Category-specificity in sexual arousal/interest as a complex function of sex and sexual orientation

The present study assessed the category-specificity of sexual interest/arousal of gay men and lesbian women toward an understanding of the possible interaction of sex and sexual orientation that may exist in this phenomenon. Utilizing viewing time as a measure of sexual interest, participants (N = 99) rated the sexual appeal of sexually provocative pictures while the length of time they spent viewing each picture was unobtrusively measured. As hypothesized, same-sex oriented individuals, both men and women, demonstrated a category-specific pattern of sexual interest. That is, (1) men and women viewed preferred sex pictures significantly longer than nonpreferred sex pictures; (2) men and women rated preferred sex pictures significantly more sexually appealing than nonpreferred sex pictures; (3) the differences in viewing time and appeal ratings between preferred and nonpreferred sexual stimuli were greater for lesbian women than that demonstrated by their heterosexual counterparts; (4) the differences in viewing time between preferred and nonpreferred sexual stimuli were greater for heterosexual men than for gay men; and (5) the appeal ratings between preferred and nonpreferred sexual stimuli were comparable for gay men and their heterosexual counterparts. The results of this study suggest that self-identified gay and lesbian men and women are categoryspecific in their sexual interest.