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This book is a collection of papers based on presentations at the First International Behavioral Developmental Symposium: The Biological Basis of Sexual Orientation and Sex-Typical Behavior, which took place in 1995 in Minot, North Dakota. It is an effort to ferret out the biological influences that bear on sexual object choice. It is off the beaten track for the usual psychoanalytic reader, although certainly not outside of his/her grasp. It is quite readable, with introductory explanatory paragraphs and clear, concise conclusions. Terms are clarified and jargon is kept to a minimum. At the same time, it is difficult to judge the validity of the studies, as the research is not presented in depth and the researchers themselves claim a lack of substantiation of previous studies as well as a need for replication of their own studies.
A wide range of topics is covered, with attempts to generalize and to substantiate the generalizations from other mammals to human sexual preference. The emphasis is on the biological, with an effort to distinguish genetic from hormonal influences as the sexually dimorphic brain is formed. A nod is given to psychosocial and cognitive influences, although they are often appreciated only as an indication of sexually determined (genetic and/or hormonal) brain lateralization. Stress is appreciated as a powerful hormonal influence, especially as it affects the critical development of the fetal brain.