Being gay a choice or born with it
“Born That Way” No More: The Modern Science of Sexual Orientation
Late last month, a team of MIT and Harvard scientists published a landmark study of the genetic basis for sexual orientation in the journal Science. The examination, which was based on an examination of the genetic material of almost half a million individuals, definitively refutes the idea that being gay is an innate condition that is restricted or largely compelled by one’s genetic makeup.
The study contained two key findings. First, it initiate that the influence of the genes we inherit from our parents (known as “heritability”) on same-sex orientation was very weak, at only .32 on a scale from 0 (none) to 1 (total) heritability. This means that a person’s developmental environment—which includes diet, family, friends, neighborhood, religion, and a host of other life conditions—is twice as influential on the probability of developing same-sex deed or orientation as a person’s genes are.
Second, rebutting decades of widespread faith, the study established that “there is certainly no available genetic determinant (sometimes referred to as the ‘gay gene’ in the media)” that causes homosexual sexual behavior. On the contrary
Being Gay: A Experience Style Choice?
The Religious View
The question of what causes some people to be gay has been a topic of endless debate among the general public and the mental health community. Generally speaking, the religious community of every persuasion views homosexuality as an abhorrent sin against God and character. Deeply religious groups among Muslims, Christians, Catholics and Jews reject homosexuality as totally unacceptable in the eyes of God. Therefore, most orthodox religious leaders view it as a life style choice thereby condemning the homosexual to eternal hell.
The American Psychiatric Association
The American Psychiatric Association, the organization that writes and publishes the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, with the cooperation of professionals from psychology and social work professions, listed homosexuality as a mental disorder until the 1970’s. Based on increasing amounts of research the APA decided to drop homosexuality as a diagnostic category. They found that as drawn-out as gay people adapted well to their sexual orientation and were fit to function in population, there was no reason for them to be placed in the category of having a mental illness
Why would people 'choose' to be gay?
I work in the field of psychiatry. I don’t bring this up when meeting people unless specifically asked, because very often people obtain a bit nervous if I do. There are doubtless many reasons for this, but one recurring paranoia among many I’ve met (all of whom were men, out of interest) is that I’m going to tell them that they’re gay. Because being gay is poor, apparently.
I’m not sure how these guys think homosexuality works or how you end up being male lover, but one thing I can confirm is that it’s not my conclusion. I can’t go around dictating people’s sexual orientations because I’ve got some knowledge of mental and neurological processes. That would be classed as a very sinister superpower.
Besides, even if I did reflect they were gay, it’s certainly not something I’m going to bring up when first meeting someone, given how it’s a) irrelevant, and b) none of my damn business.
Others don’t feel the identical though. Homosexual members of society can unfortunately predict to regularly be challenged, scrutinised and condemned by belligerent type who are seemingly convinced that homosexuality is a “lifestyle choice”.
This issue has come up again
Nearly one in three Brits still think existence gay is a decision
New YouGov research finds that whilst just under half of Britons reflect that people are born gay, 31% believe homosexuality is a choice
Despite the weight of scientific evidence suggesting that homosexuality is not a choice, modern research by YouGov finds that nearly one in three Britons (31%) still believe that being lgbtq+ or lesbian is just the way some people choose to live.
By contrast, just under half of Britons (49%) believe that people are born homosexual or lesbian, whilst a further 3% believe that it is the fallout of a person’s upbringing. The remaining 17% don’t know one way or the other.
The results show up in the same week that Hamisi Kigwangalla, the Tanzanian health minister, defended government threats to publish the names of suspected homosexuals in the East African nation. Homosexual acts are illegal in Tanzania and can be punished by up to 30 years in jail.
A key determinant of attitudes towards homosexuality is often whether or not people consider being gay is a choice. Kigwangalla argued on Twitter that homosexuality did not scientifically exist and was a social construct.
The weight of scientific evide
Massive Study Finds No Single Genetic Lead to of Same-Sex Sexual Behavior
Few aspects of human biology are as complex—or politically fraught—as sexual orientation. A clear genetic link would propose that gay people are “born this way,” as opposed to having made a lifestyle preference. Yet some anxiety that such a finding could be misused to “cure” homosexuality, and most research teams possess shied away from tackling the topic.
Now a new research claims to dispel the notion that a single gene or handful of genes make a person prone to same-sex behavior. The analysis, which examined the genomes of nearly half a million men and women, found that although genetics are certainly involved in who people pick to have sex with, there are no specific genetic predictors. Yet some researchers question whether the analysis, which looked at genes associated with sexual activity rather than attraction, can outline any real conclusions about sexual orientation.
“The message should last 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