In August, a group of scientists revealed the results of an ambitious study into the relationship between genetics and gender orientation. One of the biggest discoveries the researchers found is that there is no singular gene responsible for sexual orientation. Though some expressed genuine surprise, medical ethicist Art Caplan said the study confirmed what many in the scientific community already believed to be true.
“[Sexuality] is a really complicated behavior and to think that one gene would control all of that...it just strikes me as ridiculous,” Caplan said during an interview with Boston Public Radio on Thursday.
Caplan does believe there is merit to studying sexuality for scientific purposes, but not to advance a social agenda. He said that many have advocated studying the science of sexual orientation simply because they want to portray it as a disease and hope to find a “cure.”
“Should we study the genetics of orientation? Sure,” Caplan said. “It doesn’t mean that [being homosexual] is right or wrong.”
Caplan also cautioned that while he believes genetics contribute to sexual orientation, as he said they contribute to many other aspects of human behavior, it is not the field to best answer the question of why homosexuality occurs in humans.
“The genes won’t tell you the answer to [why some are homosexual],” Caplan said. “To me the battleground isn’t really genetics when it comes to gay behavior.”
