Research Catalog

Title

Born gay : the psychobiology of sex orientation / Glenn Wilson and Qazi Rahman.

Author

Wilson, Glenn D. (Glenn Daniel)

Publication

London ; Chester Springs [Pa.] : Peter Owen, 2005.

Items in the Library & Off-site

Holdings

Details

Additional Authors

Rahman, Qazi

Description

176 p. : ill.; 22 cm.

Summary

"Are people born gay, or does upbringing or even conscious personal choice play a part? The ongoing row between gay-rights activists and the conservative lobby over this burning question has now raged for many years. But the science that both groups employ in their arguments is not merely outmoded but often fallacious." "Since the work of Simon LeVay and Dean Hamer in the early 1990s into the biological causes of homosexuality, a tremendous amount of new research has been carried out by scientists, who now understand a great deal more about the biology of sexual attraction." "But how much does the non-scientific community really know about this research or understand its far-reaching implications? Born Gay is the first book for the general reader to provide a summary of this new research, much of which has been undertaken by the authors, Glenn Wilson and Qazi Rahman. They provide new evidence that sexual orientation is largely innate and demystify much of the confusion about such frequently misused terms as 'the gay brain' and 'the gay gene'. They show that attempts to find a sociological cause for homosexuality have little foundation and argue that popular efforts to 'blame' parents or teachers for a child's homosexuality are futile and unjust."--Jacket.

Subject

• Sexual orientation
• Sex (Psychology)
• Homosexuality
• Fetal Development
• Sexual Behavior

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references (p. 151-169) and index.

Contents

• Preface -- ch. 1. Where are gays found? -- Who are you calling gay? -- Either/or -- The sexual lie detector -- Homosexuality is not common, but it is stable -- ch. 2. The failure of psychosocial theories -- Psychoanalytic ideas -- Social learning theory -- The seduction hypothesis -- Child-rearing effects -- Cross-cultural comparisons -- Bem's alienation theory -- Therapy for sexuality? -- ch. 3. Not all in the genes -- Family connections -- Genes versus environment -- Which genes, where? -- The mitochondrial DNA theory -- Mechanism of the genetic effect -- 4. Is Homosexuality adaptive? -- Kin selection -- Parental manipulation -- Balanced polymorphism -- The value of same-sex bonding -- How much can we learn from animal behaviour? -- A new scenario -- ch. 5. Hormones in the womb -- How hormones work -- Middle-sex -- Finger lengths -- Fingerprints -- Auditory mechanisms -- Do gay men have bigger penises? -- Physical growth -- Onset of puberty -- Maternal stress and substance use -- Developmental instability -- ch. 6. The big brother effect -- The 'fraternal birth order effect' -- How many brothers does it take to make you gay? -- Social environment and the big brother effect, is there a link? -- The mother's immune system -- The H-Y antigen.
• ch. 7. The gay brain -- The hypothalamus -- Lesbianism and the limbic system -- Cognitive abilities -- Brain asymmetry -- Handedness and sexual orientation -- Conclusion -- ch. 8. Childhood indications -- Feminine boys and masculine girls -- CGN, learning and prenatal factors -- Adult 'psychological gender' -- CGN and psychological health -- ch. 9. Are there different types? -- Perceptions -- The research -- Sex hormone comparisons -- Finger-length ratios -- Conclusions -- ch. 10. The science of sexual orientation and society -- References -- Index.

ISBN

0720612233 (pbk)

OCLC

56441538

Owning Institutions

Harvard Library