Overview

This book provides a comprehensive analysis of the evolutionary origins of same-sex attraction, evaluating multiple existing evolutionary theories. It combines empirical findings with theoretical arguments in order to review evidence on the prevalence rates of same-sex attraction and determine its genetic and environmental basis. Among the topics addressed: Attitudes towards same-sex attraction across human history Assessing the weak selection pressures hypothesis of attraction Assessing the male choice hypothesis of attraction Evolution of same-sex attraction in men versus women The Evolution of Same-Sex Attraction will be of interest to academics and students of evolutionary and psychological sciences, filling a gap in literature on the origins of specifically same-sex attraction.  

Full Product Details

Author:   Menelaos Apostolou
Publisher:   Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Imprint:   Springer Nature Switzerland AG
Edition:   1st ed. 2020
Weight:   0.415kg
ISBN:  

9783030539276

ISBN 10:   303053927
Pages:   250
Publication Date:   08 October 2021
Audience:   Professional and scholarly ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: What is to be explained?Sexual orientationTransgender people and sexual orientationPrevalenceThe myth of sexual fluidityLongitudinal studiesSmall scale studiesLarge scale studiesRetrospective evidenceIs sexual fluidity a real phenomenon?Sexual arousal and sexual attractionChapter 2: The genetic basis of same-sex attractionThe genetic basis of sexual orientationFamily StudiesTwin StudiesThe heritability of sexual orientationDoes sexual orientation depend on the environment?Gender reassignment studiesMolecular Genetic StudiesChapter 3: Environmental factors affecting same-sex attractionThe environment and same-sex attractionAspects of the environmentThe fraternal birth order effectDysfunctional relationships with parentsAdoption by non-heterosexual parentsSeduction by non-heterosexual individualsEpıgenetıcsChapter 4: Evolutionary theories on same-sex attractionThe fitness cost of same-sex attractionSame-sex attractions in menCo-occurrence with another trait that is under positiveIncreased fecundity of female relativesGroup benefitsSame-sex alliancesParental manipulationInclusive fitness hypothesesSame-sex attractions in womenSecuring alloparental helpReduction in conflict in polygynous marriagesAssessing the current evolutionary theoriesChapter 5: Same-sex attraction in human history: Classical Greece, Imperial Rome and Christian EuropeWhen same-sex attraction first appearedThe hunting and gathering period of human evolutionThe agropastoral period of human evolutionHistorical evidenceLimitations of the historical recordClassical Greece (5th and 4th centuries BC)Imperial Rome (27 BC – 395 AD)Ancient Celts (Greek and Roman times)Christina Europe (5th – 18th centuries AD)Christianity and homosexualityMedieval EuropeLater Christian era- Renaissance- EuropeNorth American ColoniesChristian focus on marriage and childrenChapter 6: Same-sex attraction in human history: Central and South America, Islamic world, and AsiaCentral and South America [15th – 16th century AD]Islamic world (8th century AD – 20th century AD)Imperial China (3nd century BC – 20th century AD)Imperial Japan [10th century AD – 19th century AD]Pre-modern India [8th century BC – 19th century AD]Chapter 7: Assessing the evidence from the historical recordSummary of the historical records on same-sex attractionMaking sense of the historical evidenceSame-sex attraction is not a recent phenomenonVariation in the tolerance for same-sex attraction and contactThe mandatory nature of heterosexual marriageNo instances of institutionalized same-sex marriageFemale same-sex attraction was underreported or ignoredDifferentiation between the passive and the active roleMale desire for young menEvolutionary implicationsChapter 8: The Weak Selection Pressures HypothesisHow the body is sexedGenetic mutationsThe mutation-similar expression hypothesisFamilialityPleiotropyThe weak selection pressures hypothesisSmall phenotypic effectThe shielding effect of being in the “correct” sexAncestral preferencesRarity of same-sex outletsChapter 9: The weak selection pressures hypothesis: Regulation of mating, male-male competition and social consequencesFrom parent-offspring conflict over mating to same-sex attractionParent-offspring conflict over matingConverging genetic interestsParental control over matingMale-Male competition and violent conflictMale-male competition and negative selection on same-sex attractionSocial consequencesChapter 10: The weak selection pressures hypothesis: Male-tolerance, forced sex and desire to have childrenMale toleranceThe costs of cheatingCheating-protection mechanisms and male toleranceTolerance to same-sex infidelityTolerance to same-sex attractionsForced sex mating strategyThe nature of rapeThe impact of rape on same-sex attractionDesire for childrenConstraints on weak negative selectionChapter 11: The male choice hypothesisWhy men prefer women who like womenProtection from cuckoldryProtection from losing a partnerGaining access to more womenThe nature of the male preference for same-sex attraction and contactThe evolution of male preferences for same-sex attraction and contactDo men prefer women who like women?Replication studiesFactors that predict the male preference for same-sex attraction and contactShort-tern vs. long-term partnersParticipation effectAssortative mating for same-sex attractionsDesire for sexual variety and willingness to have sex without commitment effectsCultural effectsVariation in preference for same-sex attractionWhy not all men prefer women who are attracted to womenWhy some women prefer men who are attracted to menChapter 12: Assessing the male choice hypothesisConfounding variablesPorn consumptionReligiosityPreference for sexual variety and willingness to have sex without commitmentCriticisms from the general publicLimitationsThe strength of positive selection on female same-sex attractionPreference for same-sex attraction and contact and tolerance to same-sex infidelityThe strength of the male preferencePositive selection from male assortative matingOther sources of positive selectionChapter 13: Positive selection on male homosexualitySame-sex attraction in heterosexual menPreference for similarity and implications for same-sex attraction in menPositive selection on male homosexualityWealth and conflictThe reduced interfamily conflict hypothesisPredictions from the modelStrengths and weaknessesRevisiting the fraternal older brother effectSome implicationsImplications on same-sex attraction on heterosexual men and bisexualityChapter 14: The evolution of same-sex attraction in men and womenThe modelThe evolution of same-sex attraction in womenThe evolution of same-sex attraction in menEvaluating the proposed modelAccounting for the environmental componentEnvironmental dependence fitnessMutationNon-germ mutationsConcluding remarks

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Author Information

Dr Menelaos Apostolou is currently an Associate Professor at the University of Nicosia, Cyprus. He was born in Athens, Greece and he completed his post-graduate and graduate studies in the United Kingdom. He has published several peer-reviewed papers, books and chapters in books in the area of evolutionary psychology.

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