Having homosexual thoughts 'is an essential part of human evolution' study suggests

In evolutionary terms, homosexuality presents something of a paradox. According to Darwin, any trait that makes an animal less likely to reproduce will die out in a few generations, yet the percentage of people born gay or lesbian remains more or less constant. Now researchers at the University of Portsmouth believe they may have found the evolutionary reason for homosexual behaviour: it helps us bond with people of the same sex.

A study of predominantly heterosexual men and women found that people with higher levels of the hormone progesterone are more likely to have homoerotic thoughts. Because progesterone, which is produced by both men and women, is associated with affiliation, the researchers concluded that homosexual thoughts can go hand in hand with the need to forge same-sex alliances, which can be traced back to the teamwork of the earliest hunter-gatherers. Dr Diana Fleischman, the report’s author, said: “In the paper we talk about why homosexuality persists, and we do explain why.

"From an evolutionary perspective we tend to think of sexual behaviour as a means to an end for reproduction. "However, because sexual behaviour is intimate and pleasurable, it is also used in many species, including non-human primates, to help form and maintain social bonds. We can all see this in romantic couples who bond by engaging in sexual behaviour even when reproduction is not possible. “Having some degree of attraction to the opposite sex is a type of adaptive behaviour, and in any adaptive behaviour you will see extremes of the spectrum, hence some people will only be attracted to members of the same sex.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/11251206/Having-homosexual-thoughts-is-an-essential-part-of-human-evolution-study-suggests.html

That makes sense, and it brings to mind a comment Veya made recently about soldiers

Ben_Reilly wrote:That makes sense, and it brings to mind a comment Veya made recently about soldiers

I would also add that in modern western society a better example is probably prisons.

@OP
agree, plenty of examples form history and nature.
from the Thebes 'sacred band' to Bonobos one of our closest genetic relatives
I think it also highlights the fact that we are Complex organisms and often genes and their effects can have multiple purposes. they are not on off switches they are more like variable scales.