Jun
30

Homosexual behavior due to … ?

3:26 pm 06/30/2008 Life and Choices, Origins and Science
This entry is part 4 of 6 in the series Science "Journalism"
Science "Journalism"

EurekAlert does it again!

Would someone please explain to me how this article merits this headline???

Homosexual behavior due to genetics and environmental factors

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10 comments

  1. SteveK @ 2008-06-30 6:39 pm

    What is your complaint, Tom?

  2. Heath @ 2008-06-30 8:09 pm

    I think the title was exactly correct, especially if you read it with the emphasis on the word “and.”

    For so long, the emphasis has been on the genetic side of the equation. We have been told that all homosexuals are simply “born that way.” This article made a valid point when it admitted that, “genetic influences are important but modest, and that non-shared environmental factors, which may include factors operating during fetal development, dominate.” Environmental factors accounted for 64% of the behavior. That is a pretty stark contrast to current popular opinion on the subject.

    I fail to see why the headline is not merrited by the article.

  3. Tom Gilson @ 2008-06-30 9:08 pm

    I have two complaints about the headline: First, it’s more definite and final than seems warranted by what was quoted from the researchers. Second, it assumes that all behavior is caused by factors outside the person’s direct control. I would have been okay with it had it said, “Homosexual behavior strongly influenced by …. “

  4. Paul @ 2008-06-30 10:01 pm

    Speaking of things outside a person’s direct control, can it be that homosexuality is a choice and heterosexuality isn’t? Do the heterosexuals reading this believe that they could be homosexual if they just decided to do so? That it’s really as arbitrary as choosing chocolate over vanilla?

    I suspect that the number of cases in which a person’s sexual orientation is changeable force of will, for all intents and purposes, is pretty darn small.

  5. Tom Gilson @ 2008-06-30 10:15 pm

    The headline did not say “orientation,” it said “behavior.”

  6. SteveK @ 2008-06-30 11:00 pm

    Second, it assumes that all behavior is caused by factors outside the person’s direct control. I would have been okay with it had it said, “Homosexual behavior strongly influenced by …. “

    Ahhh…I see it now. It’s easier to report it that way I suspect. To do otherwise would lead to a longer article because the topic of free will is often a can of worms.

    Do your genes (biology) and your environment completely determine your behavior? I think not because, as you said, this leaves no room for individual responsibility. I have no way to prove this is the case. I can only rely on the common sense of individualism and free will that we all share. We all know we are free agents.

    Tony: this is another example of knowledge gained via a perception sensed through something other than the five senses.

  7. Charlie @ 2008-07-01 12:11 am

    You are absolutely correct, Tom.
    I usually think I’m pretty good at uncovering these hidden biases but I missed this one prior to your explanation.

  8. SteveK @ 2008-07-01 1:35 am

    I can imagine the line of questioning the researchers used since the only outcomes of the study were a) genes, b) environment or c) both…

    Patient: I freely chose to live my life as a homosexual because it’s what I prefer.
    Researcher: Tell me about your environment growing up
    Patient: It has nothing to do with my enviroment growing up, I simply choose to live a homosexual lifestyle.
    Researcher: Something caused you to choose this. Tell me about your childhood. Was your father overly strict?

  9. Paul @ 2008-07-01 8:41 am

    Tom: Oops, my bad.

  10. Tom Gilson @ 2008-07-05 8:26 pm

    Scott Gilbreath said it much better: “shaped by,” not “due to.”

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