SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND HUMAN-DEVELOPMENT - AN OVERVIEW

What part does sexual orientation play in human development? Despite t he apparent significance of sexual identities in shaping lives, develo pmental research and theory on sexual orientation have, until recently , been relatively limited. Today, as lesbian women, gay men, and bisex ual people become more open about sexual identities, psychological kno wledge about the ways in which developmental processes affect and in t urn are affected by sexual orientation is growing rapidly. As the arti cles in this special issue reveal, groundbreaking research is being co nducted, from a variety of perspectives, by investigators from many di fferent traditions. Research on sexual orientation and human developme nt has the potential to make important contributions both to the theor y and to the practice of developmental psychology.