What is the relation between inversion of sexual orientation and inversion of sexual identity ?
Many homosexual men have feminine personality
traits, to varying extents. There have been a number of studies showing
that there can often be a substantial proportion of homosexual men displaying
female-typical behavior. Such behavior
has been seen and quantified in vestimentation,
in attraction to, or repulsion by, fighting, in
voice tone, in interests (such as
the fashion industry), in body language,
in childhood clinging behavior. Some of
these androgynous traits have even been observed in homosexual monkeys. Let’s now look at the issue from another
perspective. What are the proportions of
transsexuals who are genotypically homosexual versus heterosexual ? One study reviewed 111 operated transsexuals. There were
61 genotypically homosexual women, 36 genotypically homosexual men and
14 heterosexual men. In short, there is obviously a strong link between
sexual identity and sexual orientation,
including in cases of inversion of one of these traits. On the other hand, there is also a sizeable dissociation. Here again,
we find that male configurations are more variable than are those of
females.
We have seen that at the present very preliminary
stage of neurobiological research into sexual orientation and identity, different brain nuclei seem to have special
characteristics in homosexuality and in transsexualism. Only further research will show whether and
when there is overlap in certain as of yet undiscovered neural
particularities. I expect that some
overlap ought to be found.
In light of the position I have taken (above) on
differences between male and female homosexuality, I expected to find that lesbians would be
less androgynous than gays. Several
studies have investigated this issue using the BEM Sex-Role Inventory. Homosexuals in general, whether lesbian or gay, were more androgynous. Findings of differences between lesbians and
gays have not however been consistent at all.
I suspect that as we focus from sexual orientation to sexual identity,
and finally to vaporous traits such as those measured on the BEM scale, neurobiological influences become more and
more removed. Could it be that
masculinity still holds enough status in western societies for male homosexuals
to cling to it ?
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