Literature Review

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Homosexuality Within Our Society Literature Review

Introduction
Homosexuality is a lifestyle that arises many questions in todays research. The main question that is constantly being researched what causes people identify themselves as homosexual whether it be gay or lesbian. Many of the research studies that have been employed have used twin studies to yield very similar results. Most researchers have found that there are both biological factors that play a role as well as environmental factors. There isnt a known gene yet that contributes to this biological factor but there are many current research projects trying to pin point that out. Delineating the etiology of homosexuality will allow people the scientific evidence to make decisions in regards to politics, morality, equal rights and so on. Beliefs about homosexuality and where it is derived from directly effects individuals who identify themselves that way. Therefore, Ive decided to also research how the society around us views homosexuality. Whether it be the general population of even the health care providers and future health care providers. They types of authors that wrote many of my sources Ive synthesized are highly qualified medical professionals, long time researchers, professors, etc. Within this medical centered discourse community many discussions on homosexuality have been ongoing for decades. Different theories of the etiology have been brought to light as well as ways to change the societies perspective on homosexuality so that better relationships are established like doctor-patient relationships.
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Etiology
For many years the topic of interest regarding homosexuality has been what is the etiology?. Researchers have done studies after studies to try and see if the root of homosexuality is influenced mainly by genetics or environmental factors most commonly known as nature versus nurture. A series of twin studies that were conducted found that both environmental factors and genetic factors play a huge role in the etiology of homosexuality (Lichtenstein 2013) (Gabard 1999). However, one particular twin study found that genetics play a much higher role then do environmental factors (Heston 2013). A researcher trying to answer the same question of etiology introduced a different potential factor. His study explored emotionally absent fathers as one variable in the understanding of homosexuality. He concluded that the level of intimacy a person has with their fathers plays a role in sexual identity. This created a new theory for the etiology of homosexuality, the weak father theory (Seutter 2004).
General Population & Homosexuality

The topic of homosexuality in relation to the general society has research devoted to it as well. One researcher used a twin study to find in his results that heterosexuals tend to hold a negative attitude towards homosexuality, also known as homophobia. The results also suggest that differences in attitudes toward homosexuality are mainly inherited, and that social environmental influences are relatively minor (Martin 2008). Another researcher, Marmor, suggested that there are several ways in which the population can view homosexuality from a homophobic perspective. He says that the etiology of sexual orientation can be viewed from a scientific, ethical, or socio-politico-religious perspective (Marmor 1998). One research project focused on explores the populations beliefs of the etiology of homosexuality. Of 1,200
Gonzalez 3 respondents, 25 respondents believed that genes are at least partly the cause of homosexuality, 5 participants said that genes play a role for some people but not for others, and 43 respondents felt that genes play no role. The remaining participants stated that they did not know (Sheldon 2007).
Homosexuality & Healthcare

The topic of homosexuality in relation to health care providers was also investigated by several researchers. Homophobia among health care professionals is well documented but the establishment of a trustful doctor-patient relationship is impossible when homophobia is present. When looking at studies that examined homophobia within medical students researchers found that there is significant homophobia in these future doctors (Klamen 2013) (W.C. Wong 2009). In the study conducted by W.C. Wong the results showed more than 25% of the medical students agreed with the statement homosexuality is a psychological disorder that requires therapy. More than 15% would avoid any physical contact with homosexuals to minimize the chance of contracting diseases, especially AIDS. Comparison between the medical students and non-medical students showed that the attitudes of the medical students were significantly more homophobic. Apart from Future doctors, current doctors were also investigated. Even though certain health needs of the LGBT community may be unique and different then those of heterosexuals, according to her research, most doctors usually dont ask patients about their sexual orientation for reasons such as being to personal, or some doctors just arent as open minded about this type of lifestyle. The results of one study show that most of the physicians that were surveyed in this study knew less then 0.5% homosexuals in their practice, 44.4% did not even know of any homosexual patients in their practice. Only one physician in this study regularly asked his patients about their sexual orientation (Dahan 2008). Another similar study showed that discussions with patients about sexual orientation are really difficult for health care providers. Many respondents
Gonzalez 4 in this study believed doctors should assume all patients are heterosexual unless they are told otherwise. From this survey it is evident that doctors dont like to approach this subject, which may be why patients are more hesitant to tell their health care provider (East 1998). When looking at all of the results together it is clear that medical professionals dont seem as open to homosexuality as they should be considering their career choice. If this problem isnt challenged then trustful doctor-patient relationships will be hindered and so will the quality of healthcare for the individuals that identify themselves as homosexuals.
Conclusion
Looking at everything that has been researched thus far as a whole it is evident that the two main questions being asked are what is the etiology of homosexuality? and How does our society view homosexuality? Most of this research contributes to these two questions although the main focus is definitely on the etiology. Finding the etiology would be amazing but how exactly will that help the LGBT community? I think that maybe the wrong questions are being asked and investigated. From the research, it is clear that there is a significant amount of homophobia within the health care system, and it has been made clear that homophobia will hinder establishing trustful patient-doctor relationships. This in turn will diminish the quality of health care that these individuals receive. The question that we should try to be answering isnt the cause but rather how can we improve doctor-patient relationships with homosexual patients to help them receive the best care possible.
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WORKS CITED
Dahan, Rachel, Rotem Feldman, and Doron Hermoni. "Is Patients' Sexual Orientation A Blind Spot Of Family Physicians?." Journal Of Homosexuality 55.3 (2008): 524-532. Academic Search Premier. Web. 20 Oct. 2013. Donald L. Gabard PhD (1999) Homosexuality and the Human Genome Project, Journal of Homosexuality, 37:1, 25-51. HESTON, L. L., and JAMES SHIELDS. "Homosexuality In Twins: A Family Study And A Registry Study." Archives Of General Psychiatry 18.2 (1968): 149-160. PsycINFO. Web. 17 Oct. 2013. Jane P. Sheldon PhD , Carla A. Pfeffer MSW , Toby Epstein Jayaratne PhD , Merle Feldbaum BA & Eizabeth M. Petty MD (2007) Beliefs About the Etiology of Homosexuality and About the Ramifications of Discovering Its Possible Genetic Origin, Journal of Homosexuality, 52:3-4. Jeffrey A. East. Pediatricians approach to the health care of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth. Journal of Adolescent Health. Volume 23, Issue 4, October 1998, Pages 191193. Judd Marmor MD (1998) Homosexuality, Journal of Gay & Lesbian Psychotherapy, 2:4, 19-28 Klamen, Debra L., and Linda S. Grossman. "Medical Student Homophobia." Journal Of Homosexuality 37.1 (1999): 53. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 Oct. 2013. Paul Lichtenstein, et al. "Genetic And Environmental Effects On Same-Sex Sexual Behavior: A Population Study Of Twins In Sweden." Archives Of Sexual Behavior 39.1 (2010): 75-80. OmniFile Full Text Mega (H.W. Wilson). Web. 17 Oct. 2013. Seutter, Ray A., and Martin Rovers. "Emotionally Absent Fathers: Furthering The Understanding Of Homosexuality." Journal Of Psychology & Theology 32.1 (2004): 43-49. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 Oct. 2013.
Gonzalez 6 W. C. Wong, et al. "Homophobia In Medical Students Of The University Of Hong Kong." Sex Education 9.1 (2009): 65-80. Academic Search Premier. Web. 22 Oct. 2013.
Gonzalez 7 DDOA (Diverse Doctors of America) 2014 Conference on Homosexuality in Healthcare Becoming A Better Doctor Request for Proposals Concurrent Sessions Group Meetings Poster Sessions
Thank you for your interest in attending this conference. The 2014 DDOA Conference on Homosexuality within Healthcare Education will held April 27-30, 2014, at the University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida. This year we are calling all health care professionals who are seeking to provide better health care not only to heterosexual patients but homosexual patients as well. Research has shown that doctor-patient relationships are hindered by any amount of homophobia that has been found to be in the health care field. Research has also shown that doctors have a hard time having these discussions about sexual identity with their patients. This is an issue that if not challenged will hinder the chance of establishing trustful doctor-patient relationships. So the goal of this conference is to bring together physicians and specialists in homosexuality, as well as people who identify themselves as homosexual, to formulate better and more successful ways to better communicate and treat homosexual patients. This will also serve as an educational conference for those who are seeking better ways to approach this subject with their patients. In doing so, this will improve the health care that homosexual patients receive through concurrent sessions, group meetings, and workshops. We invite proposals from individuals or multiple presenters for the poster sessions. We especially encourage participants who have not presented before. We also encourage collaboration across institutions. Proposals are due by January 25th, 2013. Selections will be made and participants notified by February 31, 2014. All proposals should be emailed to Homosexuality@DDOA.org by the January 25th deadline, and include Proposal for 2014 Health Care Conference in the subject line of the email. The planning committee welcomes questions; they can be addressed to any of the committee members listed at the end of this RFP.
Sincerely, Kristy Gonzalez (Director of DDOA)

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Gonzalez 1

Homosexuality Within Our Society Literature Review

General Population & Homosexuality

Homosexuality & Healthcare

Sincerely, Kristy Gonzalez (Director of DDOA)

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