Many cultures use identity labels to describe people who express these attractions. This range of behaviors and attractions has been described in various cultures and nations throughout the world. However, sexual orientation is usually discussed in terms of three categories: heterosexual (having emotional, romantic or sexual attractions to members of the other sex), gay/lesbian (having emotional, romantic or sexual attractions to members of one's own sex) and bisexual (having emotional, romantic or sexual attractions to both men and women). Research over several decades has demonstrated that sexual orientation ranges along a continuum, from exclusive attraction to the other sex to exclusive attraction to the same sex. Sexual orientation also refers to a person's sense of identity based on those attractions, related behaviors and membership in a community of others who share those attractions. Sexual orientation refers to an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic and/or sexual attractions to men, women or both sexes.
