In the article “What Genetics Is Teaching Us About Sexuality” by Steven M. Phelps and Robbee
Wedow, it is claimed that biology and sociology scientist have often wondered whether there
exist sexual orientation has any biological foundations. Through decades of research, this
question is finally starting to get some answers. According to Phelps and Wedow (2020), a
recently published study that analyzed the relationship between sexual behavior and DNA, of
approximately half a million people, it was established that the sex of one's intimate partner is by
large influence by one's genes. However, it also established that DNA alone could not be
sufficient to predict a person's sexual behavior. On this basis, it can now be claimed with a
degree of certainty that despite biology shaping most of a person's innate self; it does so in
resonance with their histories.
Following an analysis of the genomic marker of participants, who replied to the question
on where they had ever had a same-sex involvement, it was approximated that genetic
dissimilarities justify the nearly a third of the difference in same-sex behavior. Additionally, it
was established that numerous DNA sequence variants like to have had a same-sex involvement.
This is sufficient evidence that the sex life of a person is influenced by their genes (Phelps, and
Wedow). This observation validates personal experiences and instincts, whereby one is aware of
their asexual desire from their first lusts. Besides, one of the many DNA variations recognized in
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the mentioned study was equally noted to have been mentioned in gonad development (Heine
127-263), which according to past studies, correlates sexuality to hormone exposure.
However, these findings further make the relationship between sexuality and genetics
complex. On the one end, the findings evidence that there is no distinctive biology of sexual
orientation. For instance, those gens that influence same-sex behavior in men are not similar to
those that influence the same behavior among women. More so, those genes associated with
having exclusively same-sex involvements are different from those identified among occasional
same-sex experiences. Another observation about the same is that person with occasional same-
sex experiences showed a genetic variant linked to having more sexual partners and had an
openness to new experiences" as a lead personality trait. On the other, it was noted that there was
little correlation between exclusively same-sex behavior and personality biology (Phelps, and
Wedow). It was further reported that the widely held belief that sexual orientation is a distinct
peculiarity that ranges from exclusively homosexual to exclusively heterosexual was inaccurate.
The study indicated that sexuality is more varied, whereby it is influenced by many factors
instead of a single course at varying units.
These respected results were not without limitation since, even with the large sample
size, the minority groups were still excluded. As such, besides this prejudices the inclination to
generalize across persons from different descents, it further ignores the cultural differences
among and within groups. It also looks only into the binary discrepancy between opposite and
same-sex conduct, failing to consider gender contrary to biological sex or several other
diversities of sexual interest. The researchers were, however, the researchers couldn't predict
sexual orientation based on DNA alone (Phelps, and Wedow). For example, even among
identical twins, it is still possible to have the two being at the opposite extremes.
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The discussion above is closely related to the class content in terms of explaining trying
to exemplify how genes shape behavior in a person. As discussed in class, there is a strong but
yet to be verified correlation between genetics and behavior, and this article has tried to
demonstrate that association.
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Works Cited
Heine, Steven J. DNA Is Not Destiny: The Remarkable, Completely Misunderstood Relationship
Between You And Your Genes. W. W. Norton, Incorporated, 2018, pp. 1-352.
Phelps, Steven M., and Robbee Wedow. "What Genetics Is Teaching Us About Sexuality."
Nytimes.Com, 2019, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/08/29/opinion/genetics-sexual-