Study: Homosexuality a Possible Evolutionary Bonding Strategy

LOS ANGELES— Dr. Diana Fleischman of the University of Portsmouth, lead researcher in a study that examined the relationship between steroid hormone progesterone and sexual attitudes, has referred to preliminary results from the research as “compelling,” which may be a huge understatement. If accurate, the results would actually be transformative in terms of revealing an evolutionary basis for same sex attraction and bonding, and beyond that, illuminating the complex role that sex plays in the evolutionary development of individual and collective survival mechanisms. Needless to say, this territory is by its very nature anathema to the biblically dogmatic, who believe that the sole purpose of sex is procreation; adding in the suggestion that, as the Advocate puts it, “same-sex attraction may have evolved to benefit society,” and the research, preliminary or not, is guaranteed to further inflame culture warriors on the right. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, of course, but neither is it particularly meaningful in terms of the viability of the research. [Italics added] According to UoP News, the study, published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior, was designed “to explore the role that homosexual behavior may have played in cementing alliances over the course of human evolution,” but as Fleischman explained to the site, “The results of our study are compelling because using two very different methods, they arrived at the same conclusion.” Specifically, her research “found that heterosexual women who have higher levels of progesterone are more likely to be open to the idea of engaging in sexual behaviour with other women. Similarly, when heterosexual men are subtly reminded of the importance of having male friends and allies, they report more positive attitudes toward engaging in sexual behaviour with other men. This pattern is particularly dramatic in men who have high levels of progesterone.” Fleischman explains, “Women were more likely to be motivated to think about homosexual sex when their levels of progesterone were higher. Compared to a control group, men’s homoerotic motivation was not increased by priming them with sex but thinking about friendship and bonding caused a measurable change in their attitude to the idea of having sex with other men.” The current crop of studies is the result of previous research by Fleischman, “an expert in the influences of hormones on the psychology of women, [who] was studying the effect of progesterone on attitudes towards homosexuality. She questioned whether progesterone, a hormone that has been shown to increase motivation to form close bonds, might also underlie the motivation to affiliate with those of the same sex, sexually.” The current preliminary results come from two separate studies on men and women, respectively, that themselves support previous studies "of other animals in the great ape family [that] also point to homosexual behaviour being used to maintain and forge new friendships.” More research is to come, including on “other contexts and hormonal influences that could increase homoerotic motivation in men and women. They are also interested in seeing how bisexual people might react differently to social cues.” Aren’t we all!