International Handbook on the Demography of Sexuality

The International Handbook on the Demography of Sexuality is the first book to specifically address the study of sexuality from a demographic perspective. Demographic research has largely paid little attention to sexuality as a whole, or sexual orientation in particular, other than in studies examining the 'consequences' of sex - sexually transmitted infections or fertility. Instead, the content of this handbook explores population sexuality in order to describe the prevalence of sexual behaviors, desires, and identities, as well as their connections with other demographic outcomes. The focus is on analyzing sexuality as a demographic topic in its own right, rather than solely as a variable in studies of sexually transmitted infection or other health-related topics. In this book, both researchers with traditional demographic backgrounds, as well as those with training in other disciplines, provide an overview of the state of current research on population sexuality. These chapters provide a foundation for the development of research in the burgeoning field of the demography of sexuality.

Amanda K. Baumle is Associate Professor of Sociology at University of Houston. She received her J.D. from the University of Texas at Austin and her Ph.D. from Texas A&M University. Her research and teaching are focused in the areas of demography and the sociology of law, with a focus on issues involving gender and sexual orientation. She employs both quantitative and qualitative methodologies in her research.

Dr. Baumle has authored and edited books, articles, and book chapters examining issues of inequality and discrimination, as well as the manner in which the law might be activated as a means to challenge existing inequalities. Her current research explores issues involving the demography of sexual orientation and the legal consciousness of same-sex parents.

She is the author of Sex Discrimination and Law Firm Culture on the Internet: Lawyers at the 'Information Age Water Cooler' (2009), which examines attorneys' use of legal discourse in an Internet community as a vehicle for challenging gender discrimination. Dr. Baumle is also the coauthor of The Demography of Sexual Orientation (2009), which draws on 2000 U.S. Census data to examine the manner in which sexual orientation affects a variety of demographic processes. Dr. Baumle is currently working on an edited International Handbook of the Demography of Sexuality, which will include more than 30 chapters examining sexual behavior, identity, desires, and the manner in which traditional demographic outcomes are affected by these factors (forthcoming 2012).