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Asked by abtb355 to Cheryl, Christina, Daniel, George, Ivy on 17 Jan 2017.
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Cheryl Andisi answered on 17 Jan 2017:
@abtb355
Hi. I am not sure what you mean by sexuality. Do you mean sexuality as sexual orientation (heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual), male or female or how we feel about our bodies among many other definitions?
Whatever your definition is, I think genetics may play a role.
In human, there are two sex chromosomes-X and Y. Females inherit an x chromosome from each parent while males inherit an x chromosomes from their mothers and a y chromosome from their fathers. It is the genes on the y chromosome that determine the sex-and the the formation of the testes. Cells in the testes are responsible for producing the hormone testosterone, which suppresses the development of female characteristics and enhances male characteristics. This happens in the uterus within the first 6-8 weeks after fertilization- producing a biologically male individual at birth.
After birth, a number of things might happen that will affect an individuals sexuality-if defined as orientation, or body image etc. These things might include the environment an individual is raised among other factors. However, we cannot rule out that there might have been an issue in development that resulted in balancing of the male and female hormones which ultimately takes us back to genetics. Many people argue that sexuality is a social construct. There have been studies for instance to try and identify the “gay gene”. None of these have been conclusive.
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George Mochamah answered on 17 Jan 2017:
I say yes whatever sexuality means. And Cheryl has given the answer concisely. Our behavior is mostly determined by our external environment such child upbringing but also what we already have as inborn personality.
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Daniel Mbuthia answered on 17 Jan 2017:
Some scientists have found evidence to support the claim that one’s sexuality can be determined by genetics. However, to a larger extent, behaviour is learnt and our sexuality could be as a result of exposure. Therefore irregardless of how you were born, to a very large extent, your sexuality is influenced by social and cultural factors.
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