Gaydar: A Scientific Study
By: Danny Batalla
Issue date: 12/10/07 Section: News
Gay men are more likely to be Left-handed than heterosexuals.
Gay individuals are more likely than straight men to have the hair at the back of their head grow in a counterclockwise direction.
These are just a few of the findings Cal State Fullerton professor Richard Lippa has discovered over past years while researching the differences among gay and straight men.
"Over the past 20 years, a lot of my research has focused on peoples interests and how such interests differ in men and women and in gay and straight people" writes Lippa, in an essay discussing his investigative research.
Are there some on-average differences between heterosexual and homosexual individuals on some physical and behavioral level, and if there are differences, what are their implications for how sexual orientation develops?
Lippa has devoted years exploring this very question. To assist in understanding the concept that this is an "on average" study, he uses the example that, "on average, men are taller than women," Lippa said in a e-mail interview.
He has received much attention for his study; including an appearance on the Tyra Banks show this past October and working as the research consultant on the 2005 BBC (British Broadcasting Corp.) documentary "Secrets of the Sexes".
As part of the project, Lippa and other researchers helped develop an internet survey which collected data from more than two hundred thousand people worldwide. The study is not one hundred percent accurate across the board but can assist in determining the biological and physical differences gay individuals' exhibit from their heterosexual counterparts.
The foundation for Lippa's study relies on the information drawn from six categories and thousands of subjects, both gay and straight.
"It's not about proving one's sexual orientation," said Lippa during the e-mail interview. "It's about finding out what the implications are for how sexual orientation develops. "
Gay individuals are more likely than straight men to have the hair at the back of their head grow in a counterclockwise direction.
These are just a few of the findings Cal State Fullerton professor Richard Lippa has discovered over past years while researching the differences among gay and straight men.
"Over the past 20 years, a lot of my research has focused on peoples interests and how such interests differ in men and women and in gay and straight people" writes Lippa, in an essay discussing his investigative research.
Are there some on-average differences between heterosexual and homosexual individuals on some physical and behavioral level, and if there are differences, what are their implications for how sexual orientation develops?
Lippa has devoted years exploring this very question. To assist in understanding the concept that this is an "on average" study, he uses the example that, "on average, men are taller than women," Lippa said in a e-mail interview.
He has received much attention for his study; including an appearance on the Tyra Banks show this past October and working as the research consultant on the 2005 BBC (British Broadcasting Corp.) documentary "Secrets of the Sexes".
As part of the project, Lippa and other researchers helped develop an internet survey which collected data from more than two hundred thousand people worldwide. The study is not one hundred percent accurate across the board but can assist in determining the biological and physical differences gay individuals' exhibit from their heterosexual counterparts.
The foundation for Lippa's study relies on the information drawn from six categories and thousands of subjects, both gay and straight.
"It's not about proving one's sexual orientation," said Lippa during the e-mail interview. "It's about finding out what the implications are for how sexual orientation develops. "
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