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from Press Releases
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
October 24, 2003
For more information, contact:
NARTH Vice President Dr. A. Dean Byrd, 818.789.4440
NARTH Disputes UCLA 'Sexual Identity Study'
Encino, California -- NARTH Vice President Dr. A.
Dean Byrd and psychologist Dr. Warren Throckmorton expressed
concern recently over the inaccurate news reporting of a new
UCLA study on genetics and the differences between the male
and female brain.
The study, conducted by UCLA genetics professor Dr. Eric
Vilain, was published in the latest issue of Molecular Brain
Research. A headline in Reuters on October 20, 2003, read:
"Sexual Identity Hard-Wired by Genetics--Study." The article
quoted Dr. Vilain as stating, "Sexual identity is rooted in
every person's biology before birth and springs from a
variation in our individual genome." Vilain's study was done
on mice to discover the role that genes may play in creating
differences in the male and female brain.
Reuters and other media outlets are mistakenly reporting
that Vilain's study is evidence for a "gay gene" or a gene
that controls whether or not a person feels like he's a man
trapped in a woman's body or a woman trapped in a man's
body.
According to Dr. Throckmorton, all this study "really
suggests is that genes may play a role in creating
differences in male and female brains. This not news;
researchers have known this for a long time." Throckmorton
says this study has nothing to do with the formation of
sexual orientation. (Dr. Throckmorton is Director of College
Counseling and an Associate Professor of Psychology at Grove
City College.)
NARTH Vice President Dr. Byrd notes that media reports have
failed to note that this study was conducted on mice, not on
human beings. Says Dr. Byrd, "There is no animal model that
accurately reflects human sexuality. Pigs don't date, ducks
don't go to church and mice don't fall in love."
NARTH's Director of Publications, Linda Nicolosi, comments,
"What's new about
this study? Nothing, at least as regards the study of
homosexuality .... The most alarming problem with this study
is the inaccurate headlines it's getting." NARTH has
published a more detailed reaction to the coverage of
Vilain's study on the NARTH web site.
Dr. Throckmorton's analysis of the Vilain study and the
reporting on this study, is available here:
Of
Mice and Gay Men. He can be contacted at:
ewthrockmorton@gcc.edu. Dr.
Throckmorton has additional commentary on the Vilain study
at: TruthComesOut.com.
NARTH has an extensive collection of articles on genetics,
homosexuality, and sexual orientation:
"Is Homosexuality
Genetic?" Both Dr. Throckmorton and Dr. Byrd are available
for press interviews.
The National Association for Research and Therapy of Homosexuality was founded in 1992 and is composed of psychiatrists, psychoanalytically informed psychologists, certified social workers, and other behavioral scientists, as well as laymen in fields such as law, religion, and education.
NARTH, 16633 Ventura Boulevard, Suite 1340, Encino, CA 91436-1801
Phone: 818.789.4440
Fax: 818.789.6452
Updated: 8 February 2008
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