View source for Pansexuality

{{Short description|Sexual attraction to people regardless of sex or gender identity}}
{{Distinguish|Pansexualism}}
{{Pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
{{Infobox sexuality
| name             = Pansexuality
| pronunciation    = {{IPAc-en|ˌ|p|æ|n|s|ɛ|k|ʃ|u|ˈ|æ|l|ɪ|t|i}} {{respell|PAN|sek|shoo|AL|it|ee}}
| image_upright    = 
| etymology        = {{langx|grc|πᾶν|pân}}, meaning 'all'
| definition       = Sexual or romantic attraction to people regardless of gender
| classification   = [[Sexual identity]]
| parent           = [[Plurisexuality]]
| synonyms         = 
| associated_terms = {{hlist|[[Bisexuality]]|[[polysexual]]ity|[[queer]]|[[heteroflexibility]]}}
| culture          = 
| flag             = Pansexuality Pride Flag.svg
| flag_alt         = Pansexual pride flag
| flag_name        = [[Pansexual flag]]
| flag_meaning     = Pink, yellow and blue respectively representing attraction to women, non-binary people and men
}}
{{Sexual orientation}}
{{Bisexuality_topics_sidebar}}
{{LGBTQ sidebar}}

'''Pansexuality''' is [[sexual attraction|sexual]], [[Romance (love)|romantic]], or emotional attraction towards people of all [[genders]], or regardless of their [[sex]] or [[gender identity]].<ref name="mental health">{{cite book |title=Mental health issues in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities |last1=Hill |first1=Marjorie J. |last2=Jones |first2=Billy E. |year=2002 |publisher=[[American Psychiatric Association]] |location=Washington, D.C. |isbn=978-1-58562-069-2 |page=95 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0NxXRsIfcpgC |access-date=28 February 2011 |archive-date=23 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123123940/https://books.google.com/books?id=0NxXRsIfcpgC |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Sex and society">{{cite book|title=Sex and Society|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YtsxeWE7VD0C&pg=PA593|access-date=July 28, 2013|volume=2|year=2010|publisher=[[Marshall Cavendish]]|location=Singapore|isbn=978-0-7614-7907-9|page=593|archive-date=4 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104031747/https://books.google.com/books?id=YtsxeWE7VD0C&pg=PA593|url-status=live}}</ref> Pansexual people may refer to themselves as [[gender-blind]], asserting that gender and sex are not determining factors in their romantic or sexual attraction to others.<ref name="Diamond2008">{{cite journal | last1 = Diamond | first1 = Lisa M. | last2 = Butterworth | first2 = Molly | title = Questioning gender and sexual identity: dynamic links over time | journal = [[Sex Roles (journal)|Sex Roles]] | publisher=[[Springer (publisher)|Springer]]|location=New York City|volume = 59 | issue = 5&ndash;6 | pages = 365&ndash;376 | doi = 10.1007/s11199-008-9425-3| date = September 2008 | s2cid = 143706723 }} [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Lisa_Diamond4/publication/225748244_Questioning_Gender_and_Sexual_Identity_Dynamic_Links_Over_Time/links/587adec408aed3826ae7bd8b/Questioning-Gender-and-Sexual-Identity-Dynamic-Links-Over-Time.pdf Pdf.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171110061624/https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Lisa_Diamond4/publication/225748244_Questioning_Gender_and_Sexual_Identity_Dynamic_Links_Over_Time/links/587adec408aed3826ae7bd8b/Questioning-Gender-and-Sexual-Identity-Dynamic-Links-Over-Time.pdf |date=10 November 2017 }}</ref><ref>The ''[[Oxford Dictionary of English]]'' defines pansexual as: "Not limited in sexual choice with regard to biological sex, gender, or gender identity".{{cite web|url = http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/pansexual|title = definition of pansexual from Oxford Dictionaries Online|work = [[Oxford Dictionaries (website)|Oxford Dictionaries]] |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|location=Oxford, England|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150210180124/http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/pansexual |archive-date = 2015-02-10 | url-status=dead |access-date=2015-05-31}}</ref>

Pansexuality is sometimes considered a [[sexual orientation]] in its own right or, at other times, as a branch of [[bisexuality]] (since attraction to all genders falls under the category of attraction to people of the same gender and different genders<ref name=":0" />) to indicate a lack of gender preference.<ref name="Sex and society"/><ref name="Firestein">{{cite book |last=Firestein |first=Beth A. |title=Becoming Visible: Counseling Bisexuals Across the Lifespan |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1pCKkZmBU1EC&pg=PA9 |access-date=July 28, 2013 |year=2007 |publisher=[[Columbia University Press]] |location=New York City |isbn=978-0-231-13724-9 |page=9 |archive-date=4 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204020834/https://books.google.com/books?id=1pCKkZmBU1EC&pg=PA9 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Thompson">{{cite book|author=Sherwood Thompson|title=Encyclopedia of Diversity and Social Justice|publisher=[[Rowman & Littlefield]]|page=98|isbn=978-1442216068|date=2014|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8rotBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA98|quote=There are many other identity labels that could fall under the wider umbrella of bisexuality, such as pansexual, omnisexual, biromantic, or fluid (Eisner, 2013).|access-date=30 August 2020|archive-date=14 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211014173659/https://books.google.com/books?id=8rotBgAAQBAJ&pg=PA98|url-status=live}}</ref> While pansexual people are open to relationships with people who do not identify as strictly [[men]] or [[women]], and pansexuality therefore explicitly rejects the [[gender binary]] in terms of the chosen etymology,<ref name="Sex and society"/><ref name="Soble">{{cite book |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IMTEiTtqqPcC |title=Sex from Plato to Paglia: a philosophical encyclopedia |volume=1 |page=115 |last=Soble |first=Alan |isbn=978-0-313-32686-8 |publisher=[[Greenwood Publishing Group]] |location=Santa Barbara, California |year=2006 |chapter=Bisexuality |access-date=28 February 2011 |archive-date=20 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920063752/https://books.google.com/books?id=IMTEiTtqqPcC |url-status=live }}</ref> this is by no means a feature which is exclusive to pansexuality and can also be found in broad definitions of homosexuality, bisexuality and the asexual spectrum.

==History of the term==
Pansexuality is also sometimes called ''omnisexuality''.<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/omnisexual The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308133145/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/omnisexual |date=8 March 2016 }} – Fourth Edition. Retrieved February 9, 2007, from Dictionary.com website</ref><ref name="Eisner">{{cite book |last=Eisner |first=Shiri |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CbJaZIosLwQC&pg=PT27 |title=Bi: Notes for a Bisexual Revolution |publisher=[[Seal Press]] |year=2013 |isbn=978-1580054751 |location=New York City |pages=27–31 |access-date=April 14, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930062100/https://books.google.com/books?id=CbJaZIosLwQC&pg=PT27 |archive-date=30 September 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=McAllum |first1=Mary-Anne |title=Young Bisexual Women's Experiences in Secondary Schools |date=2017 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-351-79682-8 |page=2034 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4O80DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA2034 |language=en |access-date=12 May 2020 |archive-date=18 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200818180658/https://books.google.com/books?id=4O80DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA2034 |url-status=live }}</ref> Omnisexuality may be used to describe those "attracted to people of all genders across the gender spectrum", and pansexuality may be used to describe the same people, or those attracted to people "regardless of gender".<ref name=":03">{{Cite book|last=Hayfield|first=Nikki|title=Bisexual and Pansexual Identities: Exploring and Challenging Invisibility and Invalidation|publisher=Routledge|year=2020|isbn=9780429875410|pages=1–17}}</ref> The prefix ''[[wikt:pan-|pan-]]'' comes from the [[Ancient Greek]] {{wikt-lang|grc|πᾶν}} ({{Transliteration|grc|pan}}), meaning "all, every".

In 1878, [[Machado de Assis]], a renowned Brazilian writer of the 19th century, made one of the first known uses to date in Portuguese of the term "omnisexual" for his criticism of the novel ''O Primo de Basílio'' by [[Eça de Queirós]]. The review was published in the newspaper of the time, ''[[O Cruzeiro]]'', which, on April 16, 1878, featured a review signed by Eleazar, the pseudonym of Machado de Assis, on the cover of the newspaper.<ref>{{Cite web |title=O Cruzeiro (RJ) - 1878 - DocReader Web |url=https://memoria.bn.br/DocReader/docreader.aspx?bib=238562&pasta=ano%20187&pesq=proudhon&pagfis=657 |access-date=2024-04-22 |website=memoria.bn.br}}</ref> Machado de Assis classified the [[Naturalism (literature)|naturalism]] and lack of sexual filter present in the novel as "reminiscences and allusions of an eroticism that Proudhon would call omnisexual and omnimod".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Eça de Queirós: O Primo Basílio |url=https://machado.mec.gov.br/obra-completa-lista/item/download/93_ba9e781d3821d32a9cbffc78fbfa5bda |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230804151459/https://machado.mec.gov.br/obra-completa-lista/item/download/93_ba9e781d3821d32a9cbffc78fbfa5bda |archive-date=2023-08-04 |access-date=2024-04-22 |website=Machado de Assis - Vida e Obra}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Mendes |first=Leonardo Pinto |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T4ultwTyDAMC&pg=PA30 |title=O retrato do Imperador: negociação, sexualidade e romance naturalista no Brasil |date=2000 |publisher=EDIPUCRS |isbn=978-85-7430-165-5 |page=30 |language=pt-BR}}</ref>

Early individuals who displayed pansexual tendencies include [[John Wilmot]]<ref name="Hardy 2012 p. 256">{{cite book | last=Hardy | first=M. | title=Catastrophic Bliss | publisher=Bucknell University Press | series=Griot Project book series | year=2012 | isbn=978-1-61148-494-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eIi_Olu7nfwC&pg=PA256 | access-date=2022-10-19 | page=256}}</ref> and [[Friedrich Schiller]].<ref>{{Cite book|title=Beyond the Pleasure Principle|last=Freud|first=Sigmund|date=2011|publisher=Broadview Press|isbn=978-1-55111-994-6|location=New York|pages=258}}</ref> Although later attributed to [[Shulamith Firestone]],<ref>{{Cite book |title=Sociology: An Introductory Textbook and Reader |last1=Nehring |first1=Daniel |last2=Plummer |first2=Ken |date=2014 |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |page=516 |isbn=9781317861737 |quote=Alternative types of sexual orientation include those documented by Queen (1997): 'omnisexual', (attracted to multiple genders), and 'pansexual', a term coined by Firestone (1970) to mean diverse, unbounded desire. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h4x7AwAAQBAJ&dq=coined+pansexual&pg=PT516}}</ref> the [[hybrid word]]s "pansexual" and "pansexualism" were first attested in 1914 (spelled "pan-sexualism"), coined by opponents of [[Sigmund Freud]]<ref>"pansexual, adj." ''OED Online'', Oxford University Press, March 2021, www.oed.com/view/Entry/136944. Accessed 3 May 2021.</ref> to denote the idea "that [[Libido|the sex instinct]] plays the primary part in all human activity, mental and physical".<ref name="etymonline.com">{{cite dictionary |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=pansexual |title=Online Etymology Dictionary |dictionary=[[Online Etymology Dictionary]] |access-date=June 20, 2012 |archive-date=21 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921153419/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=pansexual |url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn|Another early definition was "the pervasion of all conduct and experience with sexual emotions".<ref>''[http://www.thefreedictionary.com/pansexualism The Free Dictionary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228122606/https://www.thefreedictionary.com/pansexualism |date=28 February 2021 }}''</ref>}} The term was translated to [[German language|German]] as {{lang|de|Pansexualismus}} in Freud's work ''[[Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Dot|first=Wordsworth|date=January 18, 2020|title=Pansexuality has been around longer than you think|url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/pansexuality-has-been-around-longer-than-you-think|url-status=live|access-date=May 3, 2021|website=The Spectator|archive-date=3 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503155818/https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/pansexuality-has-been-around-longer-than-you-think}}</ref>

The word "pansexual" is attested as a term for a variety of attraction, alongside "omnisexual" (coming from the [[Latin]] {{wikt-lang|la|omnis}}, "all") and the earlier "bisexual", by the 1970s.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Klemesrud |first=Judy |date=1 April 1974 |title=The Bisexuals |magazine=[[New York (magazine)|New York]] |volume=7 |issue=13 |page=37}}</ref> ''[[Bi Any Other Name]]'' states that "pansexual people have been actively involved in the bisexual community since the 1970s."<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Ka'ahumanu |editor1-first=Lani |editor2-last=Hutchins |editor2-first=Loraine |title=Bi Any Other Name: Bisexual People Speak Out |date=2015 |publisher=[[Riverdale Avenue Books]] |edition=2nd |page=24 |location=New York |isbn=978-1626011991}}</ref> The term "pansexuality" emerged as a term for a sexual identity or sexual orientation in the 1990s, "to describe desires that already existed for many people".<ref>{{cite book | title=The SAGE Encyclopedia of LGBTQ Studies | editor-last= Goldberg | editor-first=Abbie | date=13 April 2016 | publisher=SAGE Publications | isbn= 9781483371290 | page=833}}</ref><ref name=":03"/> [[Social psychologist]] Nikki Hayfield states that the term saw early use in [[BDSM]] communities.<ref name=":03"/>

In 2010, the [[pansexual flag]] was posted on a [[Tumblr]] blog to represent the pansexual community.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P-T7DwAAQBAJ&pg=PT61 |title=Queerstory: An Infographic History of the Fight for LGBTQ+ Rights |date=2020-10-06 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-9821-4237-7 |language=en}}</ref> It was designed by Jasper Varney.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Olphin |first=Olivia |date=2021 |title=Is there a new pan flag 2021? New Pride flag confuses Twitter users |work=The Focus |url=https://www.thefocus.news/culture/new-pan-flag-2021 |access-date=15 November 2022}}</ref> The colors are intended to represent attraction and gender spectrum, with cyan for attraction to men, pink for attraction to women, and yellow for attraction to [[non-binary people]].<ref name="colorsUSAToday">{{Cite news |last1=Dastagir |first1=Alia E. |last2=Oliver |first2=David |date=1 June 2021 |title=LGBTQ Pride flags go beyond the classic rainbow. Here's what each one means |work=[[USA Today]] |url=https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/graphics/2021/06/01/lgbtq-pride-flags-meaning-gay-lesbian-transgender-nonbinary-intersex-pride-flags-represent/5133381001 |url-access=subscription |access-date=15 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210617052927/https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/graphics/2021/06/01/lgbtq-pride-flags-meaning-gay-lesbian-transgender-nonbinary-intersex-pride-flags-represent/5133381001 |archive-date=17 June 2021}}</ref>

Variations on pansexual are beginning to appear in surveys, e.g., ''panqueer'', which combines pansexual with [[queer]], has been used by participants in a study on non-medical impacts of [[COVID-19]].<ref name="pmid35802684">{{cite journal| last1=Levandowski |first1=BA |last2=Miller |first2=SB |last3=Ran |first3=D |last4=Pressman |first4=EA |last5=Van der Dye |first5=T| title=Piling it on: Perceived stress and lack of access to resources among US-based LGBTQ+ community members during the COVID-19 pandemic. | journal=PLOS ONE | year= 2022 | volume= 17 | issue= 7 | pages= e0271162 | pmid=35802684 | doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0271162 | pmc=9269365 | bibcode=2022PLoSO..1771162L | doi-access=free }}</ref>

==Comparison to bisexuality and other sexual identities==
===Definitions===
[[File:Couple kissing in front of pansexual flag (42328506944).jpg|thumb|Couple kissing in front of a [[pansexual flag]]]]

A literal [[denotation|dictionary definition]] of [[bisexuality]], due to the prefix "[[wikt:bi-#English|bi-]]", is sexual or romantic attraction to two [[sex]]es ([[male]]s and [[female]]s), to two [[gender]]s ([[Man|men]] and [[Woman|women]]),<ref name="Eisner"/><ref name="glaad">{{cite web|title=GLAAD Media Reference Guide |access-date=March 14, 2012 |publisher=[[Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation]] |url=http://www.glaad.org/document.doc?id=99 |archive-date=January 1, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110101043203/http://www.glaad.org/document.doc?id=99}}</ref> or attraction to both people of the same gender and different genders.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |title=Pansexuality {{!}} Definition, Meaning, & Facts |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/pansexuality |access-date=2023-02-28 |website=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] |language=en}}</ref>

Pansexuality, however, composed with the prefix "[[wikt:pan-#English|pan-]]", is the sexual attraction to a person of any sex or gender. Using these definitions, pansexuality is defined differently by explicitly including people who are [[intersex]] or [[Non-binary gender|outside the gender binary]].<ref name="Sex and society" /><ref name="Eisner" />

Volume 2 of [[Marshall Cavendish|Cavendish]]'s ''Sex and Society'' states that "although the term's literal meaning can be interpreted as "attracted to everything", people who identify as pansexual do not usually include [[paraphilia]]s, such as [[Zoophilia|bestiality]], [[pedophilia]] and [[necrophilia]], in their definition", and that they "stress that the term 'pansexuality' describes only consensual adult sexual behaviors."<ref name="Sex and society"/>

The definition of pansexuality can encourage the belief that it is the only [[sexual identity]] that covers individuals who do not cleanly fit into the categories of male or man, or female or woman.<ref name="mental health"/><ref name="Soble"/><ref name="Eisner"/> However, bisexual-identified people and scholars may object to the notion that bisexuality means sexual attraction to only two genders, arguing that since "bisexual" is not simply about attraction to two sexes and encompasses attraction to different genders as well, it includes attraction to more than two genders.<ref name="Eisner"/><ref name="bisexual.org">{{cite web|title=Doesn't identifying as bisexual reinforce a false gender binary?|publisher=[[American Institute of Bisexuality]]|date=2014|access-date=May 27, 2014|url=http://bisexual.org/qna/doesnt-identifying-as-bisexual-reinforce-a-false-gender-binary/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140410160854/http://bisexual.org/qna/doesnt-identifying-as-bisexual-reinforce-a-false-gender-binary/|archive-date=April 10, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> Gender is considered more complex than the state of one's sex, as gender includes genetic, hormonal, environmental and social factors.<ref name="Sex and society"/> Furthermore, the term "bisexual" is sometimes defined as the romantic or sexual attraction to multiple genders.<ref name="Eisner"/> The [[Bisexual Resource Center]], for example, defines bisexuality as "an [[umbrella term]] for people who recognize and honor their potential for sexual and emotional attraction to more than one gender",<ref name="biresource.net">{{cite web |url =http://www.biresource.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/BRC_Brochure_2010.pdf |last =Bisexual Resource Council/[[Bisexual Resource Center]] |title =BRC Brochure 2010 |year =2010 |access-date =7 January 2017 |archive-date =3 November 2020 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20201103122940/https://biresource.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/BRC_Brochure_2010.pdf |url-status =live }}</ref> while the [[American Institute of Bisexuality]] states that the term "bisexual" "is an open and inclusive term for many kinds of people with same-sex and different-sex attractions"<ref name="bisexual.org2">{{cite web|title=What is the difference between bisexual and terms like pansexual, polysexual, omnisexual, ambisexual, and fluid?|publisher=[[American Institute of Bisexuality]]|date=2014|access-date=May 27, 2014|url=http://bisexual.org/qna/what-is-the-difference-between-bisexual-and-terms-like-pansexual-polysexual-omnisexual-ambisexual-and-fluid/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140528005601/http://bisexual.org/qna/what-is-the-difference-between-bisexual-and-terms-like-pansexual-polysexual-omnisexual-ambisexual-and-fluid/|archive-date=May 28, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref> and that "the scientific classification 'bisexual' only addresses the physical, biological sex of the people involved, not the gender-presentation."<ref name="bisexual.org"/>

Scholar [[Shiri Eisner]] states that terms such as "pansexual", "omnisexual", "[[polysexual]]", "[[queer]]", etc. are being used in place of the term "bisexual" because "bisexuality, it's been claimed, is a gender binary, and therefore oppressive, word" and that "the great debate is being perpetuated and developed by bisexual-identified transgender and [[genderqueer]] people on the one hand, and non-bi-identified transgender and genderqueer people on the other." Eisner argues that "the allegations of binarism have little to do with bisexuality's actual attributes or bisexual people's behavior in real life" and that the allegations are a political method to keep the bisexual and transgender movements separated, because of those who believe that bisexuality ignores or erases the visibility of transgender and genderqueer people.<ref name="Eisner"/>

The [[American Institute of Bisexuality]] argues that "terms like 'pansexual', 'polysexual', 'omnisexual', and 'ambisexual' also describe a person with [[homosexual]] and [[heterosexual]] attractions, and therefore people with those labels are also bisexual" and that "by replacing the prefix bi – (two, both) with pan- (all), poly- (many), omni- (all), ambi- (both, and implying ambiguity in this case), people who adopt these labels seek to clearly express the fact that gender does not factor into their own sexuality", but "this does not mean, however, that people who identify as bisexual are fixated on gender."<ref name="bisexual.org2"/> The institute believes that the idea that identifying as bisexual reinforces a false gender binary "has its roots in the anti-science, anti-[[The Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] philosophy that has ironically found a home within many [[Queer Studies]] departments at universities across the Anglophone world", and that, "while it is true that our society's language and terminology do not necessarily reflect the full spectrum of human gender diversity, that is hardly the fault of people who choose to identify as bi. ... The Latin prefix bi- does indeed indicate two or both, however the 'both' indicated in the word bisexual are merely 'homosexual' (lit. same sex) and 'heterosexual' (lit. different sex)." The institute argues that heterosexuality and homosexuality, by contrast, "are defined by the boundary of two sexes/genders. Given those fundamental facts, any criticism of bisexuality as reinforcing a gender binary is misplaced. Over time, our society's concept of human sex and gender may well change."<ref name="bisexual.org"/>

==== Tensions with bisexuals ====
Bisexuals frequently struggle with myths and misconceptions about the definition of bisexuality, such as the idea that bisexuality conforms to the gender binary (thereby excluding attraction to nonbinary individuals), or excludes attraction to trans people in general. This sometimes creates tension between bisexuals and pansexuals, as pansexuals often see themselves as being more inclusive to a wider array of genders.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dodd |first=S. J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tm4yEAAAQBAJ |title=The Routledge International Handbook of Social Work and Sexualities |date=2021-07-19 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-000-40861-4 |language=en}}</ref> A 2022 study by the ''[[Journal of Bisexuality]]'' suggests that the majority of women who identify as pansexual or queer defined bisexuality as limited to attraction to cisgender men and women and critiqued bisexuality as reinforcing the traditional gender binary. However, bisexual women defined bisexuality as attraction to two or more, or  "similar or dissimilar", genders, described bisexuality as inclusive of attractions to all genders, and reported negative psychological outcomes as a result of the debate around bisexual gender inclusivity.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Cipriano |first1=Allison E. |last2=Nguyen |first2=Daniel |last3=Holland |first3=Kathryn J. |date=2022-10-02 |title="Bisexuality Isn't Exclusionary": A Qualitative Examination of Bisexual Definitions and Gender Inclusivity Concerns among Plurisexual Women |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15299716.2022.2060892 |journal=Journal of Bisexuality |language=en |volume=22 |issue=4 |pages=557–579 |doi=10.1080/15299716.2022.2060892 |issn=1529-9716|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

In another study, Ashley Green noted that pansexual participants sought to authenticate their identity as pansexual by juxtaposing it with bisexuality, often speaking of bisexuality as being inferior to pansexuality, most notably because they felt it excluded individuals who did not identify within the gender binary, some expressing very negative feelings toward bisexual individuals and positioning "pansexuality as being the superior identity as a result of its inclusivity, demonizing bisexual individuals as being transphobic if they do not identify as pansexual once they are informed that there is a 'better' identity". Green notes that this does not account for the large percentage of transgender and nonbinary individuals who also identify as bisexual, and characterizes these participants as contributing to a long history of biphobia. While some participants spoke favorably of bisexuality, describing the recognition of the validity of pansexuality as being contingent on the recognition of the validity of bisexuality, Green concludes by saying "In borrowing narratives that they are familiar with, the pansexual individuals interviewed in this study reinforced an essentialist understanding of identity despite their attempts to deconstruct gender binaries".<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Simula |first1=Brandy L. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DgT1DwAAQBAJ&dq=bisexual+pansexual+%22gender+binary%22&pg=PA23 |title=Expanding the Rainbow: Exploring the Relationships of Bi+, Polyamorous, Kinky, Ace, Intersex, and Trans People |last2=Sumerau |first2=J. E. |last3=Miller |first3=Andrea |date=2020-03-09 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-41410-5 |language=en}}</ref>

A 2017 study published in the ''[[Journal of Bisexuality]]'' found that when bisexuals and pansexuals described gender and defined bisexuality, "there were no differences in how pansexual and bisexual people ... discussed sex or gender", and that the findings "do not support the stereotype that bisexual people endorse a binary view of gender while pansexual people do not."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Flanders |first=Corey E. |date=January–March 2017 |title=Defining Bisexuality: Young Bisexual and Pansexual People's Voices |journal=Journal of Bisexuality |volume=17 |issue=1 |pages=39–57 |doi=10.1080/15299716.2016.1227016 |s2cid=151944900}}</ref>

===Umbrella term===
Social psychologist Corey Flanders said the "[[bisexual umbrella]]" is a term used to describe a range of sexual identities and communities that express attraction to multiple genders, often grouping together those who identify as bisexual, pansexual, queer, and [[Sexual fluidity|fluid]], as well as other identities. The term faces issues of balancing inclusivity with cohesiveness where, on one hand, the term can bring together many disparate identities and gather their experiences, and on the other, it can lead to too many sub-groupings and exclude those who identify with more than one sexual identity.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Flanders|first=Corey E.|date=January 2017|title=Under the Bisexual Umbrella: Diversity of Identity and Experience|journal=Journal of Bisexuality|volume=17|issue=1|pages=1–6|doi=10.1080/15299716.2017.1297145|s2cid=149216319|doi-access=free}}</ref>

The term "pansexuality" is sometimes used interchangeably with "bisexuality", and, similarly, people who identify as bisexual may "feel that gender, biological sex, and sexual orientation should not be a focal point in potential [romantic/sexual] relationships."<ref name="Sex and society"/> Additionally, "pansexuality" is often used in conjunction with "bisexuality", which can pose difficulties in studying differences and similarities in experiences between those who identify as pansexual and those who identify as bisexual and not pansexual.<ref name=":03"/> In one study analyzing sexual identities described as alternative terms for bisexual or bi-self labels, "half of all bisexual and bisexual-identified respondents also chose alternative self-labels such as 'queer', 'pansexual', 'pansensual', 'polyfidelitous', 'ambisexual', 'polysexual', or personalized identities such as 'byke' or 'biphilic'."<ref name="Firestein"/> In a 2017 study, identifying as pansexual was found to be "most appealing to nonheterosexual women and noncisgender individuals."<ref name=Morandini>{{cite journal|last1=Morandini|first1=James S.|last2=Blaszczynski|first2=Alexander|last3=Dar-Nimrod|first3=Ilan|title=Who Adopts Queer and Pansexual Sexual Identities?|journal=[[The Journal of Sex Research]]|date=2017|volume=54|issue=7|pages=911–922|doi=10.1080/00224499.2016.1249332|pmid=27911091|s2cid=5113284|issn=0022-4499}}</ref> Polysexuality is similar to pansexuality in definition, meaning "encompassing more than one sexuality", but not necessarily encompassing all sexualities. This is distinct from [[polyamory]], which means more than one intimate relationship at the same time with the knowledge and consent of everyone involved.

Sexual fluidity is different from [[gender fluidity]]. Sexual fluidity is a concept that describes how a person's sexual identity may shift, and can shift at any time.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Morandini |first1=James S. |last2=Blaszczynski |first2=Alexander |last3=Dar-Nimrod |first3=Ilan |date=2016-12-02 |title=Who Adopts Queer and Pansexual Sexual Identities? |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2016.1249332 |journal=The Journal of Sex Research |volume=54 |issue=7 |pages=911–922 |doi=10.1080/00224499.2016.1249332 |pmid=27911091 |s2cid=5113284 |issn=0022-4499|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The American Institute of Bisexuality stated that the term 'fluid' "expresses the fact that the balance of a person's homosexual and heterosexual attractions exists in a state of flux and changes over time."<ref name="bisexual.org2"/>

Eisner states that "the idea of bisexuality as an umbrella term can emphasize a multiplicity of identities, forms of desire, lived experiences, and politics," and "resist a single standard" of defining bisexual-umbrella identities and communities, including pansexuality and pansexuals. Eisner also says that only those who want to be included under the bisexual umbrella should be included.<ref name="Eisner3">{{cite book|last=Eisner|first=Shiri|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CbJaZIosLwQC&pg=PT27|title=Bi: Notes for a Bisexual Revolution|publisher=[[Seal Press]]|year=2013|isbn=978-1580054751|location=New York City|pages=27–31|access-date=April 14, 2014|archive-date=30 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200930062100/https://books.google.com/books?id=CbJaZIosLwQC&pg=PT27|url-status=live}}</ref> The term "[[plurisexual]]ities" is used by social psychologist Nikki Hayfield over bisexuality as an umbrella term "to capture additional identities relating to attraction to multiple genders", while also referring to specific identities like "bisexual", "asexual", and "pansexual".<ref name=":03"/>

In contrast to the idea of a bisexual umbrella, scholars Christopher Belous and Melissa Bauman propose that pansexuality might be considered more of an umbrella term than bisexuality, arguing that because pansexuality is often defined more broadly than bisexuality, bisexuality may exist under the umbrella of "pansexual orientations". They noted that more research is necessary to clarify which of the two terms might be more appropriate as an umbrella term.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Belous|first1=Christopher K.|last2=Bauman|first2=Melissa L.|date=January 2017|title=What's in a Name? Exploring Pansexuality Online|journal=Journal of Bisexuality|volume=17|issue=56|pages=58–72|doi=10.1080/15299716.2016.1224212|s2cid=152208083|via=LGBTQ+ Source, EBSCOhost}}</ref> Scholar Emily Prior questions the use of bisexuality as an umbrella term, noting that "the empirical evidence just isn't there" to determine whether bisexuality can effectively act as an umbrella term.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last=Swan|first=Joye D.|title=Bisexuality: Theories, Research, and Recommendations for the Invisible Sexuality|publisher=Springer|year=2018|isbn=9783319715353|location=New York, NY|pages=ix-xiii; 49–56}}</ref> Social psychologist Joye Swan argues that including other orientations under the bisexual umbrella contributes to bisexual invisibility, invisibility for other sexualities, and presumes that "all or most bisexual people agree with being categorized" under the bisexual umbrella.<ref name=":1" />

== Demographics ==
A 2016 [[The Harris Poll|Harris Poll]] survey of 2,000 US adults commissioned by [[GLAAD]]<ref>{{Cite web|date=2017-03-30|title=Accelerating Acceptance: GLAAD Study Reveals Twenty Percent of Millennials Identify as LGBTQ|url=https://www.glaad.org/releases/accelerating-acceptance-glaad-study-reveals-twenty-percent-millennials-identify-lgbtq|access-date=2021-04-07|website=GLAAD|language=en|archive-date=3 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210303032515/https://www.glaad.org/releases/accelerating-acceptance-glaad-study-reveals-twenty-percent-millennials-identify-lgbtq|url-status=live}}</ref> found that among 18-34 year-olds, about two percent self-identify as pansexual<ref>{{Cite news|last=Murphy|first=Brian|date=31 March 2017|title=1 in 5 millennials identifies as LGBTQ, according to new survey|work=[[The Sacramento Bee]]|url=https://www.sacbee.com/news/nation-world/national/article141982994.html|access-date=8 April 2021|archive-date=9 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170409233229/http://www.sacbee.com/news/nation-world/national/article141982994.html|url-status=live}}</ref> and approximately one percent in all other age groups.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2017|title=Accelerating Acceptance 2017. A Harris Poll survey of Americans' acceptance of LGBTQ people|url=https://www.glaad.org/files/aa/2017_GLAAD_Accelerating_Acceptance.pdf|url-status=live|access-date=8 April 2021|website=[[GLAAD]]|page=4|quote=Sexual orientation by age group (...) Pansexual 2% [age group 18-34], 1% [35-51], 1% [52-71], 1% [72+]|archive-date=6 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106041601/https://www.glaad.org/files/aa/2017_GLAAD_Accelerating_Acceptance.pdf}}</ref> In 2017, 14% of a sample of 12,000 [[LGBT|LGBTQ]] youth between 13 and 17 years of age declared themselves pansexual in a [[Human Rights Campaign]]/[[University of Connecticut]] survey.<ref>{{Cite web|title=2018 LGBTQ Youth Report|url=https://www.hrc.org/resources/2018-lgbtq-youth-report|url-status=live|access-date=2021-04-07|website=[[Human Rights Campaign]]|language=en-US|archive-date=22 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210422013238/https://www.hrc.org/resources/2018-lgbtq-youth-report}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Sherouse|first=Beth|date=12 June 2018|title=More youth are identifying as 'pansexual.' Here's what the term means.|url=https://archive.thinkprogress.org/youth-identifying-pansexual-lgbtq-3b010841159c/|url-status=live|access-date=2021-04-07|website=Think Progress|language=en-US|archive-date=20 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210920212815/https://archive.thinkprogress.org/youth-identifying-pansexual-lgbtq-3b010841159c/}}</ref>

According to the [[National Center for Transgender Equality]], 25% of American transgender people identify as bisexual.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://thetaskforceblog.org/2013/06/05/wonky-wednesday-trans-people-sexual-orientation/|last=Harrison|first=Jack|title=Wonky Wednesday: Trans people & sexual orientation|date=5 June 2013|access-date=7 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170310191047/https://thetaskforceblog.org/2013/06/05/wonky-wednesday-trans-people-sexual-orientation/|archive-date=10 March 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref> One New Zealand 2019 study of a nationally representative group of bisexual and pansexual participants found that younger, gender-diverse, and [[Māori people|Maori people]] were more likely to self-identify as pansexual compared to bisexual.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Greaves|first=Lara M.|date=2019|title=Comparing Pansexual- and Bisexual-Identified Participants on Demographics, Psychological Well-Being, and Political Ideology in a New Zealand National Sample.|url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00224499.2019.1568376|journal=Journal of Sex Research|volume=56|issue=9|pages=1083–1090|doi=10.1080/00224499.2019.1568376|pmid=30724611|s2cid=73436199|via=|access-date=5 May 2021|archive-date=9 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220309220814/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00224499.2019.1568376|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref> The 2021 IPSOS survey found that the United States was the country with the highest percentage of pansexual individuals.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Boyon |first1=Nicolas |title=GBT+ Pride 2021 Global Survey points to a generation gap around gender identity and sexual attraction |url=https://www.ipsos.com/en/lgbt-pride-2021-global-survey-points-generation-gap-around-gender-identity-and-sexual-attraction |website=ispos.com |publisher=Ipsos Group |access-date=13 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221012114908/https://www.ipsos.com/en/lgbt-pride-2021-global-survey-points-generation-gap-around-gender-identity-and-sexual-attraction |archive-date=12 October 2022 |date=9 June 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Pansexual and Panromantic Days==
{{expand section|date=December 2022}}
There are two main [[List of LGBT awareness periods|LGBTQ awareness period]]s for pansexual and [[panromantic]] people. One of them is the annual Pansexual & Panromantic Awareness Day ([[24 May]]),<ref>{{cite web|title=Pansexual and Panromantic Awareness & Visibility Day 2020|publisher=Gendered Intelligence|url=http://genderedintelligence.co.uk/panvisibilityday|access-date=31 December 2020|archive-date=2 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201202090823/http://genderedintelligence.co.uk/panvisibilityday|url-status=live}}</ref> first celebrated in 2015, to promote awareness of and celebrate pansexual and panromantic identities. Another one is the Pansexual Pride Day, celebrated annually on the 8 December.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wakefield |first=Lily |date=2021-12-08 |title=5 very important facts pansexual people want you to know about pansexuality |url=https://www.thepinknews.com/2021/12/08/pansexual-pride-day-meaning-misconceptions/ |access-date=2022-12-26 |website=[[PinkNews]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2021-12-08 |title=How You Can Celebrate Pansexual Pride Day |url=https://gayety.co/how-you-can-celebrate-pansexual-pride-day |access-date=2022-12-26 |website=Gayety |language=en-US}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{Portal|Sexuality}}
* {{Annotated link|Demisexuality}}
* {{Annotated link|Gender neutrality}}
* {{Annotated link|Human sexuality}}
* [[List of pansexual people]]
* [[List of fictional pansexual characters]]
* [[Media portrayal of pansexuality]]
* {{Annotated link|Third gender}}
* [[Transcending Boundaries Conference]]

== Explanatory notes ==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
<!-- If a source in this section is used as a citation in the article, please remove it from Further reading. -->
* {{cite web|last1=Barkved|first1=Kayti|title=Bisexuality and pansexuality are two different identities|url=http://www.thephoenixnews.com/2014/11/bisexuality-and-pansexuality-are-two-different-identities/|website=The Phoenix|publisher=[[University of British Columbia Okanagan]]|date=November 3, 2014|access-date=June 20, 2017|archive-date=December 28, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191228190632/https://thephoenixnews.com/2014/11/bisexuality-and-pansexuality-are-two-different-identities/|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite web|last1=Bowerman|first1=Mary|title=Pansexual: Where does it fall on the LGBTQ spectrum?|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/10/14/where-does-pansexuality-fall-lgbtq-spectrum/92052244/#|work=[[USA Today]]|date=October 14, 2016}}
* {{cite web|last1=Brown|first1=Gabriel|title=6 college students explain what being pansexual means to them|url=https://www.glaad.org/amp/6-college-students-explain-what-pansexual-means-to-them|website=[[GLAAD]]|date=December 8, 2018|access-date=27 February 2021|archive-date=15 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220715084932/https://www.glaad.org/amp/6-college-students-explain-what-pansexual-means-to-them|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite web|last1=Gender and Sexuality Center|title=Bisexuality, Pansexuality, Fluid Sexuality: Non-Monosexual Terms & Concepts|url=http://diversity.utexas.edu/genderandsexuality/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/NonMonosexual-Identity-Definitions-2016.pdf|publisher=[[The University of Texas at Austin]]|date=March 2016|access-date=20 June 2017|archive-date=16 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201116165352/https://diversity.utexas.edu/genderandsexuality/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/NonMonosexual-Identity-Definitions-2016.pdf|url-status=dead}}
* {{cite web|last1=Grinberg|first1=Emanuella|title=What it means to be pansexual|url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/10/10/health/pansexual-feat/index.html|website=[[CNN]]|date=April 12, 2017}}
* {{cite web|last1=O'Riordan|first1=Aoife|title=The Case Of Pansexuality 101 and the Sea of Biphobia and Gender Erasure|url=https://the-orbit.net/teacosy/2014/11/14/pansexuality-101-biphobia-gender-erasure/|website=The Orbit|date=November 14, 2014}}
* {{cite web|last1=Savin-Williams Ph.D.|first1=Ritch C|title=What Everyone Should Understand About Pansexuality|url=https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sex-sexuality-and-romance/201711/what-everyone-should-understand-about-pansexuality|work=[[Psychology Today]]|date=November 6, 2017|author-link=Ritch Savin-Williams}}
* {{cite web|last1=Wong|first1=Brittany|title=9 Things Pansexual People Want You To Know|url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/things-pansexual-people-want-you-to-know_n_5b328d99e4b0b745f17877cc|website=[[HuffPost]]|date=June 27, 2018}}
* {{cite magazine|last1=Zane|first1=Zachary|title=What's the Real Difference between Bi- and Pansexual?|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/whats-the-real-difference-between-bi-and-pansexual-667087/|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=June 29, 2018}}

== External links ==
* {{Commons category-inline}}

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