As a sexual orientation, homosexuality-thought of as “sexual desire or behavior directed toward a person or persons of one's own sex” -has not been classified as mental illness by the American Psychiatric Association since 1973, by the World Health Organization since 1993, and by the Chinese Psychiatric Association since 2001 and is now considered an alternative lifestyle.Īlthough with the normalization of homosexuality, people's positive perception of homosexuality has gradually increased, negative perceptions-for example, negative attitude, heterosexism, and homophobia-nevertheless widely abound. The tenth revision of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems states “Sexual orientation alone is not to be regarded as a disorder”. Sexual orientation is generally defined by whether one is erotically attracted to males, females, or both.
