Sexual orientation

Sexual orientation refers to the sex or gender of people who are the focus of a person's amorous or erotic desires, fantasies, and spontaneous feelings, the gender(s) toward which one is primarily "oriented". The alternative terms sexual preference and sexual inclination have similar meanings. Clinicians and those who believe sexuality is fixed early in life tend to use the former term; those believing sexuality is fluid and reflects preference and choice tend towards the latter terms.

Sexual orientation, identity, and behavior

Some examples may help clarify the distinctions between orientation or desire, identity, and behavior:

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

• People of any sexual orientation may choose sexual abstinence, suppressing or ignoring any desires they may have.
• Some people who feel homosexual desire may engage in heterosexual behavior and even heterosexual marriage for a number of reasons.
• Some bisexual people have only one sexual or romantic partner at a time, and sometimes happen to have sexual and romantic partners from one only gender throughout their entire lives, despite attraction to some people of both sexes.
• People with heterosexual attractions may nonetheless have homosexual encounters whether by self-initiation, with initiation by the other party, with multiple simultaneous partners, through acts of deception, or due to absence of an available partner of the opposite gender (see e.g. prison sex) or other unusual social circumstances. (See: situational sexual behavior.)
• A minority of people who self-identify as heterosexual or homosexual actually feel attracted to and engage in sexual behavior with people of both genders.

Some new terminology consciously differentiates between these three aspects. For example, men who have sex with men, or "MSM", is a clinical term used to describe behavior only. Same-sex attraction focuses on feelings and desires.

Related Topics:
Men who have sex with men - Same-sex attraction

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Terms such as straight, gay, and lesbian tend to be used more often as identity-labels, but are sometimes used as synonyms for heterosexual, homosexual (men and women or just men), and homosexual (women), respectively. (See also: Terminology of homosexuality.)

Related Topics:
Straight - Gay - Lesbian - Terminology of homosexuality

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Note that the term "sexual identity" is also sometimes intended to mean a persons's conception of one's own sex or gender identity. This use however is considered highly inaccurate by transgender people, who consider their gender identity to be related to, but separate from their sexual orientation/identity.

Related Topics:
Sexual identity - Gender identity

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In his book The Bisexual Option, Dr. Fritz Klein, MD, proposes an even more complicated description of sexual orientation. The "Klein Sexual Orientation Grid" takes into account sexual attraction, sexual behavior, sexual fantasies, emotional and social partners, lifestyle, and self-identification. Each of these axes is also considered for the personal past, present, and ideal. Klein Sexual Orientation Grid

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~