MALES’ SEXUAL PREFERENCE: CHILDHOOD AND ADOLESCENT SEXUALITY
Many theorists view sexual orientation as the result of positive and negative reinforcements for past sexual experiences. Thus, it has frequently been assumed that prehomosexual and preheterosexual boys have quite different kinds of childhood and adolescent sexual experiences. In this view, if a boy has gratifying, recurrent sexual experiences with other males, he would be more likely to become homosexual; conversely, frequent and enjoyable opposite-sex experiences would more likely lead to a heterosexual orientation. Adult sexual orientation is seen in this view as a continuation of the sexual “habits” or patterns of sexual preference that were established during youth. In this view, then, we would expect homosexual men to have developed a pattern of homosexual feelings and/or behaviors while they were growing up, and we would expect heterosexual men to report much less in the way of pre-adult homosexual feelings or behaviors.
Some writers have proposed that a homosexual orientation results in large part simply from having greater opportunities to learn homosexuality. Specifically, it has been suggested that many boys become homosexual from being “seduced” by older and presumably more knowledgeable males. In one study, for example, more homosexual than heterosexual men reported that before they were 15, an adult male had tried to seduce them. Another study found that many homosexual men had been introduced to homosexual activity by older peers, but did not report how many heterosexual men might have had similar experiences. Other investigators, however, have stressed that the seduction of young boys by adult males occurs very rarely and therefore should not be considered an important influence in the development of homosexuality.
Finally, some investigators have suggested that prehomosexual boys are more intensely sexual while they are growing up than preheterosexual boys. One study, for example, found prehomosexual boys to have been more preoccupied with sex during childhood, more likely to have experienced homosexual romantic attachments, and younger when they first had sexual fantasies.
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