性認同亦可形容人們對於自身性別的感知。性偏好一詞的意思類近於性取向,而且人們經常將兩者交替使用,但美国心理学会表示「性偏好」一詞喑示了其是一種自願選擇[9]。美国心理学会的男同性戀者與女同性戀者相關事宜委员会(Committee on Gay and Lesbian Concerns)把此一用語放在「提倡異性戀偏見」的用語列表當中[9]。以性取向一詞取代性偏好的做法可追溯到性學家約翰·曼尼,他同時認為有關吸引力不一定是自願選擇的[25]。
心理學家里奇·萨文-威廉姆斯(英语:Ritch Savin-Williams)在論文《誰是同志?這重要嗎?》(Who's Gay? Does It Matter?)當中提出了兩套用於測量性取向的方法,使得研究者能夠在發展出更準確、心理測量學上更合理、經過充分測試的定義之前,較為可靠地確定同性戀的人口比例、成因、影響[97]。他首先提議應優先考慮吸引力和性興奮,而行為和認同則相對次要,因為前兩者不易受到自欺、他欺、社会狀態和意义變化所影響。為了量度吸引力和興奮程度 ,他建議開發和使用生物測量法。他表示已有許多量度性取向的生物/生理測量法,比如性兴奋、脑部扫描、眼球追蹤、体味偏好、像指长比和慣用手般的解剖学变化。及後萨文-威廉姆斯建議研究者完全放棄性取向的概念,只評估與調查問題有關的部分。比如:
^ 3.03.13.2Definitions Related to Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity in APA Documents(PDF). American Psychological Association: 6. 2015 [2020-02-06]. (原始内容存档(PDF)于2021-01-22). Sexual orientation refers to the sex of those to whom one is sexually and romantically attracted. [...] [It is] one's enduring sexual attraction to male partners, female partners, or both. Sexual orientation may be heterosexual, samesex (gay or lesbian), or bisexual. [...] A person may be attracted to men, women, both, neither, or to people who are genderqueer, androgynous, or have other gender identities. Individuals may identify as lesbian, gay, heterosexual, bisexual, queer, pansexual, or asexual, among others. [...] Categories of sexual orientation typically have included attraction to members of one's own sex (gay men or lesbians), attraction to members of the other sex (heterosexuals), and attraction to members of both sexes (bisexuals). While these categories continue to be widely used, research has suggested that sexual orientation does not always appear in such definable categories and instead occurs on a continuum [...]. Some people identify as pansexual or queer in terms of their sexual orientation, which means they define their sexual orientation outside of the gender binary of 'male' and 'female' only.
^ 15.015.115.215.315.415.5Lamanna, Mary Ann; Riedmann, Agnes; Stewart, Susan D. Marriages, Families, and Relationships: Making Choices in a Diverse Society. Cengage Learning. 2014: 82 [2016-02-11]. ISBN 978-1-305-17689-8. (原始内容存档于2016-11-30). The reason some individuals develop a gay sexual identity has not been definitively established – nor do we yet understand the development of heterosexuality. The American Psychological Association (APA) takes the position that a variety of factors impact a person's sexuality. The most recent literature from the APA says that sexual orientation is not a choice that can be changed at will, and that sexual orientation is most likely the result of a complex interaction of environmental, cognitive and biological factors...is shaped at an early age...[and evidence suggests] biological, including genetic or inborn hormonal factors, play a significant role in a person's sexuality (American Psychological Association 2010).
^Rice, Kim. Pansexuality. Marshall Cavendish Corporation (编). Sex and Society2. Marshall Cavendish. 2009: 593 [2012-10-03]. ISBN 978-0-7614-7905-5. (原始内容存档于2020-11-13).
^Aggrawal, Anil (2008). Forensic and medico-legal aspects of sexual crimes and unusual sexual practices. CRC Press, ISBN978-1-4200-4308-2
^Diamond M (2010). Sexual orientation and gender identity. In Weiner IB, Craighead EW eds. The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology, Volume 4. p. 1578. John Wiley and Sons, ISBN978-0-470-17023-6
^Bagemihl B. Surrogate phonology and transsexual faggotry: A linguistic analogy for uncoupling sexual orientation from gender identity. In Queerly Phrased: Language, Gender, and Sexuality. Anna Livia, Kira Hall (eds.) pp. 380 ff. Oxford University Press ISBN0-19-510471-4
^Minton HL. Femininity in men and masculinity in women: American psychiatry and psychology portray homosexuality in the 1930s. Journal of Homosexuality. 1986, 13 (1): 1–21. PMID 3534080. doi:10.1300/J082v13n01_01. Terry, J. (1999). An American obsession: Science, medicine, and homosexuality in modern society. Chicago: University of Chicago Press
^Rodriguez Rust, Paula C. Bisexuality: A contemporary paradox for women, Journal of Social Issues, vol. 56(2), Summer 2000, pp. 205–21. Special Issue: Women's sexualities: New perspectives on sexual orientation and gender. Article online. (页面存档备份,存于互联网档案馆) Also published in: Rodriguez Rust, Paula C. Bisexuality in the United States: A Social Science Reader. Columbia University Press, 2000. ISBN0-231-10227-5.
^Higgins, Daryl J. Taylor & Francis Online : Gay Men from Heterosexual Marriages. Journal of Homosexuality. 2012-06-30, 42 (4): 15–34. PMID 12243483. doi:10.1300/J082v42n04_02.
^Stack, Peggy Fletcher, Gay, Mormon, married, The Salt Lake Tribune, 2006-08-05 [2021-03-31], (原始内容存档于2013-06-21)
^Hays D; Samuels A. Heterosexual women's perceptions of their marriages to bisexual or homosexual men. J Homosex. 1989, 18 (1–2): 81–100. PMID 2794500. doi:10.1300/J082v18n01_04.
^Coleman E. Bisexual and gay men in heterosexual marriage: conflicts and resolutions in therapy. J Homosex. 1981, 7 (2–3): 93–103. PMID 7346553. doi:10.1300/J082v07n02_11.
^Matteson DR. Bisexual men in marriage: is a positive homosexual identity and stable marriage possible?. J Homosex. 1985, 11 (1–2): 149–71. PMID 4056386. doi:10.1300/J082v11n01_12.
^*Bailey, J. Michael; Vasey, Paul; Diamond, Lisa; Breedlove, S. Marc; Vilain, Eric; Epprecht, Marc. Sexual Orientation, Controversy, and Science. Psychological Science in the Public Interest. 2016, 17 (2): 45–101 [2021-03-31]. PMID 27113562. doi:10.1177/1529100616637616. (原始内容存档于2020-04-14). Sexual fluidity is situation-dependent flexibility in a person’s sexual responsiveness, which makes it possible for some individuals to experience desires for either men or women under certain circumstances regardless of their overall sexual orientation....We expect that in all cultures the vast majority of individuals are sexually predisposed exclusively to the other sex (i.e., heterosexual) and that only a minority of individuals are sexually predisposed (whether exclusively or non-exclusively) to the same sex.
Dennis Coon; John O. Mitterer. Introduction to Psychology: Gateways to Mind and Behavior with Concept Maps and Reviews. Cengage Learning. 2012: 372 [2016-02-18]. ISBN 978-1111833633. Sexual orientation is a deep part of personal identity and is usually quite stable. Starting with their earliest erotic feelings, most people remember being attracted to either the opposite sex or the same sex. [...] The fact that sexual orientation is usually quite stable doesn't rule out the possibility that for some people sexual behavior may change during the course of a lifetime.
Eric Anderson; Mark McCormack. Measuring and Surveying Bisexuality. The Changing Dynamics of Bisexual Men's Lives. Springer Science & Business Media. 2016: 47 [2019-06-22]. ISBN 978-3-319-29412-4. (原始内容存档于2021-08-24). [R]esearch suggests that women's sexual orientation is slightly more likely to change than men's (Baumeister 2000; Kinnish et al. 2005). The notion that sexual orientation can change over time is known as sexual fluidity. Even if sexual fluidity exists for some women, it does not mean that the majority of women will change sexual orientations as they age – rather, sexuality is stable over time for the majority of people.
^Vare, Jonatha W., and Terry L. Norton. "Understanding Gay and Lesbian Youth: Sticks, Stones and Silence." Cleaning House 71.6 (1998): 327–31: Education Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 19 April 2012.
^Blanchard R. Birth order and sibling sex ratio in homosexual versus heterosexual males and females. Annual Review of Sex Research. 1997, 8: 27–67. PMID 10051890.
^"Different aspects of sexual orientation may be influenced to a greater or lesser degree [p. 303:] by experiential factors such that sexual experimentation with same-gender partners may be more dependent on a conducive family environment than the development of a gay or lesbian identity." Susan E. Golombok & Fiona L. Tasker, Do Parents Influence the Sexual Orientation of Their Children?, in J. Kenneth Davidson, Sr., & Nelwyn B. Moore, Speaking of Sexuality: Interdisciplinary Readings (Los Angeles, Calif.: Roxbury Publishing, 2001) (ISBN1-891487-33-7), pp. 302–03 (adapted from same authors, Do Parents Influence the Sexual Orientation of Their Children? Findings From a Longitudinal Study of Lesbian Families, in Developmental Psychology (American Psychological Association), vol. 32, 1996, 3–11) (author Susan Golombok prof. psychology, City Univ., London, id., p. xx, & author Fiona Tasker sr. lecturer, Birkbeck Coll., Univ. of London, id., p. xxiii).
^"Whereas there is no evidence from the present investigation to suggest that parents have a determining influence on the sexual orientation of their children, the findings do indicate that by creating a climate of acceptance or rejection of homosexuality within the family, parents may have some impact on their children's sexual experimentation as heterosexual, lesbian, or gay." Do Parents Influence the Sexual Orientation of Their Children?, ibid., in Speaking of Sexuality, id., p. 303 (adapted per id., p. 303).
^Ulrichs, Karl Heinrich. The Riddle of Man-Manly Love. Prometheus Books. 1994. ISBN 978-0-87975-866-0.
^Hirschfeld, Magnus, 1896. Sappho und Socrates, Wie erklärt sich die Liebe der Männer & und Frauen zu Personen des eigenen Geschlechts? (Sappho and Socrates, How Can One Explain the Love of Men and Women for Individuals of Their Own Sex?).
^Kinsey; et al. Sexual Behavior in the Human Female. Indiana University Press. 1953: 499. ISBN 978-4-87187-704-6.
^Kinsey; et al. Sexual Behavior in the Human Male. Indiana University Press. 1948. ISBN 978-0-253-33412-1.
^ 91.091.1Sell, R.L. The Sell assessment of sexual orientation: Background and scoring. Journal of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Identity. 1996, 1: 295–310.
^Udry, J.; Chantala, K. Risk factors differ according to same sex and opposite-sex interest. Journal of Biological Sciences. 2005, 37 (4): 481–97. PMID 16086450. doi:10.1017/s0021932004006765.
^Mosher, W; Chandra, A.; Jones, J. Sexual behaviour and selected health measures: Men and women 15–44 years of age, United States, 2002. Advance Data from Vital and Health Statistics.
^LeDoux JE, The Emotional Brain (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1996).
^ 114.0114.1114.2Garnets, L. & Kimmel, D.C. (Eds.). (2003). Psychological perspectives on lesbian, gay and bisexual experiences. New York: Columbia University Press
^Mock, S.E.; Eibach, R.P. Stability and change in sexual orientation identity over a 10-year period in adulthood. Archives of Sexual Behavior. 2011, 41 (3): 641–48. PMID 21584828. doi:10.1007/s10508-011-9761-1.
^Sechrest, L.; Fay, T.L.; Zaidi, M.H. Problems of Translation in Cross-Cultural Research. Journal of Cross-Cultural Research. 1972, 3 (1): 41–56. doi:10.1177/002202217200300103.
^ 119.0119.1119.2119.3119.4119.5Santaemilia, J. (2008). 'War of words' on New (Legal) Sexual Identities: Spain's Recent Gender-Related Legislation and Discursive Conflict. In J. Santaemilia & P. Bou (Eds.). Gender and sexual identities in transition: international perspectives, pp. 181–98. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
^Rule, NO. The influence of target and perceiver race in the categorisation of male sexual orientation. Perception. 2011, 40 (7): 830–39. PMID 22128555. doi:10.1068/p7001. hdl:1807/33198.
^Rust, P.C. (2003). Finding a Sexual Identity and Community: Therapeutic Implications and Cultural Assumptions in Scientific Models of Coming Out. In L. Garnets & D.C. Kimmel (Eds.). Psychological perspectives on lesbian, gay and bisexual experiences (pp. 227–69). New York: Columbia University Press
^Carballo-Diéguez A.; Dolezal C.; Nieves L.; Díaz F.; Decena C.; Balan I. Looking for a tall, dark, macho man… sexual-role behaviour variations in Latino gay and bisexual men. Culture, Health & Sexuality. 2004, 6 (2): 159–71. doi:10.1080/13691050310001619662.
^James Alm, M.V. Lee Badgett, Leslie A. Whittington, Wedding Bell Blues: The Income Tax Consequences of Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage, p. 24 (1998) PDF link.
^Chinese Femininities, Chinese Masculinities: A Reader (页面存档备份,存于互联网档案馆), by Susan Brownell & Jeffrey N. Wasserstrom (Univ. of Calif. Press, 2002 (ISBN0-520-22116-8, ISBN978-0-520-22116-1)). Quote: "The problem with sexuality: Some scholars have argued that maleness and femaleness were not closely linked to sexuality in China. Michel Foucault's The History of Sexuality (which deals primarily with Western civilization and western Europe) began to influence some China scholars in the 1980s. Foucault's insight was to demonstrate that sexuality has a history; it is not fixed psycho-biological drive that is the same for all humans according to their sex, but rather it is a cultural construct inseparable from gender constructs. After unmooring sexuality from biology, he anchored it in history, arguing that this thing we now call sexuality came into existence in the eighteenth-century West and did not exist previously in this form. "Sexuality" is an invention of the modern state, the industrial revolution, and capitalism. Taking this insight as a starting point, scholars have slowly been compiling the history of sexuality in China. The works by Tani Barlow, discussed above, were also foundational in this trend. Barlow observes that, in the West, heterosexuality is the primary site for the production of gender: a woman truly becomes a woman only in relation to a man's heterosexual desire. By contrast, in China before the 1920s the "jia" (linage unit, family) was the primary site for the production of gender: marriage and sexuality were to serve the lineage by producing the next generation of lineage members; personal love and pleasure were secondary to this goal. Barlow argues that this has two theoretical implications: (1) it is not possible to write a Chinese history of heterosexuality, sexuality as an institution, and sexual identities in the European metaphysical sense, and (2) it is not appropriate to ground discussions of Chinese gender processes in the sexed body so central in "Western" gender processes. Here she echoes Furth's argument that, before the early twentieth century, sex-identity grounded on anatomical difference did not hold a central place in Chinese constructions of gender. And she echoes the point illustrated in detail in Sommer's chapter on male homosexuality in the Qing legal code: a man could engage in homosexual behavior without calling into question his manhood so long as his behavior did not threaten the patriarchal Confucian family structure."
^Boswell, John. Revolutions, Universals, and Sexual Categories(PDF). Duberman, Martin Bauml; Vicinus, Martha; Chauncey, Jr., George (编). Hidden From History: Reclaiming the Gay and Lesbian Past. Penguin Books. 1989: 17–36 [2021-04-09]. (原始内容(PDF)存档于2019-03-04).
^Zachary Green & Michael J. Stiers, Multiculturalism and Group Therapy in the United States: A Social Constructionist Perspective (Springer Netherlands, 2002), pp. 233–46.
延伸閲讀
Brum, Gil, Larry McKane, & Gerry Karp, Biology: Exploring Life (John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2nd ed. 1994), p. 663. ISBN9780471600008. (About INAH-3.)
De La Torre, Miguel A., Out of the Shadows, Into the Light: Christianity and Homosexuality (Chalice Press, 2009).
Dynes, Wayne, ed., Encyclopedia of Homosexuality. New York & London: Garland Publishing, 1990.