degeneration theory sexual degeneration theory A subtype of degeneration theory which posited that changing sexual or gender norms, homosexuality, "sexual inversion", transness, gender equality, feminism, BDSM, etc., were somehow leading to the collapse of society. The very idea of "sexual degeneracy" has been stretched to inane conclusions, with those in the 19th and 20th believing that allowing women to vote would even constitute the collapse of society, or that homosexuality had something to do with the collapse of the Roman Empire, which is demonstrably false. However, despite such theories being bizarre, they are still published commonly in the 21st century. For instance, The Guardian published an article "How same-sex marriage could ruin civilisation" in 2015. A 2011 Telegraph article claimed that the "Fall of the Roman Empire caused by 'contagion of homosexuality'". And, in 2022, Jordan Peterson claimed that transgender people were somehow evidence of societal collapse. sex degeneration theory sexual degeneration theories