Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Fraternal Birth Order and Extreme Right-Handedness as Predictors of Sexual Orientation and Gender Nonconformity in Men

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Archives of Sexual Behavior Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The present study explored whether there were relationships between number of older brothers, handedness, recalled childhood gender nonconformity (CGN), and sexual orientation in men. We used data from previous British studies conducted in our laboratory (N = 1,011 heterosexual men and 921 gay men). These men had completed measures of demographic variables, number and sex of siblings, CGN, and the Edinburgh Handedness Inventory. The results did not replicate the fraternal birth order effect. However, gay men had fewer “other siblings” than heterosexual men (even after controlling for the stopping-rule and family size). In a sub-sample (425 gay men and 478 heterosexual men) with data available on both sibling sex composition and handedness scores, gay men were found to show a significantly greater likelihood of extreme right-handedness and non-right-handedness compared to heterosexual men. There were no significant effects of sibling sex composition in this sub-sample. In a further sub-sample (N = 487) with data available on sibling sex composition, handedness, and CGN, we found that men with feminine scores on CGN were more extremely right-handed and had fewer other-siblings compared to masculine scoring men. Mediation analysis revealed that handedness was associated with sexual orientation directly and also indirectly through the mediating factor of CGN. We were unable to replicate the fraternal birth order effect in our archived dataset but there was evidence for a relationship among handedness, sexual orientation, and CGN. These data help narrow down the number of possible neurodevelopmental pathways leading to variations in male sexual orientation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
$34.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or eBook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Alanko, K., Santtila, P., Witting, K., Varjonen, M., Jern, P., Johansson, A., … Kenneth Sandnabba, N. (2009). Psychiatric symptoms and same-sex sexual attraction and behavior in light of childhood gender atypical behavior and parental relationships. Journal of Sex Research, 46, 494–504.

  • Bailey, J. M., Dunne, M. P., & Martin, N. G. (2000). Genetic and environmental influences on sexual orientation and its correlates in an Australian twin sample. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78, 524–536.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bailey, J. M., & Zucker, K. J. (1995). Childhood sex-typed behavior and sexual orientation: A conceptual analysis and quantitative review. Developmental Psychology, 31, 43–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bartlett, N. H., & Vasey, P. L. (2006). A retrospective study of childhood gender-atypical behavior in Samoan fa’afafine. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 35, 659–666.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bem, D. J. (1996). Exotic becomes erotic: A developmental theory of sexual orientation. Psychological Review, 103, 320–335.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R. (2004). Quantitative and theoretical analyses of the relation between older brothers and homosexuality in men. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 230, 173–187.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R. (2007). Older-sibling and younger-sibling sex ratios in Frisch and Hviid’s (2006) national cohort study of two million Danes. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 36, 860–863.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R. (2008). Review and theory of handedness, birth order, and homosexuality in men. Laterality, 13, 51–70.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R. (2014). Detecting and correcting for family size differences in the study of sexual orientation and fraternal birth order. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 43, 845–852.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., & Bogaert, A. F. (1996). Biodemographic comparisons of homosexual and heterosexual men in the Kinsey interview data. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 25, 551–579.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., & Bogaert, A. F. (2004). Proportion of homosexual men who owe their sexual orientation to fraternal birth order: An estimate based on two national probability samples. American Journal of Human Biology, 16, 151–157.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., Cantor, J. M., Bogaert, A. F., Breedlove, S. M., & Ellis, L. (2006). Interaction of fraternal birth order and handedness in the development of male homosexuality. Hormones and Behavior, 49, 405–414.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., & Lippa, R. A. (2007). Birth order, sibling sex ratio, handedness, and sexual orientation of male and female participants in a BBC internet research project. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 36, 163–176.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., Zucker, K. J., Bradley, S. J., & Hume, C. S. (1995). Birth order and sibling sex ratio in homosexual male adolescents and probably prehomosexual feminine boys. Developmental Psychology, 31, 22–30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., Zucker, K. J., Cavacas, A., Allin, S., Bradley, S. J., & Schachter, D. C. (2002). Fraternal birth order and birth weight in probably prehomosexual feminine boys. Hormones and Behavior, 41, 321–327.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blanchard, R., Zucker, K. J., Siegelman, M., Dickey, R., & Klassen, P. (1998). The relation of birth order to sexual orientation in men and women. Journal of Biosocial Science, 30, 511–519.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bogaert, A. F. (2000). Birth order and sexual orientation in a national probability sample. Journal of Sex Research, 37, 361–368.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bogaert, A. F. (2003). The interaction of fraternal birth order and body size in male sexual orientation. Behavioral Neuroscience, 117, 381–384.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bogaert, A. F. (2004). The prevalence of male homosexuality: The effect of fraternal birth order and variations in family size. Journal of Theoretical Biology, 230, 33–37.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bogaert, A. F. (2007). Extreme right-handedness, older brothers, and sexual orientation in men. Neuropsychology, 21, 141–148.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bogaert, A. F. (2010). Physical development and sexual orientation in men and women: An analysis of NATSAL-2000. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39, 110–116.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bozkurt, A., Bozkurt, O. H., & Sonmez, I. (2014). Birth order and sibling sex ratio in a population with high fertility: Are Turkish male to female transsexuals different? Archives of Sexual Behavior. doi:10.1007/s10508-014-0425-9.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Canaway, K. (2006). Sexual orientation and waist-to-chest ratios. Unpublished dissertation, School of Psychology, University of East London, London, United Kingdom.

  • Cantor, J. M., Blanchard, R., Paterson, A. D., & Bogaert, A. F. (2002). How many gay men owe their sexual orientation to fraternal birth order? Archives of Sexual Behavior, 31, 63–71.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cardoso, F. L. (2009). Recalled sex-typed behavior in childhood and sports’ preferences in adulthood of heterosexual, bisexual, and homosexual men from Brazil, Turkey, and Thailand. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 38, 726–736.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dunne, M. P., Bailey, J. M., Kirk, K. M., & Martin, N. G. (2000). The subtlety of sex-atypicality. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 29, 549–565.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ellis, L., & Blanchard, R. (2001). Birth order, sibling sex ratio, and maternal miscarriages in homosexual and heterosexual men and women. Personality and Individual Differences, 30, 543–552.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flint, J., & Munafo, M. R. (2007). The endophenotype concept in psychiatric genetics. Psychological Medicine, 37, 163–180.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frisch, M., & Hviid, A. (2006). Childhood family correlates of heterosexual and homosexual marriages: A national cohort study of two million Danes. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 35, 533–547.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frisch, M., & Hviid, A. (2007). Reply to Blanchard’s (2007) “Older-sibling and younger-sibling sex ratios in Frisch and Hviid’s (2006) national cohort study of two million Danes.”. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 36, 864–867.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gangestad, S. W., Bailey, J. M., & Martin, N. G. (2000). Taxometric analyses of sexual orientation and gender identity. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 78, 1109–1121.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gangestad, S. W., & Yeo, R. A. (1994). Parental handedness and relative hand skill: A test of the developmental instability hypothesis. Neuropsychology, 8, 572–578.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gómez-Gil, E., Esteva, I., Carrasco, R., Almaraz, M. C., Pasaro, E., Salamero, M., & Guillamon, A. (2011). Birth order and ratio of brothers to sisters in Spanish transsexuals. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 505–510.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Green, R. (1987). The “sissy boy syndrome” and the development of homosexuality. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grimbos, T., Dawood, K., Burriss, R. P., Zucker, K. J., & Puts, D. A. (2010). Sexual orientation and the second to fourth finger length ratio: A meta-analysis in men and women. Behavioral Neuroscience, 124, 278–287.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Grimshaw, G. M., Bryden, M. P., & Finegan, J.-A. K. (1995). Relations between prenatal testosterone and cerebral lateralization in children. Neuropsychology, 9, 68–79.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hall, P. A., & Schaeff, C. M. (2008). Sexual orientation and fluctuating asymmetry in men and women. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 37, 158–165.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hassan, B., & Rahman, Q. (2007). Selective sexual orientation-related differences in object location memory. Behavioral Neuroscience, 121, 625–633.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Honess, A. (2004). A study of emotional memory and sexuality. Unpublished dissertation, School of Psychology, University of East London, London, United Kingdom.

  • Iemmola, F., & Ciani, A. C. (2009). New evidence of genetic factors influencing sexual orientation in men: Female fecundity increase in the maternal line. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 38, 393–399.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • James, W. H. (1987). The human sex ratio. Part 1: A review of the literature. Human Biology, 59, 721–752.

  • Kangassalo, K., Pölkki, M., & Rantala, M. J. (2011). Prenatal influences on sexual orientation: Digit ratio (2D:4D) and number of older siblings. Evolutionary Psychology, 9, 496–508.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • King, M., Green, J., Osborn, D. P. J., Arkell, J., Hetherton, J., & Pereira, E. (2005). Family size in white gay and heterosexual men. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 34, 117–122.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kinsey, A. C., Pomeroy, W. B., & Martin, C. E. (1948). Sexual behavior in the human male. Philadelphia: Saunders.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lalumière, M. L., Blanchard, R., & Zucker, K. J. (2000). Sexual orientation and handedness in men and women: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 126, 575–592.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lens, L., Dongen, S., Kark, S., & Matthysen, E. (2002). Fluctuating asymmetry as an indicator of fitness: Can we bridge the gap between studies? Biological Reviews, 77, 27–38.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Manani, S. (2011). Sexuality, behaviour, and spatial cognition. Unpublished dissertation, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom.

  • Manning, J. T., & Peters, M. (2009). Digit ratio (2D:4D) and hand preference for writing in the BBC Internet Study. Laterality, 14, 528–540.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Markow, T. A. (1992). Human handedness and the concept of developmental stability. Genetica, 87, 87–94.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Meyer-Bahlburg, H. F. L., Dolezal, C., Baker, S. W., Ehrhardt, A. A., & New, M. I. (2006). Gender development in women with congenital adrenal hyperplasia as a function of disorder severity. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 35, 667–684.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, S. S., Hoffmann, H. L., & Mustanski, B. S. (2008). Fluctuating asymmetry and sexual orientation in men and women. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 37, 150–157.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Oldfield, R. C. (1971). The assessment and analysis of handedness: The Edinburgh Inventory. Neuropsychologia, 9, 97–113.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Packer, L. (2006). The role of sex and sexual orientation in systemizing and emphasizing. Unpublished dissertation, School of Psychology, University of East London, London, United Kingdom.

  • Plöderl, M., & Fartacek, R. (2009). Childhood gender nonconformity and harassment as predictors of suicidality among gay, lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual Austrians. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 38, 400–410.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q. (2005). Fluctuating asymmetry, second to fourth finger length ratios and human sexual orientation. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 30, 382–391.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q. (2006). [Evolution study 1]. Unpublished raw data.

  • Rahman, Q., Andersson, D., & Govier, E. (2005). A specific sexual orientation-related difference in navigation strategy. Behavioral Neuroscience, 119, 311–316.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., Bakare, M., & Serinsu, C. (2011). No sex differences in spatial location memory for abstract designs. Brain and Cognition, 76, 15–19.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., Bhanot, S., Emrith-Small, H., Ghafoor, S., & Roberts, S. (2012). Gender nonconformity, intelligence, and sexual orientation. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 41, 623–630.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., Clarke, K., & Morera, T. (2009). Hair whorl direction and sexual orientation in human males. Behavioral Neuroscience, 123, 252–256.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., Collins, A., Morrison, M., Orrells, J., Cadinouche, K., Greenfield, S., & Begum, S. (2008). Maternal inheritance and familial fecundity factors in male homosexuality. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 37, 962–969.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., & Hull, M. S. (2005). An empirical test of the kin selection hypothesis for male homosexuality. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 34, 461–467.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., & Koerting, J. (2008). Sexual orientation-related differences in allocentric spatial memory tasks. Hippocampus, 18, 55–63.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., & Wilson, G. D. (2003). Sexual orientation and the 2nd to 4th finger length ratio: Evidence for organizing effects of sex hormones or developmental instability? Psychoneuroendocrinology, 28, 288–303.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahman, Q., Wilson, G. D., & Abrahams, S. (2004). Biosocial factors, sexual orientation and neurocognitive functioning. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 29, 867–881.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rashid, A. N. (2011). Sex, handedness and processing of facial emotion. Unpublished dissertation, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom.

  • Rieger, G., Linsenmeier, J., Gygax, L., & Bailey, M. (2008). Sexual orientation and childhood gender nonconformity: Evidence from home videos. Developmental Psychology, 44, 46–58.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schagen, S. E., Delemarre van de Waal, H. A., Blanchard, R., & Cohen-Kettenis, P. T. (2012). Sibling sex ratio and birth order in early-onset gender dysphoric adolescents. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 41, 541–549.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, G., Kim, R. M., Kolundzija, A. B., Rieger, G., & Sanders, A. R. (2010). Biodemographic and physical correlates of sexual orientation in men. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39, 93–109.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Simpson, J. A., Gangestad, S. W., Christensen, P. N., & Leck, K. (1999). Fluctuating asymmetry, sociosexuality, and intrasexual competitive tactics. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76, 159–172.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, A. (2005). The effects of sexual orientation and its correlates on evolutionarily-related aspects of mating psychology. Unpublished dissertation, School of Psychology, University of East London, London, United Kingdom.

  • VanderLaan, D. P., Blanchard, R., Wood, H., & Zucker, K. J. (2014). Birth order and sibling sex ratio of children and adolescents referred to a gender identity service. PLoS One, 9(3), e90257.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • VanderLaan, D. P., & Vasey, P. L. (2011). Male sexual orientation in independent Samoa: Evidence for fraternal birth order and maternal fecundity effects. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 495–503.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vuoksimaa, E., Eriksson, C. J., Pulkkinen, L., Rose, R. J., & Kaprio, J. (2010). Decreased prevalence of left-handedness among females with male co-twins: Evidence suggesting prenatal testosterone transfer in humans? Psychoneuroendocrinology, 35, 1462–1472.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Waddington, C. H. (1942). Canalisation of development and the inheritance of acquired characters. Nature, 150, 563–565.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitam, F. L., & Mathy, R. M. (1991). Childhood cross-gender behavior of homosexual females in Brazil, Peru, the Philippines, and the United States. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 20, 151–170.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Yeo, R., Gangestad, S., & Daniel, W. (1993). Hand preference and developmental instability. Psychobiology, 21, 161–168.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zietsch, B. P., Verweij, K. J., Bailey, J. M., Wright, M. J., & Martin, N. G. (2011). Sexual orientation and psychiatric vulnerability: A twin study of neuroticism and psychoticism. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 133–142.

  • Zietsch, B. P., Verweij, K. J. H., Heath, A. C., Madden, P. A. F., Martin, N. G., Nelson, E. C., & Lynskey, M. T. (2012). Do shared etiological factors contribute to the relationship between sexual orientation and depression? Psychological Medicine, 42, 521–532.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zucker, K. J., & Blanchard, R. (2003). Birth order in the fakafefine. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, 29, 251–253.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zucker, K. J., Blanchard, R., Kim, T.-S., Pae, C.-U., & Lee, C. (2007). Birth order and sibling sex ratio in homosexual transsexual South Korean men: Effects of the male-preference stopping rule. Psychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences, 61, 529–533.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zucker, K. J., Mitchell, J. N., Bradley, S. J., Tkachuk, J., Cantor, J. M., & Allin, S. M. (2006). The Recalled Childhood Gender Identity/Gender Role Questionnaire: Psychometric properties. Sex Roles, 54, 469–483.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, King’s College London, 5th Floor, Bermondsey Wing, Guy’s Hospital Campus, London, SE1 9RT, UK

    Mariana Kishida & Qazi Rahman

Authors
  1. Mariana Kishida
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Qazi Rahman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mariana Kishida.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kishida, M., Rahman, Q. Fraternal Birth Order and Extreme Right-Handedness as Predictors of Sexual Orientation and Gender Nonconformity in Men. Arch Sex Behav 44, 1493–1501 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-014-0474-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-014-0474-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation