Essay on “Alternative Lifestyle, and Why Many Believe the “Choice” Is Genetic.”

Submitted By ahatch1
Words: 1203
Pages: 5

“Alternative Lifestyle, And Why Many Believe The “Choice” Is Genetic.”

Abstract
A person’s sexual orientation used to be called sexual preference. Now the two terms display great and significant differences in the manner which a person’s sexuality evolves. A preference is something that is chosen, orientation is something that defines us. Sources assume this mystery question is a solved scientific problem with evidence pointing toward a biological /genetic reason and basis for a homosexual orientation. Contrary to this perception, the question has been poorly studied; however there is evidence on both sides of question. If homosexuality is not chosen, but is a biologically-determined characteristic which we have no choice, then laws should not treat gays differently, since homosexuality would be equivalent to one's race, over which one has no control.

RUNNING HEADER: U07a1 RESEARCH REPORT DRAFT

Table of Contents

Introduction 4
Literature Review 7-8
Methodology 9
Body 10
Questions 11-12
Conclusion 13
Annotated Bibliography 14-16
References 17-18

RUNNING HEADER: Alternative Lifestyle, And Why Many Believe the Choice” Is Genetic

A heated debate over the existence of a "gay gene" evolved from a 1993 report published in the journal Science by then-NIH researcher Dean Hammer, PhD. That study linked DNA markers on the X chromosome to male sexual orientation. While female sexuality seems to be more “normal,” research suggests that male homosexuality is an inborn, unalterable, and strongly genetically influenced trait. However considering that the trait discourages the type of sex that leads to reproduction through traditional means, it would therefore seem to thwart its own chances of being genetically passed on to the next generation, question is, “why are there gay men at all?” Studies have surfaced that several factors; including the level of exposure to certain hormones in the womb of a mother also play a vital role in molding male sexuality. But as for why genetic factors would exist that make men gay, it appears that these same genes make women, as well as gay men, attracted to other men.

RUNNING HEADER: “Alternative Lifestyle, And Why Many Believe The “Choice” Is Genetic.”

Literature Review
Is being “gay” a choice or is being “gay” genetic? What kind of life does the gay gene have, and what does it mean to be addressed by it? This question is inspired by the persistence of the gay gene, its sensationilization across news media, and its views on life in online databases. The gay gene is not a matter that can be examined under a microscope or viewed through imaging technologies. It has no biochemical makeup. It cannot be tested or experimented on. The original hypothesis by Hamer, Magnuson, and Pattatucci (1993), that there is a correlation between the X chromosome genetic marker—Xq28—and gay male sexuality, has never been replicated.
US researchers are finding common biological traits among gay men; feeding a growing fact that sexual orientation is an inborn combination of genetic and environmental factors that largely decide a person's sexual attractions before they are born (Hennessy, 2000)..
William Menninger wrote a copy of a report published in the United States. Contrary to the spirit of the Report, he noted that homosexuality ranks high in the kingdom of evils. He said, “Whatever it be called by the public, there is no question in the minds of psychiatrists regarding the abnormality of such behavior.” He thought there were ways to re-educate and rehabilitate homosexual men and women, and he called on medicine to rise to the challenge of restoring heterosexuality to all men. In 1950, psychiatrist Franz J. Kallman conducted the first research on homosexual twins.