Psychologist Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing's Psychopathia Sexualis (1866) was the first scientific discussion of homosexuality.
Homosexuality was reported to be 1.3 percent for women within the past year, and 4.1 percent since 18 years; for men, 2.7 percent within the past year, and 4.9 percent since 18 years.
Usually in any society one form of homosexuality predominates, though others are likely to co-exist.
The variety of the specific social constructions of homosexuality across cultures (above) supports the view that a large component of homosexuality is socially conditioned and learned behavior.
From early Christianity until recent times, the leading lights of the church have universally condemned homosexuality as among the worst of all sexual sins.
Accusations of homosexuality have at times been used as a political weapon.
The third of the Five Precepts of Buddhism states that one is to refrain from sexual misconduct; this precept is usually understood to include homosexuality.
All major Islamic sects disapprove of homosexuality, and same-sex intercourse is an offense punishable by execution in six Muslim nations: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Mauritania, Sudan, Somalia and Yemen.
Hence, finding a genetic factor in homosexuality does not in itself prove that homosexuality is within the range of normal behavior.
To draw the issue sharply: Many believe that the root cause of homosexuality is genetic, like left-handedness.
Researchers studying the social construction of same-sex relationships in the various cultures around the world have suggested that the concept of homosexuality would best be rendered as "homosexualities."
Much research on the biology of homosexuality has sought to demonstrate an innate biological and even a genetic basis for this sexual orientation.
The ancient Hindu law codes such as the Manu Smriti refer to both female and male homosexuality as a punishable crime.
A rich tradition of art and literature sprang up, constructing Middle Eastern homosexuality in ways analogous to the ancient tradition of male love in which Ganymede, cup-bearer to the gods, symbolized the ideal boyfriend.
Aristophanes in the Symposium viewed homosexuality as a desire by men to share a long-term fulfillment of the soul.
On the other side, many conservatives and religious people regard homosexuality as a deviant state and same-sex relations as outside the norm of what should be acceptable behavior.
Homosexuality has been widely maligned as deviant or sinful behavior in most cultures, attitudes stemming from religious and philosophical ideas about what behaviors are in accord with nature and natural law.
Gender-structured and age-structured homosexuality typically involve one partner adopting a "passive" and the other an "active" role to a much greater degree than in egalitarian relationships.
Egalitarian homosexuality has emerged as the principal form practiced in the Western world, while age- and gender-structured homosexuality have become less common.
Among the religions that originated in India, including Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism, teachings regarding homosexuality are less clear than among the Abrahamic traditions.
Situational homosexuality occurs when there is no opportunity for heterosexual activity, as in prison, the military, and monastic orders.
I did not prove that homosexuality was genetic, or find a genetic cause for being gay.
Homosexuality cannot result in reproduction; this is the main reason why Confucians disapprove of it.
Homosexuality in Japan, variously known as shudo or nanshoku, terms influenced by Chinese literature, has been documented for over one thousand years.
Sexuality is rarely discussed openly in Hindu society, and homosexuality is largely a taboo subject—especially among the strongly religious.
Bailey himself stated, “There must be something in the environment to yield the discordant twins.” The alleged genetic basis would create a propensity to be homosexual, but it does not determine homosexuality.
Homosexuality in China, known as the "pleasures of the bitten peach," "the cut sleeve," or "the southern custom," has been recorded since approximately 600 B.C.E.
A modern Jain authority wrote in 2004 that homosexuality and transvestism "stain one's thoughts and feelings" because they involve sexual passion.
The causes of homosexuality are as yet unclear, and may be a complex of many factors.
Homosexuality is seen as the union of two yins or two yangs, and therefore unbalanced; hence it does not lead to human fulfillment.
Taking an historicist interpretation of scripture, they conclude that past scriptural prohibitions must give way to the modern understanding of homosexuality as the outworking of an orientation.
Today many people argue for social acceptance and legal recognition of same-sex relationships, believing that homosexuality is an inborn trait.
Homosexuality refers to sexual interaction between individuals of the same gender.
Among psychologists who regard homosexuality as a treatable condition, the prevailing theory is that homosexual feelings, thoughts, and desires are symptoms of deeper psychological issues.
Many others still maintain the traditional view that homosexuality is a sin, the result of a choice to indulge in immoral behavior.
At this point, research attempting to demonstrate biological causes of homosexuality are regarded skeptically by many mainstream biologists.
The view that much homosexuality is socially constructed is supported by clear instances of situational homosexuality.
The current debate is whether homosexuality is the result of nature—a person's biology and genetics, or of nurture—a person's environment and surroundings.
The medical problems associated with homosexuality are well-known in the gay community.
Some Christians therefore make the connection between homosexuality and demon possession, the activity of fallen angels.
According to this therapeutic perspective, homosexuality represents an attachment strain, defensive detachment, or defensive exclusion from the same-sex parent, same-sex peers, one’s own body, and one’s own sense of gender identity.
Reparative therapist Richard Cohen rejects the view that homosexuality is a sexual condition at all.
A hotly debated topic among biologists, psychologists and anthropologists concerns the causes of homosexuality.
The prevailing attitude of the mental health profession and recovery movement is “gay affirmative therapy,” helping the client come to accept their homosexuality.
The variety of the specific social constructions of homosexuality across cultures (above) supports the view that a large component of homosexuality is socially conditioned and learned behavior.