Psychoanalysis, Psychobiology, and Homosexuality

Bibliographic Data

ID8333577
AuthorsRichard C Friedman (Dr. Friedman's addrèss: 225 Central Park West New York, NY 10024), Jennifer I Downey (Central Park Conservancy), Jennifer Downey (Dr. Friedman's addrèss: 225 Central Park West New York, NY 10024)
Year1993
Volume41
Issue4
Pages1159-1198
Publication date1993-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of the American Psychoanalytic Association (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0003-0651 • E-ISSN: 1941-2460
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/000306519304100410
PMID8282941
OpenAlexW2170991274
LanguageEN
Citations received14
References cited78

The potential role of biological influences in human sexual orientation was considered more seriously during the early phases of psychoanalysis than in the years since World War II. Recently studies of homosexuality and heterosexuality in the neurosciences have attracted widespread attention both in the scientific and lay communities. The salience of these new data for psychoanalytic theory and practice is just beginning to be explored. In this article, we review research on sexual orientation in the following areas: genetics, crosscultural studies, studies of development in individuals with abnormal prenatal hormone exposure, childhood play patterns, and brain studies in both nonhumans and humans. Differences between male and female homosexuality are explored. We propose that psychoanalytic theory can grow and profit from a careful consideration of new findings in the psychobiology of sexuality, and that the interaction between mind and body is the appropriate purview of psychoanalysis

Developmental psychology · Homosexuality · Human sexuality · Psychoanalysis · Psychoanalytic theory · Salience (neuroscience) · Sexual orientation · Sociology · Behavioral Neuroscience · Gender Studies · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Neuroscience · Psychology · Reproductive Health and Technologies · Sexual Differentiation and Disorders