whitam's early work focused on the sociology of religion before he moved into researching commonalities in male homosexuality in different cultures. whitam told "newsweek", "if you look at all societies, homosexuality occurs at the same rates with the same kinds of behavior. that suggests something biological going on. the biological evidence has been growing for 20 or more years." he also studied trans women, reporting that in many cultures "these persons regard themselves as homosexuals and are regarded by more masculine homosexuals as a natural part of the homosexual world." whitam's published books included "the protestant spanish community in new york" in 1960 and "male homosexuality in four societies: brazil, guatemala, the philippines, and the united states", co-authored with robin mathy in 1986. whitam died in tempe, arizona.