What factors determine an individual's sexual orientation and gender identity? Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Sexual orientation and gender identity are social constructs based on normative social roles and a strong desire to place individuals into binary categories. Sexual orientation and queer identity research is largely incomprehensible due to this assumed binary, but theories have been devised about what may influence queer identities, both in sexual orientation and gender identity. Gay men have been studied much more than lesbian women due to visibility and the social role of the “spinster.” Men are historically more public, and unmarried men are shamed and questioned more than unmarried women. One historical theory of why gay men exist is the psychological factor of having a strong mother. A boy with a strong mother and a weak or absent father would, in theory, be gay due to his effeminate presence and lack of male figure. This theory is very flawed and exists largely to shame strong mothers and force them into submissive roles. Another theory as to why gay men exist involves physical differences in the brain sizes of gay and straight men. One study found that gay men had smaller hypothalamuses than heterosexual men, destining some men to be gay. The results of this study are also very unfounded. Study subjects did not necessarily self-identify as gay or straight. The identity of subjects who died before the study was identified as gay or straight based on whether or not they had died of AIDS. The subjects who died of AIDS were classified as gay while the other subjects were classified as straight. By arranging subjects in this way, the researchers ignored the possibility that gay men died of natural causes and that heterosexual men died of AIDS. The study also ignored the fact that AIDS affects the size of the hypothalamus: AIDS sufferers would likely have smaller hypothalamuses because of the disease, not because of sexual orientation. Discussion of a "gay gene" is another potential explanation for different sexual orientations. . This theory, however, asks a simple question: if homosexuality is linked to a gene, why hasn't the gene died out? If the gay gene is X-linked, it is possible that the gene is passed down through heterosexual female carriers. There may be evolutionary benefits that outweigh gay men's inherent decline in fertility and reproduction, but these benefits have not been identified. Studies of gay women have not been as numerous as studies of gay men. Because of gender-based differences in cultural acceptance of sex, gay factors likely differ between gay men and lesbians. Women can become gay as a political and social movement. Women who have had poor relationships with men may become lesbians to avoid abusive husbands. Women may also become lesbians to gain a more masculine role in society, a perceived step forward. There is no confirmed reason to explain why some individuals diverge from the heteronormativity of our society. Gender is also a socially constructed factor designed to place individuals into a binary category system. Cultures create roles and expectations based on sex, and these roles are imposed on children before they are even born. Gender is based on an individual's phenotype. The appearance of oneperson as masculine or feminine determines his life trajectory. What factors determine which tasks are "men's work" and which are "women's work?" The determination of men's work and women's work was imposed on cultures due to the helplessness of human children. Human beings have many responsibilities regardless of gender. Companies divide up the work to get things done. The division of labor forces men and women to need each other. It is inefficient to teach each child all the tasks necessary to survive, so a division of labor is best for societies as a whole. The division of labor is not based on biological differences between males and females. While many may argue that males are stronger than females, males are simply allowed to train and bones grow in response to muscle growth. Biological differences between the sexes are largely influenced by cultural rules. The division of labor is largely influenced by women's maternal role. Men cannot take on the role of giving birth and breastfeeding young children, so some tasks are imposed on women. Other tasks must therefore fit in with maternal duties. Women's work, therefore, is work that can be interrupted and is less likely to lead to death. Women may be the ones who do the sewing and cooking because these tasks may be interrupted to breastfeed a baby. Whaling and hunting cannot. Even dangerous tasks are entrusted to men rather than women due to the risk of death. If a man is killed while hunting, only one member of society is killed. If a woman is killed, society loses her, any young dependents she may have, and all her potential future children. Men are more expendable, so the division of labor between men and women exists to help women stay alive. Another factor that divides labor is the age of marriage between men and women. In many cultures, women marry very young and begin having children as soon as physically possible. This does not allow women to learn very specialized tasks during childhood. Men get married later. This gives kids a longer amount of time to learn specialized and difficult tasks. Why all human groups have incest taboos Incest taboos are universal to humans, which is very rare. This implies that incest taboos are ancient, beneficial, or both. Incest taboos take many different forms, but they all limit sexual intercourse in nuclear families to only allow intercourse between mother and father. Other cultures extend this taboo to include cousins, aunts and uncles, and beyond. In other species, incest taboos exist for resource management. By chasing away children when they can fend for themselves, parents reclaim territory and food. Although these sexual restrictions exist in other species, they are not universal. Female orangutans, for example, have sex with their children to teach them how to have sex. This can be explained by the solitary nature of orangutans and the need to teach their children. Incest taboos have no clear origin. Freud believes that incest taboos prevent boys from killing their fathers to marry their mothers, but this theory incorrectly assumes that boys know the relationship between marriage and sex. Furthermore, in cultures where the boy's biological uncle is the primary disciplinary and masculine presence, the boy wants to kill his uncle. This shows that boys don't want to kill their fathers to be with their mothers, they don't like the disciplinarian figure. Another theory for the universal nature ofIncest taboo is the privacy theory. This theory implies that creating separation within the family unit allows for the growth of separate egos. If the nuclear family had no privacy, family members would not be individualized. This theory does not take into account the typical system in which mothers and fathers share and therefore lack privacy. Binary theory applies the “us versus them” mentality to sex. The theory states that incest taboos arise from the desire to separate an individual's group from the rest of society. The binary theory is not very convincing because it presupposes incest taboos: why do we need an “us versus them” mentality if the taboo hasn't already been created? Westermark's theory suggests that incest taboos stem from an aversion to seeing people outside of created roles. People see others based on their experiences with them: a sibling is seen in the context of a sibling, a teacher is seen in the context of a teacher, and so on. The taboo implies that it is something that people would do, so any biological or psychological behavior explanations of incest taboos do not hold up. The social theory of the incest taboo is that preventing incest somehow benefits cultures. Limiting sexual partners leads to external alliances, but this implies equal importance placed on sex and marriage, which is not accurate. Alliances are created through marriage, so incest taboos are not explained. Incest taboos may just be a way to protect children and monitor adult behavior. Children can be harmed physically and mentally by adults, so these taboos may help prevent harm to children, but this does not explain why the taboo exists among adults. The universal nature and origin of incest taboos remain completely unknown. Why are ceremonies marking puberty for women more common than those for men? Puberty exists as a process, although it is often celebrated as a singular event. Female puberty is marked by menarche, a very visible physical event. Many cultures see menarche and female puberty as the trigger for changes in social roles. For women, menarche marks the transition from childhood to adulthood as they can now begin to have children. Reproduction is, in many cultures, the most important role a woman can play, so the start of her reproductive life cycle is cause for celebration. Puberty ceremonies for women can be celebratory or involve mutilation. Ilima is a celebration for the Mbuti people. During Ilima, girls are welcomed into adult society and taught adult things, such as achieving orgasm, caring for children, singing, and how to interact with men. Other cultures have a fattening ceremony to celebrate puberty. During this time, the girls are locked up with no responsibilities other than eating. When she has put on weight, she is in her most beautiful shape and is ready to be married. Some cultures mark female puberty with genital mutilation. In some cultures, the clitoral hood is removed, leaving the reproductive system unharmed. Other cultures mutilate girls. Mutilated genitals are the culturally accepted appearance for adult women, so altering girls after menarche is one way to transform them into women. What kinds of restrictions do cultures place on sexual activity? What is the relationship between the restrictions imposed on males and those imposed on females? Cultures often restrict sex outside of marriage, including premarital and extramarital sex. Most cultures allow premarital sex for one or both sexes. 36%of cultures completely restricts premarital sex, with punishments potentially including death. 46% of cultures allow premarital sex for both males and females. Only 18% of cultures only allow men to have premarital sex, so the double standard is rare. There are no cultures that allow women to have premarital sex but prohibit males from doing the same. Females are more limited than males due to the possibility of pregnancy. Because premarital sex lacks a forced bond between potential parents, pregnancy and subsequent childbirth can be harmful to both mother and child if there are insufficient resources. Within cultures that allow premarital sex and those that only allow males to have premarital sex, a division still exists and the distinction between male and female sexuality exists. It is assumed that females have less sex. It is possible that these statistics are due to the fact that males overestimate sexual intercourse while females underestimate it. It is also possible that men are having more premarital sex due to greater acceptance of different sexual partners. Men can have premarital sex with married women, other men, widows, or animals. This allows men to have premarital sex without unmarried women being involved. Extramarital sex is also limited. 74% of cultures disapprove of extramarital sex. This can be remedied somewhat with polygamy, accepted in 82% of cultures. Men have more freedom in extramarital affairs than women. Extramarital sex implies that resources are given to third parties rather than remaining within the couple. In some cultures, extramarital sex is permitted if given explicit permission. The Yanomamo Indians of Brazil often allow brothers to have sex with their wives if he asks them to. The pressure is to allow the younger brother to have sex when he asks for it. Eskimos participate in wife swapping, but permission is required. Some cultures allow extramarital sex during festival activities. Traditional May Day activities included sex with various partners to help the soil become fertile. Some cultures practice extramarital sex at funerals to demonstrate to the dead that life still thrives and that people can replace those who have died. American culture also justifies and accepts extramarital sex under the moniker “What Happens in Las Vegas.” Is there such a thing as premenstrual syndrome? Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is a non-universal cultural phenomenon. PMS is how we describe the dangers of women before and during menstruation. Menstruation is often accompanied by physical symptoms, such as cramps, bloating, nausea, acne, and more. PMS is characterized by psychological factors, including depression, lethargy, and irritability. These psychological symptoms can largely be explained by the physical symptoms of menstruation. When a woman suffers physical discomfort due to menstruation and society forces her to continue normal daily life, depression, lethargy and irritability are understandable and frankly expected. PMS is also illogical. The cultural assumption of PMS is that in the week leading up to your period and the week of your period, women are raging, hormonal beasts. If this were true, half of women would be uncontrollable at all times. This simply doesn't happen. The existence of premenstrual syndrome allows women to act in.