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| '''''Androphilia''''' and '''''gynephilia''''' (or '''''gynecophilia''''') are terms used in ] to describe ], as an alternative to a ] and ] conceptualization. They are used for identifying a subject's object of attraction without attributing a ] or ] to the subject. This can avoid confusion and offense when describing people in ] cultures, as well as when describing ] and ] people. | |||
| '''Androphilia''' is ] to men, and its counterpart '''gynephilia'''<ref>http://lgbthealth.org.uk/sites/default/files/Needs%20Assessment%20Sept%2007%20_Updated%20Dec%2007_.PDF</ref><ref>http://starways.net/beth/4not2.html</ref> is attraction to women. | |||
| ==Historical usage== | |||
| ===Androphilia=== | |||
| In a discussion of homosexuality, sexologist ] divided men into four groups: ], who are attracted to prepubescent youth, ], who are attracted to youths from puberty up to the early twenties; androphiles, who are attracted to persons between the early twenties and fifty; and ], who are attracted to older men, up to senile old age.<ref>Sexual anomalies: the origins, nature and treatment of sexual disorders : a summary of the works of Magnus Hirschfeld M. D. Emerson Books, ASIN: B0007ILEF0</ref><ref>Wayne R. Dynes, Stephen Donaldson. ''Encyclopedia of homosexuality, Volume 1.'' Garland Pub., ISBN 9780824065447</ref> According to ], Hirschfeld considered ephebophilia "common and nonpathological, with ephebophiles and androphiles each making up about 45% of the homosexual population.” <ref>Franklin K (2010). Hebephilia: quintessence of diagnostic pretextuality. '']'' Volume 28, Issue 6, pages 751–768, doi: 10.1002/bsl.934</ref> | |||
| The term ''androsexuality''<ref>http://www.black-rose.com/articles-liz/genderlang.html</ref> was originally used to describe the age aspect of ] of male homosexuals. The terms ''androphilia'' and ''gynephilia'' were also used to distinguish love of adult humans from ] and ]. These describe types of chronosexuality and within that, androsexuality and gynesexuality collectively refer to two variable forms of teleiosexuality. | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| Later the words ''androphilia'' and ''gynephilia'' (''gynaekophilia'') were appropriated to describe sexual ] independently of one's sex, particularly in discussing the orientation of transsexual people (regardless of which age-range of attraction), as well as for general studies of sexual attraction. | |||
| ;Alternate uses in biology and medicine | |||
| In ], ''androphilic'' is sometimes used as a synonym for '']'', describing ]s who have a host preference for humans versus non-human animals. <ref name="covel">Covell G, Russell PF, Hendrik N (1953). Malaria terminology: Report of a drafting committee appointed by the World Health Organization. ]</ref> ''Androphilic'' is also sometimes used to describe certain ]s and ]s.<ref name="calandra"> Calandra RS, Podestá EJ, Rivarola MA, Blaquier JA (1974). Tissue androgens and androphilic proteins in rat epididymis during sexual development ] Volume 24, Issue 4, October 1974, Pages 507-518 doi:10.1016/0039-128X(74)90132-9</ref> | |||
| == |
== Androphilia == | ||
| The word appeared in ]. In ] 8, line 60, ] uses ''γυναικοφίλιας'' as a euphemistic adjective to describe ]' lust for women.<ref name="cholmeley">Cholmeley RJ (1901). ''The idylls of Theocritus''. G. Bell & sons, p. 98</ref><ref name="rummel">Rummel, Erika (1996). ''Erasmus on women, '' p. 82 University of Toronto Press, ISBN 9780802078087 </ref><ref name="brown1979">Brown GW (1979). Depression--a sociologist's view. ''Trends in Neurosciences'' Volume 2, 1979, Pages 253-256 doi:10.1016/0166-2236(79)90099-7</ref> | |||
| It is believed that the term originated from ] systematics of homosexual men.{{Fact|date=April 2009}} ], writing in the early twentieth century, offered a threefold age classification system for homosexual men: {{Fact|date=February 2007}} | |||
| ] used the term ''gynecophilic'' to describe his ] ].<ref name="kahane">Kahane C (2004). Freud and the passions of the voice. In O'Neill J (2004). ''Freud and the Passions.'' Penn State Press, ISBN 9780271025643</ref> He also used the term in correspondence.<ref name="freud19080325">Sigmund Freud to Sándor Ferenczi, March 25, 1908: "I have often seen it so: a woman unsatisfied by a man naturally turns to a woman and tries to invest her long-suppressed gynecophilic component with libido."</ref><ref name="freud19000323">Freud to Wilhelm Fliess, March 23, 1900: "A good-natured and fine person, at a deeper layer gynecophilic, attached to the mother."</ref> | |||
| *], "who are attracted to youths from puberty to the early 20s". The term is now used to describe both heterosexual and homosexual attraction to the age range. | |||
| *'''Androphiles''', which he used as men who prefer men from their second to fifth decade. The term is now mostly used correctly; to describe any who have love for men. | |||
| *], who prefer older men. The term is now used correctly; as a sexually neutral preference for old people. | |||
| The term androphilia was used in describing societies where ] was the norm, but where attraction between adult men was frowned upon.{{Fact|date=April 2009}} | |||
| ==Sexual interest in adults== | |||
| Following Hirschfeld, ''androphilia'' and ''gynephilia'' are sometimes used in taxonomies which specify sexual interests based on age ranges, which ] called ]. In such schemes, sexual attraction to adults is called teleiophilia<ref>{{Cite journal | doi = 10.1023/A:1001943719964 | last1 = Blanchard | first1 = R. | last2 = Barbaree | first2 = H. E. | last3 = Bogaert | first3 = A. F. | last4 = Dickey | first4 = R. | last5 = Klassen | first5 = P. | last6 = Kuban | first6 = M. E. ''et al.'' | last7 = Zucker | year = 2000 | first7 = KJ | title = Fraternal birth order and sexual orientation in paedophiles | url = | journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior | volume = 29 | issue = 5| pages = 463–478 | pmid = 10983250 }}</ref> or adultophilia.<ref name=feierman>Jay R. Feierman: „Reply to Dickemann: The ethology of variant sexology“, ''Human Nature'', Springer New York, vol. 3, No 3, September 1992, pp. 279–297</ref> In this context, ''androphilia'' and ''gynephilia'' are gendered variants meaning "attraction to adult males" and "attraction to adult females," respectively. Psychologist ] writes: | |||
| <blockquote>Definition is primarily an issue of theory, not merely classification, since classification implies a theory, no matter how rudimentary. Freund ''et al.'' (1984) used Latinesque words to classify sexual attraction along the dimensions of sex and age:<br> | |||
| Gynephilia. Sexual interest in physically adult women<br> | |||
| Androphilia. Sexual interest in physically adult males <ref name="howitt1995">Howitt D (1995). Introducing the paedophile. In ''Paedophiles and sexual offences against children''. J. Wiley,</ref></blockquote> | |||
| ⚫ | A book by ] uses the term androphilia in its title: ''Androphilia, A Manifesto: Rejecting the Gay Identity, Reclaiming Masculinity'' (ISBN 0-9764035-8-7). The author uses the term to emphasize ] in both the object and the subject of male homosexual desire and to reject the sexual nonconformity that he sees in some segments of the homosexual identity. | ||
| ==Androphilia and gynephilia scales== | |||
| The 9-item Gynephilia Scale was created to measure erotic interest in physically mature females, and the 13-item Androphilia Scale was created to measure erotic interest in physically mature males. The scales were developed by ] and ] in 1982.<ref name="freund1982">Freund, K., Steiner, B. W., and Chan, S. (1982). Two types of cross-gender identity. '']'', 11: 49-63.</ref> They were later modified by ] in 1985, as the Modified Androphilia-Gynephilia Index (MAGI).<ref>Blanchard, R. (1985). Typology of male-to-female transsexualism. '']'', 14, 247-261.</ref> | |||
| == Gynephilia == | |||
| ==Gender identity and expression== | |||
| ] distinguished between gynephilic, bisexual, androphilic, asexual, and narcissistic or automonosexual gender-variant persons.<ref>Veale JF, Clarke DE (2008). Sexuality of male-to-female transsexuals. '']'' (citing Hirschfeld, 1922, as cited in Freund, 1985)</ref> Since then, some psychologists have proposed using ''homosexual transsexual'' and ''heterosexual transsexual'' or ''non-homosexual transsexual.'' Psychobiologist ] has described this split among psychologists: "The mf transsexuals who are attracted to men (whom some call 'homosexual' and others call 'androphilic') are in the lower left-hand corner of the XY table, in order to line them up with the ordinary homosexual (androphilic) men in the lower right. Finally, there are the mf transsexuals who are attracted to women (whom some call heterosexual and others call gynephilic or lesbian."<ref name="weinrich">Weinrich JD (1987). Sexual landscapes: why we are what we are, why we love whom we love. Scribner's, ISBN 9780684187051 </ref> | |||
| ''Gynephilia'' is philologically inconsequent, as it takes the nominative form in place of the root, and would have as its counterpart ''anerphilia'' (From Greek ''anēr'', "men," + ''-philia''), not ''androphilia'' ; while ''gynophilia'' is formed in violation of Greek word formation rules,{{Fact|date=April 2009}} cf. gynaecology/gynecology (From Greek ''gynaiko-'', "woman," + ''logos'') | |||
| The use of ''homosexual transsexual'' and related terms have been applied to ] people since the middle of the 20th century, though concerns about the terms have been voiced since then. ] said in 1966: | |||
| <blockquote>....it seems evident that the question "Is the transsexual homosexual?" must be answered "yes" and " no." "Yes," if his anatomy is considered; "no" if his psyche is given preference. | |||
| The term ''gynophilia'' is misused in some ] to mean "attraction to adult women", in contrast with ], with the aim of therapy usually being to replace pedophilic desires with teleiosexual ones.{{Fact|date=March 2008}} | |||
| What would be the situation after corrective surgery has been performed and the sex anatomy now resembles that of a woman? Is the "new woman" still a homosexual man? "Yes," if pedantry and technicalities prevail. "No" if reason and common sense are applied and if the respective patient is treated as an individual and not as a rubber stamp.<ref name="benjamin1966(2)"></ref> | |||
| </blockquote> | |||
| The age zone of gynephilic interests is defined likewise as in case of androphilia. | |||
| The term ''homosexual transsexual'' has been promoted by psychologists including ] and ] since 1989 as part of ].<ref name="cantor2011">Cantor JM (2011). New MRI Studies Support the Blanchard Typology of Male-to-Female Transsexualism. '']'' doi: 10.1007/s10508-011-9805-6</ref> Many sources, including some supporters of the typology, criticize this choice of wording as confusing and degrading. Biologist ] writes "..the point of reference for "heterosexual" or "homosexual" orientation in this nomenclature is solely the individual's genetic sex prior to reassignment (see for example, Blanchard et al. 1987, Coleman and Bockting, 1988, Blanchard, 1989). These labels thereby ignore the individual’s personal sense of gender identity taking precedence over biological sex, rather than the other way around."<ref name="bagemihl">Bagemihl B. Surrogate phonology and transsexual faggotry: A linguistic analogy for uncoupling sexual orientation from gender identity. In ''Queerly Phrased: Language, Gender, and Sexuality''. Anna Livia, Kira Hall (eds.) pp. 380 ff. Oxford University Press ISBN 0195104714</ref> Bagemihl goes on to take issue with the way this terminology makes it easy to claim transsexuals are really homosexual males seeking to escape from stigma.<ref name="bagemihl" /> Leavitt and Berger stated in 1990 that "The homosexual transsexual label is both confusing and controversial among males seeking sex reassignment.<ref name="leavitt1990">Leavitt F, Berger JC (1990). Clinical patterns among male transsexual candidates with erotic interest in males. ''], '' Volume 19, Number 5 / October, 1990</ref><ref name="morgan1978">Morgan AJ Jr (1978). Psychotherapy for transsexual candidates screened out of surgery. '']''. 7: 273-282.|</ref> Critics argue that the term "homosexual transsexual" is "]",<ref name="bagemihl" /> "archaic",<ref name="wahng">Wahng SJ (2004). Double Cross: Transamasculinity Asian American Gendering in ''Trappings of Transhood''. in Aldama AJ (ed.) ''Violence and the Body: Race, Gender, and the State''. Indiana University Press. ISBN 025334171X</ref> and demeaning because it labels people by sex assigned at birth instead of their ].<ref name="leiblum2000">Leiblum SR, Rosen RC (2000). ''Principles and Practice of Sex Therapy'', Third Edition. ISBN 1-57230-574-6,Guilford Press of New York, c2000.</ref> Benjamin, Leavitt, and Berger have all used the term in their own work.<ref name="benjamin1966">Benjamin H (1966). '''' The Julian Press ASIN: B0007HXA76</ref><ref name="leavitt1990" /> Sexologist ] also recently expressed regret for having used this terminology, which was standard when he used it, to refer to transsexual women.<ref name="Bancroftcomment" /> He says that he now tries to choose his words more sensitively.<ref name="Bancroftcomment">{{Cite journal| last = Bancroft | first = John | authorlink = http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/about/bancroft-cv.html | coauthors = | title = Lust or Identity? | journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior | volume = 37 | issue = 3 | pages = 426–428 | publisher = Springer | location = | year = 2008 | url = http://www.springerlink.com/content/y8842382k001006q/fulltext.pdf?page=1 | doi = 10.1007/s10508-008-9317-1 | id = | accessdate = January 2009 | pmid = 18431640}}</ref><ref name="Bancroftcomment" /> Sexologist ] is likewise critical of the terminology.<ref name="moser2010">{{Cite journal|author=Moser, Charles|year=2010|month=July|title=Blanchard's Autogynephilia Theory: A Critique|journal=Journal of Homosexuality|pmid=20582803|volume=57|edition=6|issue=6|pages=790–809|doi=10.1080/00918369.2010.486241 |url=http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a923357133~tab=content}}</ref> | |||
| == Use for transsexual people == | |||
| Use of ''androphilia'' and ''gynephilia'' was proposed and popularized by psychologist ] in the 1980s.<ref name="langevin1983">Langevin R (1982). Sexual Strands: Understanding and Treating Sexual Anomalies in Men. Routledge, ISBN 9780898592054</ref> Psychologist ] writes, "Langevin makes several concrete suggestions regarding the language used to describe sexual anomalies. For example, he proposes the terms ''gynephilic'' and ''androphilic'' to indicate the type of partner preferred regardless of an individual's ] or dress. Those who are writing and researching in this area would do well to adopt his clear and concise vocabulary."<ref name="wegener">Wegener ST (1984). Male sexual anomalies: the data (review of ''Sexual Strands'') ''APA Review of Books'': Volume 29, Issues 7-12, p. 783. Edwin Garrigues Boring, ]</ref> | |||
| The terms gynephilia and androphilia are occasionally used when referring to the ] of transsexual people,<ref>For example: "] are a heterogeneous group of androphilic men, some of whom are unremarkably masculine, but most of whom behave in a feminine manner in adulthood.", Bartlett, Nancy H. and Vasey, Paul L. (2006), ''A Retrospective Study of Childhood Gender-Atypical Behavior in Samoan Fa’afafine'', Archives of Sexual Behavior, Springer Netherlands, ISSN 0004-0002 (Print) 1573-2800 (Online), Volume 35, Number 6, December 2006, Pages 659-666</ref> since the terms ] and ] can be unclear. In describing a human's ] as homosexual or heterosexual, one is not only saying a thing about the ] that human desires, but also about their own sex — specifically, that their sex is the same as, or different from, that of those they desire. Difficulty in making these judgements can be seen, for example, in debates about whether gynephilic transsexual men are homosexual. Androphilia and gynephilia are often preferred, because rather than focusing on the sex of the subject, they only describe that of the object of their attraction. This has led to less emphasis on the age-based restriction that those terms were originally misused for. The third common term that describes sexual orientation, ], makes no claim about the subject's sexual identity. | |||
| This use is problematic for transsexual people because it denies their experiences as their actual sex, but also implies that they are really of the sex they were originally. It is barely controversial that transsexual people define themselves as homosexual, heterosexual, and bisexual as appropriate, and will reject any terminology that is applied to them but not also to ] people. Debates about whether gynesexual transsexual men are homosexual, for example, do not typically include those men's perspectives. | |||
| Psychiatrist ] explains why the terms are useful in a glossary: <blockquote>Androphilia – The romantic and/or sexual attraction to adult males. The term, along with gynephilia, is needed to overcome immense difficulties in characterizing the sexual orientation of transmen and transwomen. For instance, it is difficult to decide whether a transman erotically attracted to males is a heterosexual female or a homosexual male; or a transwoman erotically attracted to females is a heterosexual male or a lesbian female. Any attempt to classify them may not only cause confusion but arouse offense among the affected subjects. In such cases, while defining sexual attraction, it is best to focus on the object of their attraction rather than on the sex or gender of the subject.</blockquote> | |||
| It is however more commonly and less controversially used amongst ] people who fall outside the ] and so are usually considered ] if not always transsexual. For them conventional terms like ] and ] don't apply so easily and so describing the gender you're attracted to independent of your own is often useful especially when talking about ] sexualities. | |||
| Sexologist ], who prefers the correctly-formed term ''gynecophilia'', writes, "The terms heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual are better used as adjectives, not nouns, and are better applied to behaviors, not people. Diamond has encouraged using the terms androphilic, gynecophilic, and ambiphilic to describe the sexual-erotic partners on prefers (andro = male, gyneco – female, ambi = both, philic = to love). Such terms obviate the need to specify the subject and focus instead on the desired partner. This usage is particularly advantageous when discussing the partners of transsexual or intersexed individuals. These newer terms also do not carry the social weight of the former ones."<ref name="diamond2010">Diamond M (2010). Sexual orientation and gender identity. In Weiner IB, Craighead EW eds. The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology, Volume 4. p. 1578. John Wiley and Sons, ISBN 9780470170236</ref> | |||
| Psychologist Rachel Ann Heath writes, "The terms homosexual and heterosexual are awkward, especially when the former is used with, or instead of, gay and lesbian. Alternatively, I use gynephilic and androphilic to refer to sexual preference for women and men, respectively. Gynephilic and androphilic derive from the Greek meaning love of a woman and love of a man respectively. So a gynephilic man is a man who likes women, that is, a heterosexual man, whereas an androphilic man is a man who likes men, that is, a gay man. For completeness, a lesbian is a gynephilic woman, a woman who likes other women. Gynephilic transsexed woman refers to a woman of transsexual background whose sexual preference is for women. Unless homosexual and heterosexual are more readily understood terms in a given context, this more precise terminology will be used throughout the book. Since homosexual, gay, and lesbian are often associated with bigotry and exclusion in many societies, the emphasis on sexual affiliation is both appropriate and socially just."<ref name="heath2006">Heath RA (2006). ''The Praeger handbook of transsexuality: Changing gender to match mindset.'' Greenwood Publishing Group, ISBN 9780275991760</ref> Author ] agrees, writing, "It would be much more accurate to define sexual orientation as either “androphilic” (loving men) and “gynephilic” (loving women) instead."<ref name="boyd2007">Boyd H (2007). ''She's not the man I married: My life with a transgender husband'', p. 102. Seal Press, ISBN 9781580051934</ref> Rebecca Jordan-Young challenges researchers like ], ], and ], who she says "have completely failed to appreciate the implications of alternative ways of framing sexual orientation."<ref name="jordan-young">Jordan-Young RM (2010). ''Brain storm: the flaws in the science of sex differences.'' Harvard University Press, ISBN 9780674057302</ref> | |||
| ===Gender in non-Western cultures=== | |||
| Some researchers advocate use of the terminology to avoid ] inherent in Western conceptualizations of human sexuality. Writing about the ]n ] demographic, sociologist Johanna Schmidt writes: | |||
| <blockquote>Kris Poasa, ] and ] (2004) also present an argument that suggests that fa'afafine fall under the rubric of ‘transgenderal homosexuality’, applying the same birth order equation to fa’afafine’s families as have been used with ‘homosexual transsexuals’. While no explicit causal relationship is offered, Poasa, Blanchard, and Zucker’s use of the term ‘homosexual transsexual’ to refer to male-to-female transsexuals who are sexually oriented towards men draws an apparent link between sexual orientation and gender identity. This link is reinforced by mention of the fact that similar borth order equations have been found for ‘homosexual men’. The possibility of sexual orientation towards (masculine) men emerging from (rather than causing) feminine gendered identities is not considered.<ref name="schmidt2010">Schmidt J (2010). Migrating Genders: Westernisation, Migration, and Samoan Fa'afafine, p. 45 Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., ISBN 9781409402732</ref></blockquote> | |||
| Schmidt argues that in cultures where a ] is recognized, a term like "homosexual transsexual" does not align with cultural categories.<ref name="schmidt2001">Schmidt J (2001). ''Intersections: Gender, history and culture in the Asian context''</ref> | |||
| She cites the work of Paul Vasey and Nancy Bartlett: "Vasey and Bartlett reveal the cultural specificity of concepts such as homosexuality, they continue to use the more 'scientific' (and thus presumably more 'objective') terminology of androphilia and gynephilia (sexual attraction to men or masculinity and women or femininity respectively) to understand the sexuality of fa’afafine and other Samoans."<ref name="schmidt2010"/> Researcher Sam Winter has presented a similar argument: | |||
| <blockquote>Terms such as ‘homosexual’ and heterosexual (and ‘gay’ ‘lesbian’ bisexual etc) are Western conceptions. Many Asians are unfamiliar with them, there being no easy translation into their native languages or sexological worldviews. However, I take the opportunity to put on record that I consider an androphilic transwoman (ie one sexually attracted to men) to be heterosexual because of her attraction to a member of another gender and a gynephilic transwoman (ie one attracted tom women) as homosexual because she has a same-gender preference). My usage is contrary to much Western literature (particularly medical) which persists in referring to androphilic transwomen and gynephilic transman as homosexual (indeed as homosexual transsexual males and females, respectively).<ref name="winter">Winter S (2010). Lost in Transition: Transpeople, Transprejudice and Pathology in Asia. In Chan PCW (ed.) ''The Protection of Sexual Minorities Since Stonewall: Progress and Stalemate in Developed and Developing Countries.'' Routledge ISBN 978-0415418508</ref></blockquote> | |||
| ==See also== | ==See also== | ||
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| *] | *] | ||
| == |
==Footnotes== | ||
| {{reflist}} | {{reflist}} | ||
| ==Reference== | |||
| *Dynes, Wayne "Androphilia." Dynes, Wayne R. (ed.), Garland Publishing, 1990; p. 58. | |||
| ] | ] | ||
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Androphilia is sexual attraction to men, and its counterpart gynephilia is attraction to women.
The term androsexuality was originally used to describe the age aspect of sexual orientation of male homosexuals. The terms androphilia and gynephilia were also used to distinguish love of adult humans from pederasty and pedophilia. These describe types of chronosexuality and within that, androsexuality and gynesexuality collectively refer to two variable forms of teleiosexuality.
Later the words androphilia and gynephilia (gynaekophilia) were appropriated to describe sexual orientation independently of one's sex, particularly in discussing the orientation of transsexual people (regardless of which age-range of attraction), as well as for general studies of sexual attraction.
Androphilia
It is believed that the term originated from Hirschfeld's systematics of homosexual men. Magnus Hirschfeld, writing in the early twentieth century, offered a threefold age classification system for homosexual men:
- Ephebophiles, "who are attracted to youths from puberty to the early 20s". The term is now used to describe both heterosexual and homosexual attraction to the age range.
- Androphiles, which he used as men who prefer men from their second to fifth decade. The term is now mostly used correctly; to describe any who have love for men.
- Gerontophiles, who prefer older men. The term is now used correctly; as a sexually neutral preference for old people.
The term androphilia was used in describing societies where pederasty was the norm, but where attraction between adult men was frowned upon.
A book by Jack Malebranche uses the term androphilia in its title: Androphilia, A Manifesto: Rejecting the Gay Identity, Reclaiming Masculinity (ISBN 0-9764035-8-7). The author uses the term to emphasize masculinity in both the object and the subject of male homosexual desire and to reject the sexual nonconformity that he sees in some segments of the homosexual identity.
Gynephilia
Gynephilia is philologically inconsequent, as it takes the nominative form in place of the root, and would have as its counterpart anerphilia (From Greek anēr, "men," + -philia), not androphilia ; while gynophilia is formed in violation of Greek word formation rules, cf. gynaecology/gynecology (From Greek gynaiko-, "woman," + logos)
The term gynophilia is misused in some psychotherapy to mean "attraction to adult women", in contrast with pedophilia, with the aim of therapy usually being to replace pedophilic desires with teleiosexual ones.
The age zone of gynephilic interests is defined likewise as in case of androphilia.
Use for transsexual people
The terms gynephilia and androphilia are occasionally used when referring to the sexual orientation of transsexual people, since the terms homosexual and heterosexual can be unclear. In describing a human's sexual orientation as homosexual or heterosexual, one is not only saying a thing about the sex that human desires, but also about their own sex — specifically, that their sex is the same as, or different from, that of those they desire. Difficulty in making these judgements can be seen, for example, in debates about whether gynephilic transsexual men are homosexual. Androphilia and gynephilia are often preferred, because rather than focusing on the sex of the subject, they only describe that of the object of their attraction. This has led to less emphasis on the age-based restriction that those terms were originally misused for. The third common term that describes sexual orientation, bisexuality, makes no claim about the subject's sexual identity.
This use is problematic for transsexual people because it denies their experiences as their actual sex, but also implies that they are really of the sex they were originally. It is barely controversial that transsexual people define themselves as homosexual, heterosexual, and bisexual as appropriate, and will reject any terminology that is applied to them but not also to cisgender people. Debates about whether gynesexual transsexual men are homosexual, for example, do not typically include those men's perspectives.
It is however more commonly and less controversially used amongst genderqueer people who fall outside the gender binary and so are usually considered transgender if not always transsexual. For them conventional terms like heterosexuality and homosexuality don't apply so easily and so describing the gender you're attracted to independent of your own is often useful especially when talking about monosexual sexualities.
See also
Footnotes
- http://lgbthealth.org.uk/sites/default/files/Needs%20Assessment%20Sept%2007%20_Updated%20Dec%2007_.PDF
- http://starways.net/beth/4not2.html
- http://www.black-rose.com/articles-liz/genderlang.html
- For example: "Fa’afafine are a heterogeneous group of androphilic men, some of whom are unremarkably masculine, but most of whom behave in a feminine manner in adulthood.", Bartlett, Nancy H. and Vasey, Paul L. (2006), A Retrospective Study of Childhood Gender-Atypical Behavior in Samoan Fa’afafine, Archives of Sexual Behavior, Springer Netherlands, ISSN 0004-0002 (Print) 1573-2800 (Online), Volume 35, Number 6, December 2006, Pages 659-666
Reference
- Dynes, Wayne "Androphilia." Encyclopedia of Homosexuality. Dynes, Wayne R. (ed.), Garland Publishing, 1990; p. 58.