Same-Sex Practices Among Heterosexuals and Bisexuals
Society defines sexual deviance as any form of sexual action or sexual orientation that defies social norms. Of course, this varies among every society because major cultures may be more accepting of a behavior that is considered immoral or illegal in another culture. The different types of sexual deviances that may exist within a society are homosexuality, prostitution, non-monogamy, pornography, and violent sex acts.
For example, the researchers Thio, Taylor, and Schwartz describe how sexually active behavior by teenagers, prostitutes, adulterers, swingers, and homosexuals in marriages is viewed as moderately to heavily negative in the United States. Globally, countries within Europe approve or tolerate prostitution and teen sex while countries in Africa and the Middle East disapprove of adultery that does not even involve physical contact of a sexual nature.
The disapproval of sexual behavior results in social stigma, and that shame will cause some individuals to avoid their behavior, hide their deviancy from others, or face discrimination in publicizing their sexual thoughts and actions.
According to the research by Thio, Taylor, and Schwartz, in the United States, adolescent girls are stigmatized and encouraged by male adolescents into having sexual intercourse while adults stigmatize and encourage these girls to remain virgins — they may feel forced to compromise these pressures with involvement in one romantic relationship.
Despite the fact that some individuals hide their sexual deviancy in order to avoid social stigma and discrimination, subcultures can form where people openly practice their sexual behaviors among others with similar preferences.
Situationals
While homosexuality involves individuals who prefer romance and sexual activity with those of the same sex, some people take part in homosexual acts without considering themselves homosexuals. As stated by Thio, Taylor, and Schwartz, the labels of trades, street hustlers or prostitutes, situationals, and bisexuals apply to the participants of this sexual deviance.
Bisexual people feel attracted to both sexes but may not have an emotional or physical preference for one sex over the other. These individuals may feel more stigmatized than homosexuals because there is social pressure to conform to the labels of heterosexuality or homosexuality. Trades and street hustlers are males who allow other males to perform mostly oral sex on them, without returning the favor, but trades do it for therapeutic relief while street hustlers need money.
Situationals can involve prison inmates, religious followers of “celibacy,” adult entertainers, and young women experimenting. Some situationals feel forced to engage in same-sex behaviors because of a strict institutional environment while others take part out of curiosity or desperation. The majority of heterosexuals involved in the sexual deviancy of same-sex intercourse derive psychological or physical pleasure.
Sexual Adolescence
The brain is still developing, and consequences are not taken as seriously, until a person is in their mid-twenties; therefore, society does have a right to question the maturity of adolescents. Young girls and young women need to reconsider if they are really sexually active by personal choice or if they are being influenced by everyone around them. Thio, Taylor, and Schwartz state that teenage boys attempt to convince teenage girls to have sex, constantly, while adults do as much as possible to promote abstinence until adulthood.
It is possible that teenage girls are pressured by other girls to become sexually active, as well, because they may not want to be the only ones having sex, and some adolescent girls don’t want to feel excluded from their social circle of friends. Adolescent boys receive the same pressure from other boys, and some adults, but if their parents are more patriarchal, the focus may be placed on not impregnating a teenage girl vs. not having sex.
“Teen” porn may be detrimental to adolescents because, generally, the teen is a female while the male is an adult, and it could give the impression that young females need to be dominated by an older man. There is a growing interest in more violent porn, and while many men may not consider replicating the same behavior, it could encourage a more negative view of young women.
Physical and mental health should be included when considering a behavior to be deviant, and that is why pre-marital sex in adolescence and early twenties can be considered deviant — the rate of STD’s and low self-esteem. This is more difficult among non-heterosexual youth because they are more prone to risky sexual behaviors and mental health issues. Supposedly, adolescent individuals have more freedom, but realistically, they are being socially engineered and pressured, as much as adults, to behave in sexual ways that they may not care for.
While some teenage girls and boys truly feel bisexual, some may also find it trendy or taboo and nonconformist, which means they may be involved in behaviors that are not even authentic to who they are. There is a difference between experimenting and bisexuality, and adolescents shouldn’t use labels they don’t feel and understand.
Homosexual adolescents that aren’t in a permanent relationship are more prone to psychological distress than any other group, and these teenagers need to ask for the help they may need. Once adolescents become adults and mature through observation and personal experimentation, they can confidently affirm their sexuality.
Theories and Explanations
Functionalist theory may be applied to heterosexual people engaging in homosexual prostitution because heterosexual sex within a relationship is viewed as ideal and moral, but there may be homosexual intentions that cannot be publicly met because of social stigma, so the clients buy their guilty pleasure while the providers receive money and possibly pleasure.
Some people may choose to provide homosexual sex for free, such as secret “glory holes” or bars for impersonal intercourse with a stranger, because they may be unable to express their desires in the open.
The precipitating factor of social-psychological theory may explain why some heterosexuals resort to homosexual prostitution because of poverty or being convinced by someone else in the industry. While several biological, psychological, and sociological theories exist that attempt to clarify why heterosexuals commit homosexual actions, the sociological idea of socialization may clarify this deviancy the most since society can promote and discourage certain sexual behaviors.
For example, discouraging anal sex among heterosexual couples is more likely to result in forming a taboo, yet nonconformists may receive pleasure from doing the opposite of what is consider moral or ideal.
Marriage and Registered Domestic Partnerships
The goal of the research conducted by Wight, Leblanc, and Lee Badgett was to understand if marriage had a positive or negative affect on same-sex and bisexual couples vs. heterosexual couples. Since homosexuals and those who are involved in homosexual acts, even occasionally, are viewed as deviant, they are prone to mental health problems due to the stress of feeling rejected or being victims of actual discrimination.
A survey was performed in California that involved 37,940 non-heterosexuals and 35,608 heterosexuals. Some of the questions related to gender, sexual orientation, education, and health. The results showed that, regardless of sexual preferences, married individuals and those in registered domestic partnerships have less mental health issues than singles.
Wight, Leblanc, and Lee Badgett found that, out of those that were married or in an RDP, lesbians and bisexual women prefer marriage while homosexual and bisexual men prefer RDPs. When comparing heterosexuals to non-heterosexuals, regardless of relationship status, a below-average income and employment were common for both groups while 20% of had poor or fair health.
The least to most psychologically stressed, in order, were married heterosexuals, married non-heterosexuals, unmarried heterosexuals, non-heterosexuals in registered domestic partnerships, and unmarried non-heterosexuals.
Liberal Versus Conservative Societies
A factor that should be considered is how liberal or conservative a society’s overall view is when it comes to sexuality. How are non-heterosexuals destructive to a socially liberal society? Problems arise if there are attempts to force one’s views onto others because everyone can believe what they want as long is there is no harm intended. How are non-heterosexuals destructive to a socially conservative society? It is considered wrong to redefine traditional elements that have kept the culture organized and withstanding such as marriage, sexual orientation, and gender roles.
How are non-heterosexuals assets to a socially liberal society? They vote for issues that relate to personal sexual freedoms and are more likely to be educated at a higher level. Married homosexuals are more likely to have less mental health issues and can demonstrate how a different group of people express themselves. How are non-heterosexuals assets to a socially conservative society? They can still vote for issues not related to homosexuality, but more than likely, these behaviors would be minimized through conformity.
For example, the United States holds a variety of views towards this sexual deviancy — liberal and conservative. Still, this polarization does find middle ground because each extreme adds up to a moderate ideological stance. In the United States, there is an overall acceptance of the labels and existence of non-heterosexuals, but same-sex marriage is still evenly contended.
The liberal stance views homosexual behavior as driven by biology and no different than any other minority that needs protection from the majority. The conservative stance views homosexual behavior as a mental disease that needs to be cured in order to save the rest of society.
Social liberals help minority groups so that the majority group is not superior, and everyone is equal. Social conservatives expect everyone to choose to become equal so that there are no minority groups.
The United States has a societal view that fits somewhere in the middle of that liberal-conservative social spectrum which means that favor is expressed towards the dominant culture, but there is aid for minority cultures. This, of course, affects non-heterosexuals somewhat differently than heterosexuals that partake in non-heterosexual behaviors.
Non-heterosexuals would be categorized as minorities while heterosexuals would not — even if interest is expressed in deviant sexual behaviors. The social stigma and actions taken against the sexual deviancy of same-sex behaviors among heterosexuals is likely to be less aggressive than that directed at individuals who completely accept homosexual, lesbian, and bisexual labels and lifestyles.
Conclusion
Societal views on same-sex behaviors among heterosexuals and bisexuals cause these individuals to join certain groups in order to feel part of a community that the dominant societal culture may not provide.
The research by Thio, Taylor, and Schwartz states that this deviant behavior impacts society because homosexuals are more likely to vote Democrat than Republican. Whether they agree with the other political issues tied to the Democratic party, or not, their votes focus on the issue of acceptance for homosexual behaviors, and this means that the Republican party may lose votes on other deals because of the one issue of sexual deviancy.
Same-sex marriage has been legalized throughout the United States, nonprofit organizations have been created or expanded, and sexual education that teaches a variety of sexual orientations has been approved in many schools. Thio, Taylor, and Schwartz believe that the prejudice faced by those who commit this sexual deviancy is different than that experienced by other minorities because “the overwhelming majority of the parents of homosexuals are heterosexual,” and some of these parents may reject their children.
Other societal views involve the fear that some people have of those who partake in sexual deviancy. They may believe the myth that nonsexual contact will automatically result in HIV, AIDS, and other sexually transmitted diseases. The research by Wight, Leblanc, and Lee Badgett explains that same-sex behavior, is a problem for society if non-heterosexuals do not marry because, otherwise, there is a higher risk of mental health problems.
This means that heterosexuals and bisexuals involved in same-sex behaviors are an asset to society when they are allowed to marry, rather than not, and the society of the United States — while half still opposed to gay marriage — have generally accepted non-heterosexual orientations and behaviors.
Since the United States has a higher tolerance for some social differences, but lower acceptance for the redefining of several traditions, same-sex practices among heterosexuals and bisexuals are likely to continue being a deviancy.
