Same-sex attraction
Encyclopedia
Same-sex attraction is a term occasionally used instead of the more common term homosexuality
to refer to a person's feelings of sexual attraction
toward members of the same gender identity
.
The term SSA is used as an alternative to using labels for sexual orientation
involving attraction to the same gender, such as gay
or bisexual. The term is used to refer to the feeling of attraction as a discrete phenomenon, rather than as an aspect of a sexual identity
or lifestyle, or in contrast to homosexual activities and acts.
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
to refer to a person's feelings of sexual attraction
Sexual attraction
Sexual attractiveness or sex appeal refers to an individual's ability to attract the sexual or erotic interest of another person, and is a factor in sexual selection or mate choice. The attraction can be to the physical or other qualities or traits of a person, or to such qualities in the context...
toward members of the same gender identity
Gender identity
A gender identity is the way in which an individual self-identifies with a gender category, for example, as being either a man or a woman, or in some cases being neither, which can be distinct from biological sex. Basic gender identity is usually formed by age three and is extremely difficult to...
.
The term SSA is used as an alternative to using labels for sexual orientation
Sexual orientation
Sexual orientation describes a pattern of emotional, romantic, or sexual attractions to the opposite sex, the same sex, both, or neither, and the genders that accompany them. By the convention of organized researchers, these attractions are subsumed under heterosexuality, homosexuality,...
involving attraction to the same gender, such as gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
or bisexual. The term is used to refer to the feeling of attraction as a discrete phenomenon, rather than as an aspect of a sexual identity
Sexual identity
Sexual identity is a term that, like sex, has two distinctively different meanings. One describes an identity roughly based on sexual orientation, the other an identity based on sexual characteristics, which is not socially based but based on biology, a concept related to, but different from,...
or lifestyle, or in contrast to homosexual activities and acts.
See also
- Androphilia and gynephilia
- Down-low (sexual slang)
- Ego-dystonic sexual orientationEgo-dystonic sexual orientationEgo-dystonic sexual orientation is an ego-dystonic condition characterized by having a sexual orientation or an attraction that is at odds with one's idealized self-image, causing anxiety and a desire to change one's orientation or become more comfortable with one's sexual...
- Men who have sex with menMen who have sex with menMen who have sex with men are male persons who engage in sexual activity with members of the same sex, regardless of how they identify themselves; many men choose not to accept sexual identities of homosexual or bisexual...
(MSM) - Mixed-orientation marriageMixed-orientation marriageA mixed-orientation marriage is a marriage in which one of the partners is heterosexual and the other is bisexual or homosexual.- Motivations:Some cite spiritual reasons for getting married...
- Non-westernized concepts of male sexuality
- Same gender lovingSame gender lovingSame gender loving, or SGL, a term coined for African American use by activist Cleo Manago, is a description for homosexuals and bisexuals, particularly in the African American community. It emerged in the early 1990s as a [Black] culturally affirming homosexual identity. SGL is an alternative to...