Many people believe that some parts of the human psyche have an innate desire to reproduce; breeding is how organisms spread their genetics, so it may make sense that a creature's primary goal is to reproduce. For this reason, humans are also sexual creatures, and having children is the life goal of many. Asexuality, however, challenges this notion. Asexuality is defined as a lack of sexual desire or disinterest in having sex. It can be assessed through three different means: sexual behavior, sexual attraction, and identity (Brotto, Knudson, Inskip, Rhodes, & Erskine, 2010). Approximately 1% of the world's population identifies as asexual, making it one of the smallest sexual identities (Bogaert, 2004). Due to the belief that humans should naturally have sex, asexuality has been negatively stigmatized, deemed a physical or psychological disorder. This literature review will examine the following question: Is asexuality a disability? What distinguishes the two? Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Defining the characteristics of asexuality has both biological and social benefits. Much of the research on asexuality seeks to characterize it as a biological dysfunction or a psychological disorder. From this point of view, asexuality is seen as a disorder that must be treated, for example through therapy or hormone therapy, as is the case with hyposexual desire disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). However, if many asexuals do not experience distress or damaged interpersonal relationships, should this still be classified as a disorder? If it's not a disorder, should asexuality be treated? A deeper understanding of the origins of asexuality can save valuable resources for those who are truly uncomfortable with their condition. Beyond that, defining asexual characteristics and the science behind them can reduce the negative social stigma attached to not having sexual desires. Much of this discrimination also stems from the queer community's long history with discrimination and institutionalization (Conrad & Schneider, 1994). Having an identity allows you to connect with your community and face daily struggles with a support group behind you. There is very little research on asexuality. This may be due, I believe, to the fact that the concept of asexuality as a sexual orientation has only recently become a topic of discussion. In the past, the fact that some people rarely experienced sexual attraction was of little importance; instead, these feelings were associated with a sense of inadequacy or “being broken.” Since the label asexual has only recently started to become more widespread, very few people may not even be aware that asexuality exists. Another reason why research may be so sparse is that self-identified asexuals make up such a small portion of the population, only about 1% (Bogaert, 2004). This provides fewer opportunities for asexual subjects and interviews, as they are harder to encounter. Most of the research I came across related to asexuality had small sample sizes, especially with samples of self-identified asexuals. Instead, many studies have resorted to using online questionnaires, drawing on asexual communities known as The Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN). Founded in 2001 by David Jay, the website states that its goals are “to create acceptancepublic and discussion about asexuality and facilitate the growth of an asexual community” (“AVEN”). AVEN seeks to provide information not only to the asexuals they question, but also to their families and communities. Studies have shown that individuals who identify as asexual are very open to working with researchers in order to advance their scientific understanding (Brotto, Knudson, Inskip, Rhodes, & Erskine, 2010). Prause's “Asexuality: Classification and Characterization” and Graham (2007) created an online questionnaire filled out by 1,146 individuals (N = 41 self-identified asexuals). This questionnaire asked questions regarding sexual history, sexual arousal and inhibition, sexual desire, and an open-ended section regarding asexuality. Asexuals reported fewer sexual histories with partners, less sexual arousal, and less excitability or desire. Surprisingly, they did not differ substantially from non-asexuals in sexual inhibition or desire to masturbate. This indicates that the main characteristic of asexuality is the lack of sexual desire. While this article focuses on the differences between sexuals and asexuals, it primarily focuses only on this concept and fails to discuss the impact asexuality has on the lives of self-identified asexuals. Asexuality can often be confused with other similar psychological or biological factors. disorders. These conditions include hypoactive sexual desire disorder and sexual aversion disorder. Hypoactive sexual desire disorder, or inhibited sexual desire, was a sexual dysfunction defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) as a lack of desire for sexual activity for six months or more. In the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) the disorder was deleted and replaced with male hypoactive sexual desire disorder and female sexual interest/arousal disorder. It is important to note that to be marked as a disorder, it must cause extreme individual distress or interpersonal difficulties. There have been many protests regarding the inclusion of these disorders in the DSM-V, mainly from asexual activists who believe that this condition is similar to the inclusion of homosexuality in the DSM up until 1973. There have been a handful of studies that they sought to research the psychological characteristics of asexuality and what distinguishes it from a psychological disorder. A highly regarded study on asexuality is Bogaert's (2004) “Asexuality: Prevalence and Associated Factors in a National Probability Sample.” In this study, the author seeks to explore some of the characteristics shared among a sample of 18,000 British asexuals. Bogaert found that some of the common characteristics include gender (being a woman), short stature, low economic status, low religiosity, a later menarche, low education, and poor health. This study suggests that there are, in fact, a number of psychosocial and biological factors that may contribute to being asexual. However, in his article Bogart (2004) exclusively refers to asexuality as those who have never experienced sexual attraction before, excluding important components such as sexual behavior and identity from his working definition by focusing only on desire. Two years later, Bogaert (2006) wrote “Toward a Conceptual Understanding of Asexuality.” This article focuses on some of the concepts behind asexuality, discussing the similarities and differences between sexuality and disorders such as hypoactive sexual desire disorder or sexual aversion disorder. Bogaert (2006) concludes that.