He was a professor of psychology at San Francisco State University, the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Homosexuality from 1975 to 2009, and a "pioneer of sexuality studies."
"[4] De Cecco graduated from Allegheny College, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology in 1946.
[3] De Cecco became an assistant professor of education and psychology at San Francisco State University in 1960.
[4] With Michael G. Shively, De Cecco was the co-founder of the Center for Homosexual Education, Evaluation and Research (CHEER) at SFSU in 1975.
De Cecco resided in the Potrero Hill neighborhood of San Francisco,[4] where he died on November 2, 2017,[1] at age 92.