The problem I find with "imprinting" is that there aren't any studies (that I know of) to show that imprinting promotes any form of homosexuality.
Three books I've read in the last two months provide a wealth of information on the topic and give a clear indication that homosexuality...and heterosexuality...are polygenic. Homosexuality has multiple causal factors, both genetic and environmental.
Here are the books, for those interested, with a brief review of each:
Queer Science, by Simon LeVay. LeVay conducted a study in 1991 where he studied the third interstitial notch of the sexually dimorphic nucleus in the anterior hypothalmus (say that five times real fast). This area was smaller in Gay men than in heterosexuals. This caused a firestorm of controversy, which led him to research and write Queer Science.
In his book he provides not only a history of homosexuality, he also covers all the research up until the book's publication. He points out the methodological flaws of the research...including his own study...and provides what I consider to be fair and well thought out observations of the social impact of homosexuality and such research. I recommend this book without reservation to anybody, regardless of political orientation.
A side note: LeVay makes mention of a groundbreaking study by NIH researchers Dean Hamer and Angela Pattattucci. I worked in the lab where Angela earned her Ph.D. She's a wonderful woman. She and Hamer found that many homosexual men have a significant number of gay male cousins and uncles on their mother's side of the family. The study showed the odds of this occuring by chance are 100,000 to one. This work also suggests that homosexuality can be carried along by the mother's X chromosome, which would explain its endurance in being passed on through generations. Later Hamer and Pattattucci found a common genetic marker carried by a large number of these men. When last I saw Angela, she was researching this, taking blood samples in families where homosexuality was clustered.
Are We Hardwired?: The roles of genes in human behavior, by William R. Clark and Michael Grunstein has a chapter on the genetic influence on homosexuality. The rest of the book explains genetics and its various roles in influencing a number of our behaviors. Also a well done book and like LeVay's, highly readable and accessible to the lay person who doesn't have a deep background in science.
The Sexual Spectrum: exploring human diversity, by Olive Skene Johnson, Ph.D. This is an interesting book, but with some flaws. While Johnson presents some interesting data and talks about research that has been done, she gets some of her facts wrong. She lists the Netherlands as being the first country to legalize homosexual marriage...it was Denmark. One gets the impression that some of what she cites she pulls from memory. Given that she uses no footnotes it becomes difficult to reference her reading list. That aside, she does get many things right, and it would be a valuable book for the family struggling with a child's homosexuality...or for that person who is conflicted with their own sexual identity. I'd suggest it...but with those caveats mentioned before. Its good...but not as carefully written as "Queer Science" and "Are We Hardwired".
I've often argued here that homosexuality is "hardwired," but after reading LeVay I accept that the environment can play a role...the level and lasting impact of environmental influence is unclear.
I do not accept the explanation that homosexuality is a "choice." In taking this moralistic stance few ever consider that they're suggesting we are all bisexual by nature. Not too many heterosexual males will willingly admit that they could sexually eroticize a man. It isn't something they're capable of doing.
Regards,
Steve
