Personality correlates of male sexual orientation and recalled childhood sex-typed behaviors

I explored the relationships between sexual orientation, recalled childhood sex-typed behavior (RCSTB), and personality traits in a group of 145 heterosexual and 114 homosexual men. The Kinsey scales assessed the participants' sexual orientation a questionnaire assessed recalled childhood sex-typed behaviors, and the Neuroticism Extraversion and Openness Personality Inventory-Revised (NEO-PI-R) and 16 Personality Factor Inventory (16PF) defined personality traits. In agreement with previous research, there was a strong correlation between sexual orientation and recalled childhood sex-typed behaviors. Heterosexual men recalled stereotypically masculine childhoods whereas homosexual men described more diverse and generally more feminine activities. As expected from the literature, significant correlations were obtained between sexual orientation and three domains of adult personality. Compared to heterosexual men, gay men were more tender-minded and ascetic; more open to different values, feelings, and actions, and more anxious. In heterosexual men, childhood femininity was associated with multiple adult characteristics including tender-mindedness, openness, introversion, and lack of conscientiousness. In contrast, with gay men the main adult correlate of childhood femininity was anxiety. This provides the first indication that the origins or development of sex-typed behaviors in gay men may be qualitatively different than in heterosexual men. I discuss the implications of this finding for the further understanding of the complex interactions among personality, sexuality, and childhood behavior.