in the Human Male[3] and Sexual Behavior in the Human Female[4] by Alfred Kinsey, have found that the majority of humans have had both heterosexual and homosexual experiences or sensations and are bisexual. Alfred Charles Kinsey (June 23 1894 &ndash August 25 1956 was an American Biologist and professor of Entomology and Zoology, who in 1947 Contemporary scientific research suggests that the majority of the human population is bisexual, adhering to a fluid sexual scale rather than a category, as Western society typically views sexual nature. However, social pressures influence people to adhere to categories or labels rather than behave in a manner that more closely resembles their nature as suggested by this research.

Kinsey himself, along with current sex therapists, focused on the historicity and fluidity of sexual orientation. Kinsey's studies consistently found sexual orientation to be something that evolves in many directions over a person's lifetime; rarely, but not necessarily, including forming attractions to a new sex. Rarely do individuals radically reorient their sexualities rapidly—and still less do they do so volitionally—but often sexualities expand, shift, and absorb new elements over decades. For example, socially normative "age-appropriate" sexuality requires a shifting object of attraction (especially in the passage through adolescence). Contemporary queer theory, incorporating many ideas from social constructionism, tends to look at sexuality as something that has meaning only within a given historical framework. Queer theory is a field of Gender Studies that emerged in the early 1990s out of the fields of gay and Lesbian studies and feminist studies Social constructionism and social constructivism are sociological and psychological theories of Knowledge that consider how social phenomena develop in Sexuality, then, is seen as a participation in a larger social discourse and, though in some sense fluid, not as something strictly determinable by the individual.

Most sexual orientation specialists follow the general conclusion of Alfred Kinsey regarding the sexual continuum, according to which a minority of humans are exclusively heterosexual or homosexual, and that the majority are bisexual. Homosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the same sex or to a Homosexual orientation. Bisexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of both sexes or to a bisexual orientation The consensus of psychologists is that sexual orientation, in most individuals, is shaped at an early age and is not voluntarily changeable.

Other studies have disputed Kinsey's methodology. "His figures were undermined when it was revealed that he had disproportionately interviewed homosexuals and prisoners (many sex offenders). "[5][6] However, Kinsey's idea of a sexuality continuum still enjoys acceptance today and is supported by findings in the human and animal kingdoms, including biological studies of structural brain differences between those belonging to different sexual orientations.

Sexologists have attributed discrepancies in some findings to negative societal attitudes towards a particular sexual orientation. For example, people may state different sexual orientations depending on whether their immediate social environment is public or private. Reluctance to disclose one's actual sexual orientation is often referred to as "being in the closet. " Individuals capable of enjoyable sexual relations with both sexes or one sex may feel inclined to restrict themselves to heterosexual or homosexual relations in societies that stigmatize same-sex or opposite-sex relations. In traditional societies, individuals are often under heavy social pressure to marry and have children, irrespective of their desired sexual orientation.

Although the concept of three basic sexual orientations is widely recognized, a small minority maintain that there are other legitimate sexual orientations besides homosexuality, bisexuality and heterosexuality. These may include significant or exclusive orientation towards a particular type of transsexual or transgender individual (e. g. female-to-male transsexual men), intersexed individuals, or those who identify as non-gendered or other-gendered.

Nature versus nurture

The considerable "Nature versus nurture"-debate exists over whether predominantly biological or psychological factors produce sexual orientation in humans. The nature versus nurture debates concern the relative importance of an individual's innate qualities ("nature" i Candidate factors include genes and the exposure of fetuses to certain hormones (or lack thereof). Biology and sexual orientation is research into possible biological influences on the development of human Sexual orientation. Biology and sexual orientation is research into possible biological influences on the development of human Sexual orientation. Historically, Freud and many other psychologists, particularly in psychoanalytic or developmental traditions, speculated that formative childhood experiences helped produce sexual orientation; as an example Freud believed that all human teenagers are predominantly bisexual and transition to heterosexuality in adulthood; those who remain homosexual as adults he believed had experienced some traumatic event that arrested their sexual development; however, he did believe all adults, even those who had no traumatic experience, still retained latent homosexuality to varying degrees. Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event. Although there is currently no general medical consensus, one theory is that biological factors—whether genetic or acquired in utero—produce characteristically homosexual childhood experiences (such as atypical gender behavior experiences), or at least significantly contribute to them.

The APA currently officially states that sexual orientation is not chosen and cannot be changed, a radical reversal from the recent past, when non-normative sexuality was considered a deviancy or mental ailment treatable through institutionalization or other radical means.

Critique of studies

The studies performed in order to find the origin of sexual orientation have been criticized for being too limited in scope, mostly for focusing only on heterosexuality and homosexuality as two diametraically opposite poles with no orientation in between.

It is also asserted that scientific studies focus too much on the search for a biological explanation for sexual orientation, and not enough on the combined effects of both biology and psychology.

In a brief put forth by the Council for Responsible Genetics, it was stated that sexual orientation is not fixed either way, and on the discourse over sexual orientation: "Noticeably missing from this debate is the notion, championed by Kinsey, that human sexual expression is as variable among people as many other complex traits. The Council for Responsible Genetics (CRG is a Public interest group with a focus on Biotechnology. Sexual orientation is believed to refer to "an enduring pattern of emotional romantic and/or sexual attractions to men women or both sexes Alfred Charles Kinsey (June 23 1894 &ndash August 25 1956 was an American Biologist and professor of Entomology and Zoology, who in 1947 Yet just like intelligence, sexuality is a complex human feature that modern science is attempting to explain with genetics. . . Rather than determining that this results from purely biological processes, a trait evolves from developmental processes that include both biological and social elements. In addition, scientists rarely take into consideration sexual preferences that are not described by the two poles heterosexual and homosexual 'in hopes of maximizing the chance that they will find something of interest. '"[7] According to the American Psychiatric Association (APA), there are numerous theories about the origins of a person's sexual orientation, but some believe that "sexual orientation is most likely the result of a complex interaction of environmental, cognitive and biological factors," and that genetic factors play a "significant role" in determining a person's sexuality. The American Psychiatric Association (APA is the main Professional organization of Psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the [5]

History and demographics

The prevalence of exclusive heterosexuality has varied over the centuries and also from culture to culture. Heterosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the opposite sex or to a heterosexual orientation See Demographics of sexual orientation

The history of heterosexuality is part of the history of sexuality. Measurement difficulties Measuring the prevalence of various Sexual orientations is difficult because there is a lack of Reliable data. The Social construction of Sexual behavior &mdashits Taboos Regulation and social and political impact&mdashhas had a profound effect That history and science derivative of it is far from complete. Owing to complications of human politics and prejudice, coupled with the malleable nature of human behaviour, it will be some time before the history and nature of all forms of human sexual behaviour are truly known.

Slang

The term "straight" originated as a mid-20th century gay slang term for heterosexuals, ultimately coming from the phrase "to go straight" (as in "straight and narrow"), or stop engaging in homosexual sex. [3] One of the first uses of the word in this way was in 1941 by author G. Heterosexuality refers to sexual behavior with or attraction to people of the opposite sex or to a heterosexual orientation Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. W. Henry. Henry's book concerned conversations with homosexual males and used this term in connection with the reference to ex-gays. Ex-gay is a term sometimes used to refer to persons who once identified as Gay or Lesbian, but have since turned away from such identification for It currently simply is a colloquial term for "heterosexual" having, like many words, changed in primary meaning over time.

The term breeder, a word which is normally applied to animals, is sometimes used to describe heterosexuals in a negative way. Breeder is a Slang term (either joking or Derogatory) used to describe heterosexuals, primarily by homosexuals. Animal husbandry, also called Animal science, stockbreeding or simple husbandry, is the agricultural practice of breeding Another slang term referring to male heterosexuals is "egg packer", which mocks the connotation of the slang term for male homosexuals, "fudge packer. "

See also

References

  1. ^ Vilain, E. (2000). Genetics of Sexual Development. Annual Review of Sex Research, 11
  2. ^ Wilson, G. and Rahman, Q. , (2005). Born Gay. Chapter 5. London: Peter Owen Publishers
  3. ^ Alfred C. Kinsey, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, 1948, ISBN 0-7216-5445-2(o. p. ), ISBN 0-253-33412-8(reprint)
  4. ^ Alfred C. Kinsey, Sexual Behavior in the Human Female, 1953, ISBN 0-7216-5450-9(o. p. ), ISBN 0-671-78615-6(o. p. pbk. ), ISBN 0-253-33411-X(reprint)
  5. ^ Tom Bethell (April 2005). "Kinsey as Pervert". American Spectator, 38, 42-44. ISSN 0148-8414.
  6. ^ Julia A. Ericksen (May 1998). "With enough cases, why do you need statistics? Revisiting Kinsey's methodology". The Journal of Sex Research 35 (2): 132-40, ISSN 0022-4499.
  7. ^ Brief on Sexual Orientation and Genetic Determinism'. |
  1. Wikholm, Andrew, "Words: Heterosexual". Gay History. com. (Cited February 14, 2004)
  2. "Straight, Ex-gay". Events 842 - Charles the Bald and Louis the German swear the Oaths of Strasbourg in the French and German "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Descriptors for Sexual Minorities. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, H2G2. h2g2 is a collaborative online encyclopedia project engaged in the construction of in its own words "an unconventional guide to life the universe and everything" BBC. (Cited February 14, 2004)
  3. "Answers to Your Questions About Sexual Orientation and Homosexuality" American Psychiatric Association. Events 842 - Charles the Bald and Louis the German swear the Oaths of Strasbourg in the French and German "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " The American Psychiatric Association (APA is the main Professional organization of Psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the (Cited February 9, 2004)
  4. "Heterosexual Sex". Events 474 - Zeno crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " World Sex Explorer. (Cited February 14, 2004)
  5. Katz, Jonathan Ned (1995) The Invention of Heterosexuality. Events 842 - Charles the Bald and Louis the German swear the Oaths of Strasbourg in the French and German "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " NY, NY: Dutton (Penguin Books). ISBN 0-525-93845-1.
  6. Johnson, P (2005) Love, Heterosexuality and Society. Routledge: London.

Books

External links

Dictionary

heterosexuality

-noun

  1. The state of being emotionally or sexually attracted to persons of the opposite sex.
© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
 Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic