Recalled Childhood Separation Anxiety in Relation to Sex, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity in Thailand

ABSTRACT

Same-sex sexual attraction is an evolutionary paradox. It is influenced by genes but also associated with reduced reproduction. An altruistic disposition toward kin could increase relatives’ reproduction, thus addressing this paradox. Developmentally, such a disposition may manifest as anxiety during separation from kin. This hypothesis has been supported among androphilic (i.e. sexually attracted to males) males, but few similar studies of gynephilic (i.e. sexually attracted to females) females exist. We examined recalled childhood separation anxiety in Thailand and employed the largest and most sexually and gender-diverse sample to date (N = 1403). Among heterosexuals, men recalled less concern for parents’ and siblings’ well-being during separation than women. Androphilic males evidenced elevated concern for parents’ and siblings’ well-being during separation, and transfeminine androphilic males known as sao praphet song reported heightened anxiety when separated from parents. Among females, transmasculine gynephilic females known as toms recalled less concern about parents’ well-being during separation than feminine females who are attracted to toms and known as dees. Bisexual women recalled less anxiety when separated from parents than dees and lesbian and heterosexual women. These findings suggest a disposition toward heightened kin-directed altruism is evident in childhood among androphilic males, but not gynephilic females.

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Aunyawee Chaiwatpornpat, without whom this research would not have been possible, and the Khankham family. Thank you also to Itsara Boonyarit, Kamonphorn Chaisabai, Suwat Chariyalertsak, Louis Gooren, Oranitcha Kaewthip, Phobphat Khankham, Phuntira Kunta, Chananart Putti, Sayan Putti, Suwit Saekho, Pongpun Saokhieo, Preedeya Shisornjai, Rattanakorn Sitthisapphokhin, Tanapong Sungkaew, Lindsey Thurston, and the staff at Baan Ruk Rean and at the Runway Academy. AZ was supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) scholarship, and MNS was supported through postdoctoral fellowships from CIHR, Brain Canada-Kids Brain Health Network, and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary data

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2023.2279238

Notes

¹ In the present article, “male” and “female” are used in reference to sex assigned at birth, and “sex” is used to refer to readily observable somatic characteristics (e.g., genitals). These terms are not intended to be interpreted as referring to gender. The terms “men/boys” and “women/girls” refer to cisgender individuals; when referring to a specific group of individuals who are not cisgender (i.e., birth-assigned sex and experienced gender identity do not align relative to cultural norms), the culturally relevant identity terms are used.

² In contemporary Western culture, sexual and gender identity are often considered to be dissociable from one another; however, in Thai culture, sexual and gender identity are often configured together and considered to be conflated (Miedema et al., 2022; Sinnott, 2004). For example, in Thailand, identifying as a “man” or a “woman” often implies a heterosexual sexual orientation, whereas identification as “sao praphet song” or “tom” implies androphilic or gynephilic sexual orientation, respectively.

³ In their article, Camperio Ciani et al. (2016) referred to Urak-Lawoi transfeminine androphilic males using the ethnographically imprecise term kathoey, which is a common Thai term for transfeminine androphilic males. As noted by Vasey et al. (2016), the accurate term is na-ning.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) of Canada Discovery Grant to DPV [RGPIN-2016-06446].