Deck 11: Sexual Orientation

Question 1

According to most surveys of sexual attraction, the vast majority of males and females self-report attraction to

A) only the same sex.
B) mostly the same sex.
C) both sexes.
D) mostly the opposite sex.
E) only the opposite sex.

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Refer to the figure.
This figure shows the direction of sexual attraction for U.S. women (left-side bars) and men (right-side bars) between the ages of 18 and 44. What conclusion can you draw from these data?

A) Younger people are more likely to be honest about same-sex attraction.
B) Women appear to be slightly more flexible than men in their preferred sexual partners.
C) Men appear to be slightly more flexible than women in their preferred sexual partners.
D) About eight percent of people are mostly or entirely attracted to people of the same sex.
E) There is little evidence for the existence of bisexuality.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Based on statistics, which young child is most likely to become a gay adult?

A) Matthew, who dresses in his mother's clothes and plays "tea party" with his stuffed animals
B) Bethany, who draws a picture of her family, carefully selecting the right colors for every detail
C) Jorge, who loves to wrestle and rough-house with his older brother
D) Maria, who plays happily with a variety of dolls, changing them into different outfits
E) Shawn, who talks excitedly about the upcoming Super Bowl and how he can't wait to play football with the older boys

Answer 3

A

Question 4

What did Richard Green's study of feminine and gender-conforming boys reveal?

A) Only extreme gender-nonconformist children grow up to be homosexual men.
B) Boys without obvious feminine qualities generally grow up to be heterosexual men.
C) Feminine boys who have strong religious upbringings become masculine heterosexual men.
D) The majority of feminine boys grow up to be bisexual men.
E) There is no quality in childhood that predicts adult sexual orientation.

Question 5

Many gay men are gender-atypical in some sex-differentiated cognitive traits, such as verbal fluency. The best explanation for this is that

A) verbally fluent men are uncomfortable with heterosexual men.
B) gender-atypical behavior causes homosexuality.
C) homosexual individuals aspire to be like the opposite sex.
D) the same factors that influence certain gender-typical traits are likely to influence sexual orientation.
E) the same factors that influence verbal fluency are closely linked to estrogen levels.

Question 6

Alecia tells you that her gaydar is impeccable. What does she mean?

A) She has an intuitive ability to assess others' sexual orientations.
B) Lesbians hit on her regularly, even though she is straight.
C) She strongly supports laws protecting the rights of gays and lesbians.
D) She admires and emulates gay male sensibility.
E) She is proudly and openly gay.

Question 7

_______ believed that all children go through an early homosexual phase, and that those who fail to emerge from it become gay or lesbian adults.

A) Harvey Milk
B) Magnus Hirschfeld
C) Alfred Kinsey
D) John Money
E) Sigmund Freud

Question 8

Which statement most accurately reflects Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic views on the origins of homosexuality?

A) Homosexuality arises from an abnormal phase in development, occurring only among children with at least one homosexual parent.
B) Everyone passes through a heterosexual phase in early childhood, but abnormal family relationships push children into a homosexual phase in adolescence.
C) Homosexuals have uncaring "refrigerator" mothers and warm, sensitive fathers.
D) Everyone passes through a homosexual phase in early childhood, but most people outgrow it.
E) Homosexuality develops during early adulthood as a result of excessive masturbation.

Question 9

Which example accurately demonstrates the impact of socialization on sexual orientation?

A) Boys who choose to dress in girl clothes as children have been socialized to be homosexual.
B) Children raised by homosexual parents are likely to identify as homosexual in their teens.
C) Gay teenagers raised by parents who consider homosexuality "sinful" are more likely to feel guilty about their sexuality.
D) Gay teenagers enter into sexual relationships at about the same rate as straight teenagers.
E) Teen boys who have some same-sex experiences at summer camp are likely to identify as homosexual in adulthood.

Question 10

Which statement best explains the relationship between early sexual experiences and subsequent sexual orientation?

A) Early sexual experiences have little or no influence on subsequent sexual orientation.
B) Traumatic childhood sexual experiences predispose individuals to homosexuality later in life.
C) Children who attend single-sex boarding schools are more likely to be homosexual because they participate in consensual homosexual experiences there.
D) Individuals who attend single-sex boarding schools are more likely to be homosexual even if they do not have homosexual experiences there.
E) Raising a child in gender-stereotypical ways guarantees that the child will grow up to be straight.

Question 11

Two studies comparing the size of INAH3 in homosexual men, heterosexual men, and heterosexual women found that the size of this brain region was smaller in homosexual men than in heterosexual men. The most accurate interpretation of this finding is that

A) homosexual men have smaller brains, so the hypothalamus is smaller as well.
B) sexual orientation may be correlated with brain structure.
C) a homosexual lifestyle changes brain structure.
D) HIV destroys neurons in INAH3.
E) the hypothalamus regresses in homosexual men.

Question 12

Hormones are thought to be important in determining sexual orientation due to their role in

A) facilitating sex drive during adulthood.
B) stimulating the development of secondary sex characteristics during puberty.
C) altering neuronal circuitry during puberty.
D) influencing the sexual differentiation of the brain during fetal development.
E) controlling the medial preoptic area, which regulates the preference for female partners.

Question 13

The behaviors and preferences of women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) can be studied to gain insight into the influence of _______ on sexual orientation.

A) prenatal stress
B) prenatal androgen exposure
C) prenatal estrogen exposure
D) the X chromosome
E) the Y chromosome

Question 14

Researchers have studied finger length ratios in heterosexual and homosexual women because

A) male and female homosexuals tend to have longer fingers than heterosexuals.
B) the hands of homosexuals grow at a different rate than those of heterosexuals.
C) the growth of the ring finger is an indicator of sexual maturity in women.
D) finger length is influenced by early sexual experiences.
E) finger length ratios are indicators of prenatal hormone levels.

Question 15

Researchers have collected data on sexual orientation in a large sample of adults. If sexual orientation has a genetic component, which result should they expect?

A) Fraternal twins will be more likely to share a sexual orientation than identical twins.
B) Identical twins will be more likely to share a sexual orientation than fraternal twins.
C) Adoptive parents will be more likely to share a sexual orientation with their children than biological parents.
D) Brothers will be more likely than sisters to share a sexual orientation.
E) Boys with older brothers will be more likely to be gay than firstborns.

Question 16

Female relatives of homosexual men tend to have more offspring than other women. Which is the most reasonable conclusion to draw from this fact?

A) Homosexual behavior in men is genetic, but homosexual behavior in women is not.
B) Eventually, "gay genes" will die out because they cause their owners to engage in nonreproductive sex.
C) The gene for male homosexuality may cause hypersexuality in women.
D) Throughout human history, siblings of gay men have been expected to have extra children to make up for their brother having no children.
E) Sisters of gay men have genetically lower testosterone levels, which increases their fertility.

Question 17

Alan was a gay man who moved to Los Angeles in the 1950s. He would have been able to find a support network of other gay men through the

A) Freudian Psychoanalytic Committee.
B) Scientific-Humanitarian Committee.
C) Stonewall Society.
D) Metropolitan Community Church.
E) Mattachine Society.

Question 18

The modern American gay rights movement is generally said to have begun in 1969

A) with a push to repeal sodomy statutes in Massachusetts.
B) in conjunction with the civil rights movement led by Martin Luther King, Jr.
C) with the founding of gay and lesbian rights organizations in San Francisco.
D) with a riot in response to a police raid on a gay bar in New York City.
E) with a riot in response to a police raid on a bathhouse in San Francisco.

Question 19

When did the American Psychiatric Association remove homosexuality from its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders?

A) 1963
B) 1973
C) 1983
D) 1993
E) 2003

Question 20

Why is Harvey Milk important in the history of gay rights in the United States?

A) He led the movement to have homosexuality removed from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.
B) He organized the Stonewall protests of the 1960s.
C) He founded the Mattachine Society in the 1950s.
D) He was the first American come out of the closet on national television.
E) He was the first openly gay man to be elected to city government in the U.S.

Question 21

One positive outcome of the AIDS epidemic was that it

A) led many states to enact antidiscrimination laws.
B) motivated many gays and lesbians to come out of the closet and become activists.
C) forced the military to acknowledge the number of homosexuals who were decorated veterans of foreign wars.
D) prompted gays and lesbians to conceal their sexual identities to avoid discrimination.
E) resulted in national health care to cover the medical costs of those affected.

Question 22

How have attitudes toward same-sex relationships in the U.S. changed since 1990?

A) There has been virtually no change.
B) People have become slightly less accepting of same-sex encounters.
C) People have become slightly more accepting of same-sex encounters.
D) A majority of people now believe same-sex encounters are not wrong at all.
E) Almost everyone now believes same-sex encounters are not wrong at all.

Question 23

Refer to the figure.
These pie charts show American attitudes toward same-sex encounters. Which of the following is a reasonable conclusion, based on the information shown?

A) Gay rights efforts have backfired, leading to increased homophobia since 1990.
B) Americans have become more sharply divided in their attitudes over the last two decades.
C) Americans have become significantly more accepting of same-sex encounters since 1990.
D) Attitudes toward same-sex encounters have not significantly changed over time.
E) People have become more black and white in their thinking on this issue.

Question 24

Of the following regions, which has the most liberal laws concerning homosexuality?

A) Western Europe
B) India
C) North Africa
D) the Middle East
E) Russia

Question 25

Which person is most likely to face anti-gay sentiment?

A) Asher, a gay man who lives in Israel
B) Marilyn, a lesbian who lives in Canada
C) Guillaume, a gay man who lives in France
D) Kristi, a lesbian who lives in Sweden
E) Ibrahim, a gay man who lives in Saudi Arabia

Question 26

How has the religious right shaped differences in European and American approaches to homosexuality?

A) Because religion teaches tolerance for all people, U.S. laws are much more supportive of diverse lifestyles than European laws are.
B) Europeans are more traditional than Americans and therefore less accepting of the spectrum of personal choices.
C) The religious right enforces anti-gay laws in the United States, while government enforces tolerance laws in Europe.
D) Homophobic religious doctrines have less influence on European laws than in the U.S.
E) Most LGBT Americans follow religious teachings, while most LGBT Europeans do not.

Question 27

In recent years, anti-gay sentiment has been encouraged in sub-Saharan Africa by

A) traditional ethnic groups, such as the Ashanti.
B) evangelical Christians.
C) Muslims.
D) Roman Catholics.
E) European colonialists.

Question 28

What is a major challenge of the preadolescent years for many gay children?

A) Experiencing intense sexual feelings and drives for the first time
B) Facing peer rejection for gender-nonconformity.
C) Experiencing social pressure to rebel against gender norms
D) Coming out to their parents
E) Identifying a supportive gay or lesbian community

Question 29

Which gay person is likely to face the fewest challenges during their child and adolescent years?

A) A gender-conforming lesbian living in a liberal suburb
B) A gender-conforming gay boy living in a big city
C) A gender-nonconforming gay boy in a rural town
D) A gender-nonconforming girl in a school with an active gay-straight alliance
E) A gender-conforming gay boy in a school with an active gay-straight alliance

Question 30

Which individual is in the first stage of the coming out process?

A) A boy who has never felt attracted to girls asks a girl to prom so no one suspects he might be gay
B) A girl reveals to her older sister for the first time that she has a crush on a girl in her class
C) A Catholic boy admits to himself that he is more attracted to boys than girls
D) A Catholic girl and her girlfriend make plans to move to a gay mecca when they graduate high school
E) A teenage girl tells her parents she is bisexual

Question 31

Which individual is in the second stage of the coming out process?

A) Adele, who has become active in DignityUSA, an organization for gay Catholics and their allies
B) Mark, who has finally accepted the fact that he is a gay man
C) Leo, who enjoys chatting with other gay men in Internet chat groups
D) Deanna, who has just told two of her best friends that she is a lesbian
E) Cho, who is making plans to move to San Francisco with his husband

Question 32

If a lesbian wants to choose a female-majority occupation that also has a high proportion of lesbians, what would be her best option?

A) Professional sports
B) Engineering
C) Nursing
D) The travel industry
E) Psychology

Question 33

Who is one of the first gay men of color working as a news anchor?

A) Don Lemon
B) Ricky Martin
C) Anderson Cooper
D) There are not yet any out gay men working as news anchors.
E) There are not yet any out gay men of color working as news anchors.

Question 34

Alejandro is a Latino man in his mid-twenties. What challenge is he least likely to face?

A) Being rejected by gay white men for his ethnicity
B) Being too old to find matches on most gay dating apps
C) Being discriminated against both for his ethnicity and his sexual orientation
D) Having few gay role models that share his cultural background
E) Having fewer options for maintaining connections to family and culture after coming out than gay white men do

Question 35

Which practice is much more common among gay men than among lesbians and straight men?

A) Oral sex
B) Entering monogamous relationships
C) Tribadism
D) Cruising
E) Manual penetration during sexual encounters

Question 36

Which statement most accurately describes bathhouses?

A) Because non-monogamy has become more common, there are far more bathhouses now than in the past.
B) Bathhouses are popular among gay men, lesbians, and polyamorous straight couples.
C) Most of the men at bathhouses are in heterosexual marriages and use bathhouses to hide their sexual orientation from spouses.
D) Bathhouses are illegal in all cities.
E) Bathhouses are popular cruising sites for gay men.

Question 37

Andrew is a down-to-earth, kind gay man who avoids the gym, has a beard, and does not remove his body hair. In gay subculture, he would best be described as a

A) bull.
B) top.
C) bear.
D) butch.
E) bottom.

Question 38

A physically fit gay man prefers the insertive role in anal intercourse. Which statement would be the best summary of his profile on a casual hookup app?

A) Bear seeking butch
B) Bear seeking bottom
C) Top seeking bear
D) Top seeking femme
E) Top seeking bottom

Question 39

Some people fear that allowing gays to adopt children or to be custodial parents will have adverse psychosocial consequences for the children. Recent studies suggest that children of gay parents are

A) more likely to become homosexual.
B) more likely to suffer from sexual abuse at the hands of their same-sex parents.
C) just as psychologically healthy and well-adjusted as children of straight parents.
D) likely to suffer permanent psychological harm from bullying during their childhood and teenage years.
E) better able than children of heterosexual parents to cope with the separation or divorce of their same-sex parents.

Question 40

Mike and Andrew, a gay couple, wants to have a child that is biologically related to one of them. What is their best option?

A) Accept that they cannot have a biologically-related child and pursue international adoption
B) Accept that they cannot have a biologically-related child and pursue adoption of a local foster child
C) Work with an IVF specialist who can fuse their sperm and then implant the embryo into a surrogate
D) Employ a surrogate mother who can be artificially inseminated with sperm from one or both of them
E) Consider moving to Canada as they cannot legally hire a surrogate anywhere in the U.S

Question 41

Which statement about therapies aimed at converting sexual orientation is accurate?

A) The market for conversion therapies has increased substantially over the past decade.
B) During the 1950s and 1960s, conversion therapies were sought out primarily by lesbians and less so by gay men.
C) Although there is substantial evidence that conversion therapies can be successful, it has fallen out of favor due to increased societal acceptance of homosexuality.
D) Numerous localities throughout the United States have banned the application of conversion therapies to minors.
E) Conversion therapies can help straight people understand and accept homosexuality.

Question 42

Alex, a teenage boy raised in an evangelical family that considers homosexuality sinful, wants to stop experiencing same sex attraction. He attends a two-week program offered by his church. What is the most likely outcome?

A) He will no longer experience same sex attraction or engage in same sex behavior.
B) He will become more comfortable with his sexual orientation but will choose not to act on his desires.
C) He will stop feeling attraction to men and start feeling attracted to women.
D) He will stop feeling attracted to men but will not start feeling attracted to women.
E) He will remain attracted to men and will be at greater risk for mental health problems.

Question 43

Psychoanalysis and other therapies aimed at "converting" homosexuals to heterosexuality are rarely, if ever, successful. This suggests that

A) sexual orientation is a matter of personal preference.
B) biological therapy that changes an individual's brain structure needs to be developed.
C) sexual orientation is a stable and largely immutable trait.
D) conversion therapy works for only the most motivated individuals.
E) more research is needed to improve conversion methods.

Question 44

How does heterosexism differ from homophobia?

A) Heterosexism is systemic and institutional, while homophobia is personal.
B) Heterosexism is cultural, while homophobia is genetic.
C) Heterosexism is normative, while homophobia is a medically recognized phobia.
D) Heterosexism negatively impacts the gay community, while homophobia does not.
E) Heterosexism is a socially determined prejudice, while homophobia is a natural reaction to deviance.

Question 45

Statistically speaking, which person is most likely to disapprove of gay sex?

A) A person with an advanced college degree
B) A person who attends religious services several times a week
C) A person who believes there is a biological basis for homosexuality
D) A person who does not believe in organized religion
E) A person who believes hate crime laws should cover sexual orientation

Question 46

A gay man avoids spending time around gender-nonconforming men and makes fun of men who express their feelings easily. This may be an example of

A) femiphobia.
B) internalized homophobia.
C) homophobia.
D) heterophobia.
E) heterosexism.

Question 47

What is the current status of hate-crime laws in the U.S.?

A) No states have yet passed hate-crime laws covering sexual orientation or gender identity.
B) Very few states have passed hate-crime laws covering sexual orientation or gender identity.
C) More than half of all states have passed hate-crime laws covering sexual orientation, but very few have laws covering gender identity.
D) More than half of all states have passed hate-crime laws covering sexual orientation, many of which also cover gender identity.
E) Virtually every state has passed hate-crime laws covering sexual orientation and gender-identity.

Question 48

When physiological arousal in response to erotic videos is measured in women, heterosexual women show arousal to videos of both men and women. Which statement most accurately interprets this finding?

A) Heterosexuality is a purely social construction.
B) Most women adhere to gender norms that are at odds with their biology.
C) Most heterosexual women are in denial of their latent bisexuality.
D) The relationship between genital arousal and sexual orientation is complex in women.
E) Most women reporting to be heterosexual are actually lesbians.

Question 49

In a longitudinal study of women who initially identified as "lesbian," "bisexual," or "unlabeled," women's self-description of their sexual orientation often changed over time, based on their current relationships. This supports the idea that

A) most lesbians are actually bisexual.
B) most bisexuals are actually lesbians.
C) women's sexual orientation is more fluid than men's.
D) most women are confused about their innate sexual orientation.
E) a woman's sexual orientation is determined by changes in reproductive hormones over her lifetime.

Question 50

Mari has been asked out by a 22-year-old man who identifies as bisexual. Her biphobic roommate has suggested a long list of reasons to say no. Which of the following reasons is the only one backed by research?

A) Bisexual men are especially likely to transmit HIV.
B) Bisexual men are more likely to cheat because they are attracted to more people.
C) Bisexual men are more likely to be novelty seeking.
D) Most men who identify as bisexual are just attention-seeking straight men.
E) All bisexual men are really gay and just haven't admitted it yet.

Question 51

Describe the distribution of sexual orientations in American men and women and discuss how those distributions differ for both sexes.

Question 52

Max is an 8-year-old boy who likes to play dress up, wear glittery clothes to school, and sew clothes for his stuffed animals. What prediction can you make about his adult sexual orientation and why?

Question 53

Describe evidence supporting a biological basis for sexual orientation.

Question 54

Discuss the criminalization of gay behavior and the current status of gay rights in the U.S. and around the world.

Question 55

Design a brochure for teachers that describes common challenges LGBT youth face as they navigate their gender identity and sexual orientation.

Question 56

A 20-year-old Chinese-American man has decided to come out to his friends and family as bisexual. If his experience is like that of other people of color and other bisexuals, what challenges and prejudices is he likely to face?

Question 57

Describe the various ways gay people can become parents and unique obstacles they face when pursuing adoption.

Question 58

A parent comes to you, a psychologist, for advice about how to change his teenage daughter's sexual orientation. Based on the effectiveness and legal status of conversion therapy, how would you respond?

Question 59

Discuss predictors of homophobia and ways that homophobia can be overcome.

Question 60

Discuss definitions of bisexuality, the prevalence of bisexuality among men and women, and changes in the number of people identifying as bisexual over time.