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  • Essay / Homosexuality and evolution: analyzing homosexuality as an adaptive strategy

    Table of contentsPrevalence of homosexualityLife history theoryLHT and homosexualityMarkers of family life LHT for homosexualityIs homosexuality an alternative to reproduction ? Female Sexual FluidityDiscussion and ConclusionsPrevalence of HomosexualityThe Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, and Queer (LGBTQ) movement is growing. A Gallup poll concluded that 4.5% of American adults were LGBTQ. Gallup also provides a gender breakdown between women (5.1%) and men (3.9%). Although it may seem easy to divide homosexuality into these five categories, as for a more in-depth analysis, there is an almost infinite complexity that is quickly uncovered and that's before you start asking questions like "why?" » Homosexuality, in general, seems counterintuitive when it comes to adaptability and would pose significant obstacles to gene transmission; however, research shows that this is not the case. Further investigation is needed as Gallup also reports that these numbers are increasing. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayLGBTQ category includes gay men, lesbian women, bisexuals from the male and female polar ends of the gender spectrum, genders queer (e.g. non-binary, gender fluid and gender non-conforming people, etc.) and transgender people. Within queer and transgender peoples are subsets of gay transgender men and lesbian transgender women, as well as other gender queer individuals. This literature review will not focus on spectrum subtypes, but on the adaptive strategies of homosexuality as they relate to coping. According to Nila, Barthes, Crochet, Suryobroto and Raymond (2015), homosexuality should disappear. according to their analysis of male homosexual behavior (MHP) and cited literature that indicates the heritability of MHP. Nila et al. (2015) note that mentions of homosexuality have existed throughout history in various texts. Also among their reports are the different tendencies of Eastern societies to have higher rates of homosexuality than Western societies. Life History Theory The literature surrounding homosexuality is often based on life history theory (LHT). Luoto, Krams, and Rantala (2017) describe the LHT as a powerful tool for describing effort expenditures across the lifespan and analyzing the tendency to cultivate personal growth versus the tendency for reproductive acts. By examining the life cycle of an organism, the conditions in which it was born, and the strategies it uses to reproduce, LHT can be used to develop causal relationships with mating behaviors. Luoto et al. (2017) note that “life history strategies are a composite of developmental, somatic, and psychological variables commonly represented on a fast to slow continuum.” Based on biological facts, the LHT assigns gender-specific strategies. Evolutionary psychology will often consider LHT because it focuses on the development of an organism in a historical sense, through evolution, and analyzes existing behavior in part based on previous evolutionary adaptive changes. LHT and homosexualityLuoto et al. (2017) propose a hypothesis that homosexuality and bisexuality in women are a result of life history, this is due to erratic environments. In other words, women in conditionsDangerous women resort to more rapid reproductive strategies, including promiscuity so intense that they do not care whether it will produce offspring. Although this is plausible, Figueredo (2018) argues that it is necessary to divide this phenomenon into a gender-specific phenomenon, otherwise men's fast-living strategies would innately include homosexuality, but do not necessarily do so. Figueredo also argues that there are intrauterine determinations of homosexuality, including but not limited to homosexuality itself and the different subtypes of each type. Figueredo (2018) lightly insinuates environmental causes through discussions of higher stakes. the presence of factors that may make early childhood more unstable (i.e., unstable parental relationships, absence of a father figure and adverse childhood conditions, to name a few) are more present in the lives of homosexual men than in those of heterosexual men; while also arguing that these conditions that lead women to use more masculinized LHT strategies could feminize gay men and encourage them to adopt feminine LHT strategies. This is counterintuitive for LHT, as the language used to describe these roles is gendered. According to Figueredo (2018), unfavorable conditions should push men toward hypermasculinity, which would involve having many children from many mothers rather than homosexual strategies. LHT Family Life Markers for HomosexualityAmong the previously mentioned markers for predicting homosexuality, other events and traits serve as predictors of homosexuality. . Petterson, Dixson, Little, and Vasey (2018) mention that cisgender and transgender men have more male parents, older brothers, larger families, reduced offspring production, greater gender nonconformity at adulthood and childhood, as well as higher levels of separation during childhood. anxiety. All of these traits describe either a highly competitive market for sexual partners or instability/insecurity in the structure of their family unit which, these markers transcend cultural boundaries to result in similar rates of homosexuality. Diamond & Alley (2018) note that high levels of developmental adversity can lead to rapid sexual maturation, sexual debut, and increased risk-taking in sexual behaviors. Instability in one's own ability to find a mate may require alternative strategies to ensure genetic reproduction. To what extent are these strategies rooted in psychology and development? Measuring response times and ratings of attractiveness on a seven-point Likert scale by cisgender and transgender men, Petterson et al. (2018) found that there was little difference between the two groups' response rates toward men, whom they also found more attractive than women. Both groups took longer to look at male composite photographs than female composite photographs, and both groups rated their attractiveness higher. Petterson explained this as a biological and psychological similarity between the groups. These conclusions lead to a shared decision between nature and culture. Is homosexuality an alternative to reproduction? Nila et al. (2015) offer an alternative explanation for the adaptability of homosexuality. Nila et al. explain that parental selection and "helping" behaviors may be key to ensuring the continued propagation of a homosexual strategy using a model ofbehavior similar to matrilineal strategies. A homosexual man can contribute to ensuring the survival of others by favoring his nephews and nieces, from his siblings. Male reproduction was a mysterious affair before paternity testing according to Gaulin (2004, pp. 359) in his description of the low probability of paternity. In matrilineal societies, resources are distributed among the sister's children rather than the direct descendant's son. There is, however, an evolutionary explanation for this since brothers and sisters share at least 25% of the genes, and this is known since women's motherhood is assured in primitive societies. This means that a nephew and uncle share at least 12.5% ​​of their genetic makeup. In this way, homosexuality can form a protective barrier of one's genes without risking direct loss of loved ones, thanks to a larger support network and more providers. The only requirement for this strategy to work is that a sibling produces multiple offspring to create a 50% share of genes, as opposed to heterosexual strategies which require only one to create an equal share of genes. The hypothesis of Nila et al. (2015) predicted that nieces and nephews would receive resources, based on previous research showing higher altruism scores among gay and bisexual men, to create what they describe as an indirect mating and avuncular tendency. By sacrificing their own mating potential, homosexuals create a candidate more likely to continue their family lineage, even if they share fewer genes. Although the discussion by Nila et al. focuses primarily on male subjects, it is also a possibility among lesbian and bisexual women. The work of Nila et al. showed a low rate of direct reproduction in homosexual men early in life, but as homosexual men aged, they saw more indirect mating success since the subject's brothers had more children. This is consistent with the slower mating strategies of the LHT. Although this work focused on a less industrialized area (Samoa) than the United States, it suggests that this may also be the case in industrialized countries, thanks to industrial technology allowing resources to be shared further afield. can be more diverse than strict heterosexual and homosexual preference. Diamond & Alley (2018) focused more on the exclusivity of women's sexual attraction and behaviors while analyzing the findings and methods of Luoto et al. (2018). Diamond & Alley acknowledge previous research that distinguishes the behaviors of exclusive lesbians and bisexual women and reveals that a number of troubling interactions with their environments may have some origin in the distinction between exclusive lesbians and bisexuals, including the early sexual behavior, promiscuity, delinquency, substance use, and high-risk sexual behaviors. Diamond & Alley also present what may be a distinction between homosexuality and heterosexuality, namely that women's sexual pleasure and the act of procreation are detached from each other and suggest that women may have a higher priority for sexual pleasure than for reproduction. The distinction presented by Diamond & Alley (2018) is punctuated by cited previous research showing that women who have sex with women report more satisfaction and better orgasms than women who only have sex with men. Diamond & Alley emphasize that the.