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Gender Differences in Sexuality
... Thomas et al. (2018a) acknowledged the potential of prevalent social constrictions and norms in shaping gendered sexuality in boys and girls. Scholars like Petersen & Hyde (2010) and Kacha & Lakdawala (2019) underlined the role of culture in forming attitudes on sexual behaviour while presenting significant gender differences in attitude toward sexuality, including sexual behaviour, between cultures having high and small levels of gender power equations. They argued that the comparatively higher gender differences in sexual behaviour reported from Asian and African countries than the USA and Europe can be attributed to the culturally different gender constrictions prevalent in the continents. ...
At a time when there is an unprecedented surge in reported cases of all forms of sexual violence, including rape of women by men even within intimate relations across the world, it is essential to investigate men’s attitude towards sexuality with its intricacies from a gendered perspective, especially when the legal, social and cultural structures continue to fail in challenging the prevailing gendered discourses around sexuality. This study attempts to explore the attitude of male university students towards sexuality and encapsulate the same with gender-specific patriarchal theories. With a descriptive research design, this study interviewed 396 male university students from a chosen university in Gujarat, India, selected by stratified — systematic sampling method from different streams of study. Quantitative analysis underlined and clearly portrayed the unfavourable attitudes towards sexuality held by a large proportion of university students. This study also attempts to illustrate how gendered power inequality highly influences their sexual entitlement and sexual constriction attitudes.
... Data released by PornHub, the world's largest pornography website, suggest that 32% of the visits to the website in 2019 were by women, up from 29% in and 26% in 2017(PornHub, 2019. 1 How might we expect the gender of viewers to shape their response to aggression in pornographic videos and their preferences when watching these videos? Scholars of sexuality have argued that men's attitudes toward sexuality tend to be more "liberal" than those of women (Peterson & Hyde, 2010), suggesting that they may find alternative depictions of sexuality, including aggressive ones, more appealing. In addition, the large majority of aggressive and/or degrading acts portrayed in mainstream heterosexual pornographic videos are conducted by men and directed toward women (Bridges et al., 2010;Klaassen & Peter, 2015). ...
Despite the recent proliferation of research on aggression in pornography, we still know relatively little about the preferences and perceptions of viewers themselves. In particular, very little research has examined how women who watch pornography feel when encountering aggression toward women. To explore this question, we conducted interviews with 122 regular pornography viewers (61 women, 60 men, and 1 gender-diverse). Quantitative and qualitative analyses of the data show that the majority of both men and women reported that they did not enjoy aggressive content. However, in contrast to common conceptions among most scholars and pundits, it was women, not men, who were more likely to report being aroused by aggression, mainly consensual aggression toward women, which was perceived as pleasurable. Women were also more likely to report actively seeking for aggression and wanting to see more aggression in mainstream pornography. These findings challenge long-held radical feminist views regarding the preferences of both women and men and offer new insights on the relationship between gender and sexual fantasies.
... Respecto al género, si bien algunos autores afirman que la diversidad sexual no resulta siempre significativa (Petersen & Hyde, 2010), el estudio ha revelado diferencias en cuanto a la realización de prácticas sexuales con personas del mismo sexo. En este sentido, si bien hombres y mujeres presentan oscilaciones a lo largo de los años evaluados, con significación estadística, los primeros informan con mayor frecuencia el haber mantenido relaciones homosexuales. ...
Resumen
Los cambios que en los últimos años se han producido en nuestro país, relativos a la consideración
social y legislativa de la homosexualidad, todavía siguen acompañados de ciertos
estigmas sobre la diversidad sexual. Seguramente, el desconocimiento sobre el desarrollo de
los comportamientos homosexuales contribuye a dicho estigma y repercute en el bienestar
de la población afectada por éstos. Por este motivo, el estudio busca analizar la prevalencia
de las relaciones sexuales con personas del mismo sexo, desde el año 1999 al 2008, así como
la evolución de la orientación sexual percibida en la población joven. Para ello 7504 jóvenes
(edad media de 20,5 años) entre 1999 y 2008, cumplimentaron la Encuesta sobre el SIDA. En
general, se confirma la existencia de una importante diversidad sexual con una alta frecuencia
de comportamientos bisexuales y homosexuales, sobre todo, en el caso de los hombres.
Palabras clave: conductas sexuales, evolución, jóvenes, orientación sexual, homosexualidad.
Summary
EVOLUTION OF HOMOSEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS AND SEXUAL ORIENTATION
IN THE LAST DECADE (1999-2008)
The changes occurred in our country in recent years regarding social and legislative consideration of
homosexuality, are still accompanied by some stigmas about sexual diversity. Surely, the lack of knowledge
about the development of homosexual behavior contributes to the above mentioned stigma and affects the
well-being of the affected population. For this reason, the study analyzes sex with same sex prevalence
from 1999 to 2008, and the evolution of perceived sexual orientation in young population. 7504 youth
(mean age of 20.5 years), from 1999 to 2008, answered the Encuesta sobre el Sida (Ballester & Gil,
2000). In general, it is confirmed the existence of a relevant sexual diversity in which the bisexual and
homosexual behaviors are highly represented, especially in men.
Keywords: sexual behavior, evolution, youth, gender, sexual orientation, homosexuality
... Respecto al género, si bien algunos autores afirman que la diversidad sexual no resulta siempre significativa (Petersen & Hyde, 2010), el estudio ha revelado diferencias en cuanto a la realización de prácticas sexuales con personas del mismo sexo. En este sentido, si bien hombres y mujeres presentan oscilaciones a lo largo de los años evaluados, con significación estadística, los primeros informan con mayor frecuencia el haber mantenido relaciones homosexuales. ...
Resumen
En la literatura científica existe una carencia de estudios sobre Trabajadores Masculinos del Sexo (TMS). La mayoría se centra en aspectos relacionados con el VIH y, en ocasiones, olvidan indagar características de su actividad profesional que, dada la heterogeneidad de este colectivo social, son necesarias para plantear estrategias eficaces de prevención. El objetivo de este estudio es explorar aspectos relacionados con la actividad profesional de un grupo de TMS de las ciudades de Castellón y Valencia. Las prácticas más demandadas son penetración y sexo oral, aunque aparecen otras como masturbación, besos, caricias o compañía. Encontramos prácticas que los TMS se niegan a realizar, principalmente cualquier práctica sexual sin preservativo por temor a una infección. Las personas usuarias son mayoritariamente hombres, con edades entre los 30 y los 70 años y un nivel socioeconómico medio-alto. La posibilidad de la infección por VIH está muy presente en la actividad profesional del colectivo de TMS por lo que se niegan a realizar prácticas sexuales con sus clientes que les puedan suponer un riesgo de infección. Conocer las características diferenciadas del trabajo sexual ejercido por hombres facilitará la adecuación de programas de prevención e intervención de VIH y otras ITS a su realidad psicosocial.
Palabras clave: trabajador masculino del sexo, clientes, prácticas sexuales, realidad psicosocial, VIH
Summary
SEXUAL BEHAVIORS RELATED TO THE PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY OF MALE SEX WORKERS ENGAGED IN ORGANIZED FLATS
Scientific literature about male sex workers (MSW) is poor. Most of them focus their attention on HIV and sometimes they forget to investigate characteristics of their work needed to elaborate effective prevention strategies given the heterogeneity of this group. The aim of this study is to explore some aspects about MSW professional activity in Castellón and Valencia (Spain). The most requested practices by clients are penetration and oral sex, although there are others such as masturbation, kissing, caresses or company. There are some behaviors that MSW refuse to carry out, particularly practicing sex without condom, for fear of infection. Clients are mostly men, aged between 30 and 70 years, with a medium-high socioeconomic level. The possibility of HIV infection is very important on the professional activity of the MSW, so they refuse to engage in sexual practices with their clients which may pose a risk of infection. Knowing the different characteristics of sex work engaged by men will provide us the main information in order to adapt prevention and intervention programs for HIV and other STIs to their social and psychological reality.
Keywords: male sex workers, clients, sexual behavior, social and psychological reality, HIV
... Respecto al género, si bien algunos autores afirman que la diversidad sexual no resulta siempre significativa (Petersen & Hyde, 2010), el estudio ha revelado diferencias en cuanto a la realización de prácticas sexuales con personas del mismo sexo. En este sentido, si bien hombres y mujeres presentan oscilaciones a lo largo de los años evaluados, con significación estadística, los primeros informan con mayor frecuencia el haber mantenido relaciones homosexuales. ...
Resumen
El consumo de sustancias ha acompañado desde hace tiempo a las relaciones sexuales. Su efecto desinhibidor y asociación con la diversión y placer han motivado que se mantengan relaciones bajo sus efectos, facilitando riesgos relacionados con la salud sexual, tales como embarazos no deseados e ITS por no haber utilizado preservativo, agresiones sexuales, etc. Nuestro objetivo fue analizar la prevalencia de consumo de alcohol y otras drogas antes o durante las relaciones sexuales en una muestra de 1964 jóvenes de la Universitat Jaume I de Castellón, mediante la Encuesta sobre el Sida (Ballester & Gil, 2000) y la evolución de este comportamiento en la última década. Los resultados demuestran que un gran número de los universitarios tomó alcohol o drogas en su última relación sexual, frecuencia que desde el año 2003 se mantiene estable con algunas oscilaciones. Además, alrededor del 50% no suele utilizar preservativo sistemáticamente cuando está bajo los efectos del alcohol-drogas. Se observan diferencias estadísticamente significativas en función del género y orientación sexual. El consumo de sustancias añade nuevos riesgos en la salud sexual de la población joven, por lo que sería necesario que en los programas de promoción de la salud sexual se atendiera este aspecto.
Palabras clave: alcohol, drogas, conductas sexuales, uso preservativo, jóvenes, evolución.
Summary
Substance use has long been associated with sexual relationships. Its disinhibiting effect and its association with fun and pleasure has motivated that many young people have relations under their effects, thus facilitating the risks related to sexual health such as unwanted pregnancies and STI´s for not using condoms, sexual assault, etc. Our objective was to analyze the prevalence of alcohol and other drugs consumption in a sample of 1964 young people from the Universitat Jaume I de Castellón (Spain), by the Survey about AIDS (Ballester & Gil, 2000) and the evolution of this behavior in the last decade. The results show that a large number of surveyed college students drank alcohol or took drugs at last sexual intercourse. Since 2003, this rate has remained stable with some fluctuations. In addition, about 50% do not usually use condoms consistently when they are under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Statistically significant differences were observed according to gender and sexual orientation. Substance use added new risks to sexual health of young people so it would be necessary to consider this aspect in programs promoting sexual health.
Keywords: alcohol, drugs, sexual behavior, condom use, young people, evolution
... Respecto al género, si bien algunos autores afirman que la diversidad sexual no resulta siempre significativa (Petersen & Hyde, 2010), el estudio ha revelado diferencias en cuanto a la realización de prácticas sexuales con personas del mismo sexo. En este sentido, si bien hombres y mujeres presentan oscilaciones a lo largo de los años evaluados, con significación estadística, los primeros informan con mayor frecuencia el haber mantenido relaciones homosexuales. ...
Resumen
Si bien es reconocida la importancia que la salud sexual tiene en la calidad de vida de la población, su estudio suele estar relegado a un segundo plano y, en todo caso, a un enfoque de riesgos que invisibiliza, tanto su multidimensionalidad como su diversidad. Este estudio persigue analizar la evolución de la realización de distintas prácticas sexuales en jóvenes, según género y orientación sexual, en la última década. Para ello participaron 7432 estudiantes universitarios que, desde 1999 a 2008, cumplimentaron la Encuesta sobre el SIDA, con información relativa a los hábitos sexuales. Los resultados, apoyan la existencia de una evolución significativa de los hábitos sexuales en los últimos años, destacando el aumento de las masturbaciones. Además, tanto el género como la orientación sexual parecen definirse como variables moduladoras, arrojando mayores cambios en mujeres y heterosexuales; aunque los hombres, los homosexuales y los bisexuales, presentan una mayor frecuencia en la mayoría de prácticas. Así pues, se muestra evidente la necesidad de plantear intervenciones diferenciales en función del tipo de población que se adapten al perfil que presenta en un determinado momento histórico y, por ende, la importancia de seguir explorando la sexualidad juvenil que, de nuevo, manifiesta su heterogeneidad y que está viéndose modificada en los últimos tiempos.
Palabras clave: conductas sexuales, evolución, jóvenes, género, orientación sexual.
Summary EVOLUTION OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR AMONG YOUNG PEOPLE, IN THE LAST DECADE (1999-2008), BY GENDER AND SEXUAL ORIENTATION The importance of sexual health on the quality of life among people is admitted. Nevertheless, its study is usually put aside and, in any case, is associated with a risky approach that refuses its several dimensions and diversity. The main purpose of this study is to analyze the evolution of different sexual practices among young people by gender and sexual orientation in the last decade. For this reason, 7432 College students participated from 1999 to 2008 and completed the «Encuesta sobre el SIDA», with information about sexual habits. Results support the existence of a significant evolution of the sexual habits in recent years, emphasizing the increase of the masturbation. In addition, both gender and sexual orientation would be modulating variables: women and heterosexual have shown more changes. Nevertheless, men, homosexuals and bisexuals have reported more frequency of practices. Thus, our results support the need to differentiate sexual interventions that consider the profile of population and, in addition, the relevance to explore youth sexuality carefully because, again, shows its heterogeneity and it has been transformed recently.
Keywords: vaginism, dyspareunia, sexual therapy, man, woman.
... In the past decade, pushes toward equality have been made by and for the LGBT community (Savage & Harley, 2009). So although negative beliefs exist targeting gay men and lesbians, the desire to present oneself as being egalitarian and fair are still motivating social factors that affect explicit attitudes (Jellison, McConnell, & Gabriel, 2004;Petersen & Hyde, 2010). Tests such as the IAT are able to access automatic stereotypes that are inherent in both LGBT and heterosexual individuals (Jellison, McConnell, & Gabriel, 2004). ...
The effects of egalitarian hiring norms and accountability on ratings of gay and nongay job applicants were explored using theories of aversive discrimination. Participants (n = 311) from a Midwestern university rated a video interview of a moderately performing department head job applicant (gay man or nongay man) after receiving information about the position. Participants were randomly assigned to be given additional information about job-relatedness and affirmative action procedures or not (egalitarian norms), and were then told they would or would not have to explain their ratings (accountability). Consistent with aversive discrimination theory, participants rated the gay applicant less positively than the nongay applicant irrespective of self-reported and implicit heterosexist attitudes. Bias favoring the heterosexual applicant was found in the no accountability condition but no differences were seen between the gay and nongay applicant in the accountability condition. Our study did not find support of the effect of training focusing on egalitarian norms on bias in ratings. Organizations should recognize the potential bias that targets gay applicants and consider methods to incorporate accountability in order to mitigate discriminatory hiring practices.
The main purpose of this chapter is to review the recent literature on male sexual fantasies. Topics that are analysed include sexual fantasies’ definitions and functions; methodological issues related to the disparate measures used across studies; the distinction between fantasies, interests/desires, and experiences; how general and unusual fantasies are developed; prevalence rates and the multidimensional content of fantasies, with highlights on gender, sexual orientation, and personality differences; and, finally, fantasies’ role in sexual offending. Overall, sexual fantasies are pervasive across the general population and, for the most part, they reflect evolutionary perspectives on psychology. As sexual fantasies can be used to increase sexual arousal in people that suffer from dysfunctions and to foster more positive romantic feelings towards a partner, they are important in clinical treatment and marital therapy settings. Moreover, they constitute a central component in the treatment of people convicted of sexual offenses that are at a high risk of recidivism. Therefore, it is essential to understand fantasies’ role in human sexuality and behaviour.
This article investigates the determinants of orgasm and sexual enjoyment in hookup and relationship sex among heterosexual college women and seeks to explain why relationship sex is better for women in terms of orgasm and sexual enjoyment. We use data from women respondents to a large online survey of undergraduates at 21 U.S. colleges and universities and from 85 in-depth interviews at two universities. We identify four general views of the sources of orgasm and sexual enjoyment—technically competent genital stimulation, partner-specific learning, commitment, and gender equality. We find that women have orgasms more often in relationships than in hookups. Regression analyses reveal that specific sexual practices, experience with a particular partner, and commitment all predict women’s orgasm and sexual enjoyment. The presence of more sexual practices conducive to women’s orgasm in relationship sex explains some of why orgasm is more common in relationships. Qualitative analysis suggests a double standard also contributes to why relationship sex is better for women: both men and women question women’s (but not men’s) entitlement to pleasure in hookups but believe strongly in women’s (as well as men’s) entitlement to pleasure in relationships. More attention is thus given to producing female orgasm in relationships.
The study of the sexual permissiveness of young adults has been popular topic in sociology and social psychology, especially since the empirical and theoretical work of Reiss. We extended previous research on premarital sexual standards by examining the degree of sexual permissiveness and the endorsement of the traditional double standard in a large sample of young adults in the United States (N = 1043). In addition, comparative data were collected from young adults in two other countries: Russia (N = 401) and Japan (N = 223). American subjects expressed more acceptance of premarital sex than did the Russian and Japanese subjects. Men were more sexually permissive than women in the U.S. and in Russia but not in Japan. The degree to which the double standard was endorsed also depended on culture and gender. Russian subjects were more likely to endorse the double standard than Japanese and American subjects. However, American men were most likely to endorse the traditional double standard concerning sex early in the dating relationship.
Although some research suggests that sexual orientation is a stable, early appearing trait, interviews with 89 young sexual-minority women revealed that a majority of women failed to report at least one of the following: childhood indicators of sexual orientation, stability in same-sex attractions, or awareness of same-sex attractions prior to the conscious process of sexual questioning. Lesbians were not more likely to report these experiences than bisexuals, although they reported significantly greater same-sex attractions. Consistent with studies on older cohorts, few young women reported exclusive same-sex attractions. These findings suggest that recollected consistency among prior and current behavior, ideation, and attractions are not systematically associated with sexual orientation among contemporary young women.
Based on the tenets of parental investment theory, the authors postulate that there was greater pressure to inhibit potentially maladaptive emotional, social, and sexual responses on prehistoric women than men in some contexts, resulting in enhanced inhibitory abilities in women in some domains. They reviewed studies whose researchers examined gender differences on social, behavioral, and cognitive tasks involving inhibition and found gender differences favoring female humans most consistent for social tasks (e.g., control of emotions), somewhat less pronounced for behavioral tasks (e.g., delay of gratification), and weak and inconsistent for cognitive tasks (e.g., conceptual tempo). This pattern was interrupted as being consistent with the position that gender differences in inhibition are relatively domain specific in nature, with women demonstrating greater abilities on tasks related to reproduction and childrearing, which is consistent with parental investment theory.
In a recent article, M. B.Oliver and J. S. Hyde (1993) reported the results of a set of meta-analyses of gender differences on a number of sexuality-related variables, including attitudes toward homosexuality. The small number of studies on this topic included in the review suggested that Oliver and Hyde's literature search strategy overlooked a number of studies. This article reports the results of a new meta-analysis using an expanded search strategy. In contrast to Oliver and Hyde's results, it was found that men held more negative attitudes toward homosexuality and, to a lesser extent, the civil rights of lesbians and gay men than did women. Effect sizes were moderated by subject population, with general adult samples showing no sex difference and other samples showing larger effect sizes. Effect sizes also varied as a function of the sex of the person rated, with larger sex differences for gay men than for lesbians. The implications of the results for the process of literature reviewing and for gender-based explanations of antigay prejudice are discussed.
This meta-analysis surveyed 177 usable sources that reported data on gender differences on 21 different measures of sexual attitudes and behaviors. The largest gender difference was in incidence of masturbation: Men had the greater incidence (d = .96). There was also a large gender difference in attitudes toward casual sex: Males had considerably more permissive attitudes (d = .81). There were no gender differences in attitudes toward homosexuality or in sexual satisfaction. Most other gender differences were in the small-to-moderate range. Gender differences narrowed from the 1960s to the 1980s for many variables. Chodorow's neoanalytic theory, sociobiology, social learning theory, social role theory, and script theory are discussed in relation to these findings.
This article describes the ways in which arousal and sexual urges in women and men reflect sex differences in the links between brain responses and genital changes. Boys are more sexually motivated from puberty on, whereas girls tend to seek emotional connections as a precursor to sexual contact. Although feelings and thoughts are important for both sexes, women are not always psychologically aroused by genital vasocongestion, while the opposite tends to pertain to men. Lack of subjective arousal commonly leads to loss of sexual interest in women: negative emotions in the current relationship are often involved. For men, the causes of sexual withdrawal are more variable, and childhood family dynamics are a frequent, but unconscious, factor. The role of the neuropeptides oxytocin and vasopressin, synthesised from oestrogen and testosterone respectively, is described as a biological underpinning for some observed gender differences. Oxytocin is released at orgasm by both women and men and promotes sexual pleasure and emotional bonding. Vasopressin, secreted during the male arousal phase, is linked to men's drive for sexual expression. This peptide may have the opposite effect on women and impair arousal and motivation due to the link between vasopressin release and aggression. Psychological treatment needs to explore the meaning of lack of sexual motivation for each person, and to address individual and couple issues. An integrated psychosexual model combining behavioural and psychodynamic approaches can alter feelings and relational patterns, and facilitate the return of sexual desire between partners in a committed relationship.
The results of the investigations providing data on the connection between measures of sexual arousal and positive psychological affect indicate a positive relationship whether measured directly (r=.212) or by a comparison of manipulation check data (r=.223). Female research participants demonstrate more negative emotional responses than men exposed to the same content (r=-.248), but the level of physiological arousal favors men by a much smaller magnitude (r=.134). The response to pornography on the basis of gender reflects not only a physiological difference in reaction but a psychological interpretation of that reaction as well.
Meta-analytic techniques were used to compare men's and women's attitudes toward homosexual persons, homosexual behaviors, and gay people's civil rights. As expected, size of sex differences varied across these categories. Men were more negative than women toward homosexual persons and homosexual behavior, but the sexes viewed gay civil rights similarly. Men's attitudes toward homosexual persons were particularly negative when the person being rated was a gay man or of unspecified sex. Women and men evaluated lesbians similarly. Ratings of homosexual persons and homosexual behavior were least likely to differ by subject sex for samples of nonprofessional adults. In addition, sex role attitude mediated sex differences in attitudes toward homosexuality. Biases in the research literature and areas that deserve further attention, such as the confounding of sample with measurement strategy and the tendency to study gay men or targets of unspecified sex, are discussed.
This paper addresses the links between subjective experiences and physiological responses during sexual activity, by exploring the neurobiology of the feelings and emotions that are associated with peripheral bodily changes. Although women and men differ in the brain structures and chemical pathways that govern sexuality, human sexual behaviour is part of interpersonal relationships and is cognitively mediated. Nevertheless comparisons can be made with other mammals whose subcortical systems are similar. Research into the neurophysiology of attachment, love and sexual bonding in rodents is reviewed, indicating that the neuropeptides oxytocin and vasopressin, which are secreted from the pituitary gland, have a vital role in partner preference and copulation. Laboratory investigations into hormonal release during human sexual activity show that oxytocin is necessary for subjective pleasure during arousal and orgasm in both sexes, while vasopressin is released only during male arousal. Vasopressin is suggested to have the opposite effect on female sexuality, and to impair women's interest in sexual contact. As oxytocin and vasopressin are regulated by oestrogen and testosterone respectively, and are sensitive to developmental hormonal experiences, they could provide a link between biology and culture. It is also postulated that neuropeptide secretion in the human brain could account for some of the observed gender differences, such as the impact of puberty; aggressive and protective feelings; and consistency of sexual interest in committed relationships. Psychological approaches for relationships where negative emotional states inhibit responding, are considered more appropriate than pharmacological interventions at this stage, in view of the uniquely human need to regulate relationships and sex through awareness of mood states and feelings.
A cross-temporal meta-analysis of 530 studies (N = 269,649) showed that young people's sexual attitudes and behavior changed substantially between 1943 and 1999, with the largest shifts occurring among girls and young women. Both young men and women became more sexually active over time, as measured by age at first intercourse (decreasing from 19 to 15 years among young women) and percentage sexually active (increasing from 13% to 47% among young women). Attitudes toward premarital intercourse became more lenient, with approval increasing from 12% to 73% among young women and from 40% to 79% among young men. Feelings of sexual guilt decreased. The correlation between attitudes and behaviors was stronger among young women. These data support theories positing that culture has a larger effect on women's sexuality. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
In psychobiological research on sexual orientation, the prenatal hormone theory has a central position. This article examines the hypothesis that prenatal estrogens contribute to the development of human sexual orientation. Several groups of women with a history of prenatal exposure to diethylstilbestrol (DES), a nonsteroidal synthetic estrogen, were compared with several samples of control women in the context of a comprehensive study of the psychiatric and psychologic effects of prenatal DES. Various aspects of sexual orientation were assessed by systematic interview. Consistently across samples, more DES-exposed women than controls were rated as bisexual or homosexual (scores 2–6 on Kinsey-format scales ranging from 0 to 6). The data are compatible with the hypothesis that prenatal estrogens may play a role in the development of human sexual orientation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
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Social constructionist theories and sociobiological perspectives have led to increased interest in gender differences in sexual behavior. This study involved a meta-analysis of gender differences in sexual arousal in response to sexual stimuli. Forty-six studies in which participants were presented with a sexual stimulus depicting males and females and in which participants responded using a self-report measure of arousal were compiled, and 62 independent effect sizes were aggregated. An overall effect size of d = .31 showed a small to moderate-sized gender difference in sexual arousal with men reporting more arousal than women across all studies. There was significant variation in the effect sizes, though, which was only partially explained by variables coded from the studies. It was found that the gender difference was slightly larger for studies using pornographic vs. erotic stimuli, was larger for studies where participants were tested in a private setting or small group compared to a large group, and was much larger for college age participants compared to those who were older than college age. Generally, the pattern of results provided more support for predictions from social influence theories compared to sociobiological theory.
In contemporary Western societies it is widely believed that there is a sexual double standard such that men are rewarded
for sexual activity, whereas women are derogated for sexual activity. This pervasive belief may result in a confirmation bias
such that people tend to notice information that confirms the double standard and fail to notice information that refutes
it. Two studies were conducted to test this hypothesis. In both studies, participants read vignettes about a target man or
a woman that contained an equal number of positive and negative comments regarding the target's sexuality. Participants recalled
more information consistent with the double standard than inconsistent with it.
Although the attraction and selection of mates are central to human reproduction, the retention of acquired mates is often necessary to actualize the promise of reproductive effort. Three empirical studies used act frequency methods to identify, assess the reported performance frequencies of, and evaluate the perceived effectiveness of 19 tactics and 104 acts of human mate guarding and retention. In Study 1 (N = 105), a hierarchical taxonomy of tactics was developed from a pool of nominated acts. We then assessed the reported performance frequencies of 19 retention tactics and 104 acts and tested three hypotheses derived from evolutionary models in an undergraduate sample (N = 102). Study 2 (N = 46) provided an independent test of these hypotheses by assessing the perceived effectiveness of each tactic. Discussion draws implications for sexual poaching, susceptibility to pair-bond defection, and the power of act frequency methods for preserving the proximate specificity and systemic complexity inherent in human mating processes.
Background:
Studies of rats have shown that mothers who are subjected to stress during pregnancy are more likely than mothers who are not stressed during pregnancy to have male offspring who exhibit female-typical sexual receptivity postures (lordosis) in the presence of other males following the onset of puberty. More recent animal experiments have indicated that prenatal exposure to alcohol affects the sexual preferences of male offspring in ways that are similar to the effects of prenatal stress. Research with human subjects have thus far yielded inconsistent findings regarding the effects of prenatal stress on male sexual orientation, and no research has yet addressed the possible involvement of prenatal exposure to alcohol or other widely used recreational drugs, such as nicotine.
Purpose:
The present study was undertaken to determine if prenatal stress could be one of the causes of variations in sexual orientation in humans, both singularly and in conjunction with prenatal exposure to alcohol and nicotine.
Methods:
Over 7500 offspring and their mothers provided information regarding the offspring's sexual orientation and the mother's stressful experiences and use of alcohol and nicotine during pregnancy.
Results:
Findings indicate that prenatal stress has a modest but significant effect on the sexual orientation of male offspring, particularly when the stress occurred during the first trimester of pregnancy. Regarding prenatal exposure to alcohol, no evidence was found to suggest that it impacted offspring sexual orientation of either males or females. Prenatal nicotine exposure, however, appears to significantly increase the probability of lesbianism among female offspring, especially if the exposure occurred in the first trimester along with prenatal stress in the second trimester.
Conclusion:
The present study is consistent with animal models suggesting that prenatal stress disrupts the typical sex hormonal milieu within which male fetal brains are sexed, thereby feminizing/demasculinizing the male's sexual orientation. However, little support was found for similar effects of prenatal alcohol exposure. In the case of prenatal nicotine, this study is the first to suggest that this drug has masculinizing/defeminizing effects on the sexual orientation of female offspring.
Psychological is currently in conceptual disarray, characterised by unconnected mini-theories and isolated empirical findings. We lack a theory of the functional properties of the human mind that could provide the needed integration--a theory about what the mechanisms of mind are "designed" to do. Evolutionary psychology provides the conceptual tools for emerging from this fragmented state. In this target article, I outline the fundamental premises of evolutionary psychology; illustrate the application of evolutionary psychology to domains such as reasoning, social exchange, language, aggression, jealousy, sex, and status; and then consider the implications of evolutionary psychology for the key branches of social, personality, developmental, and cognitive psychology and suggest ways in which these disciplinary boundaries can be transcended. I conclude by looking at the emergence of evolutionary psychology as our field matures into the 21st century.
In 1993 Oliver and Hyde conducted a meta-analysis on gender differences in sexuality. The current study updated that analysis with current research and methods. Evolutionary psychology, cognitive social learning theory, social structural theory, and the gender similarities hypothesis provided predictions about gender differences in sexuality. We analyzed gender differences in 30 reported sexual behaviors and attitudes for 834 individual samples uncovered in literature searches and 7 large national data sets. In support of evolutionary psychology, results from both the individual studies and the large data sets indicated that men reported slightly more sexual experience and more permissive attitudes than women for most of the variables. However, as predicted by the gender similarities hypothesis, most gender differences in sexual attitudes and behaviors were small. Exceptions were masturbation incidence, pornography use, casual sex, and attitudes toward casual sex, which all yielded medium effect sizes in which male participants reported more sexual behavior or permissive attitudes than female participants. Most effect sizes reported in the current study were comparable to those reported in Oliver and Hyde's study. In support of cognitive social learning theory, year of publication moderated the magnitude of effect sizes, with gender differences for some aspects of sexuality increasing over time and others decreasing. As predicted by social structural theory, nations and ethnic groups with greater gender equity had smaller gender differences for some reported sexual behaviors than nations and ethnic groups with less gender equity. Gender differences decreased with age of the sample for some sexual behaviors and attitudes.
30 married and 30 single nonorgasmic women (mean age 29 yrs) participated in a clinical outcome study of sexual dysfunction. Ss were randomly divided into 3 groups: videotape modeling, written instructions, and waiting-list control. Both treatment procedures involved a 6-wk, self-administered masturbation-training program. After the pretest interview, treatment was carried out without direct contact with the experimenter. Of the Ss receiving treatment, 60% became orgasmic by the end of the treatment period. Four additional married Ss became orgasmic by the time of the 1-yr follow-up. For those Ss who failed to transfer orgasmic capacity to coital intercourse, the role of partner dysfunction is discussed. Although no significant differences were found between the videotaped modeling condition and the written instructions group, the overall effectiveness of the treatment compares favorably with other treatment programs. With respect to cost–benefit assessment, however, the self-administered treatment is clearly superior. (22 ref)
A collection of foundational texts on the nature and behavioral consequences of sex differences in the brain, allowing readers to follow the development of a rapidly growing but contentious field and giving them the tools to analyze emerging scientific findings from many perspectives.
This collection of foundational papers on sex differences in the brain traces the development of a much-invoked, fast-growing young field at the intersection of brain and behavior. The reader is introduced to the meaning and nature of sexual dimorphisms, the mechanisms and consequences of steroid hormone action, and the impact of the field on interpretations of sexuality and gender.
Building on each other in point-counterpoint fashion, the papers tell a fascinating story of an emerging science working out its core assumptions. Experimental and theoretical papers, woven together by editor's introductions, open a window onto knowledge in the making and a vigorous debate between reductionist and pluralist interpreters.
Five major sections include papers on conceptual and methodological background, central nervous system dimorphisms, mechanisms for creating dimorphisms, dimorphisms and cognition, and dimorphisms and identity. Each section builds from basic concepts to early experiments, from experimental models to humans, and from molecules to mind. Papers by such leading scholars as Arthur Arnold, Frank Beach, Anne Fausto-Sterling, Patricia Goldman-Rakic, Doreen Kimura, Simon LeVay, Bruce McEwen, Michael Merzenich, Bertram O'Malley, Geoffrey Raisman, and Dick Swaab, illustrate a rich blend of perspectives, approaches, methods, and findings.
Sex and the Brain will show students how a scientific paper can be analyzed from many perspectives, and supply them with critical tools for judging a rapidly emerging science in a contentious area.
In spite of a marked liberalization in adult attitudes toward sexuality over the past thirty years, there has been little change in cultural attitudes toward childhood sexuality. An analysis of fifteen psychiatric textbooks in current use reflect this bias as these books continue to associate childhood sexuality with various pathologies. Overall, the most positive view is provided by child psychiatric textbooks, those authored by women and those in the area of child psychiatry. The author illustrates these contentions through a statistical analysis and quotes, from various textbooks. She discusses how the negative bias toward childhood sexuality influences other aspects of residency training.
Sexual dysfunction, primarily low libido, is common among women. The prevalence appears to increase with age from the mid-20s and acutely following ovariectomy. There are multiple influences on libido and frequency and enjoyment of sexual activity in women. However, androgens appear to be important determinants of female sexual desire and low circulating levels are associated with diminished libido. The decline in physiological circulating androgen levels in women commences in the mid-20s, and androgen levels continue to fall in a manner unrelated to the menopause. Hence androgen insufficiency should be considered as a possible cause of low libido in premenopausal as well as postmenopausal women, and particularly in women who have experienced an iatrogenic menopause. We, and others, have demonstrated improvements in sexuality and well-being in postmenopausal women with testosterone therapy, over and above the effects of postmenopausal estrogen replacement given alone. Whether these clinical effects of testosterone therapy are physiological or pharmacological is not known.
Sexual arousal encompasses activation of physiological systems that coordinate sexual function in both sexes and can be divided into central arousal, peripheral non-genital arousal, and genital arousal. Genital arousal leads to erection in men and to vaginal lubrication and clitoral/vulvar (vestibular bulb) congestion in women. Persisting biases in the understanding of the pathophysiology of sexual arousal are exemplified by the current differences in definitions. In men, sexual arousal disorders are identified with erectile disorders. In women, a more sophisticated set of definitions is described. It includes the subjective arousal disorder, the genital arousal disorder, the mixed arousal disorder, and the persistent sexual arousal disorder. Painful arousal, although not officially included in current nosology, should be considered. A preliminary critical consideration of similarities and differences in the definitions of arousal disorders, in the physiology of sexual arousal, in the causes of arousal disorders, and the influence of arousal disorders on satisfaction with the partner and happiness will be presented. In contrast to popular opinion, women's arousal disorders influence their physical (OR = 7.04 (4.71–10.53)) more than their emotional satisfaction (OR = 4.28 (2.96–6.20)). Furthermore such disorders are reported to have a greater effect on women's physical satisfaction (OR = 7.04 (4.71–10.53)) than erectile dysfunction has on men's physical satisfaction (OR = 4.38 (2.46–7.82)). More research and clinical investigation in needed to increase clinicians’ understanding of the similarities and differences between male and female sexual physiology and pathophysiology, promote parallel thinking in sexual medicine, and facilitate clinical diagnoses of arousal disorders.
This paper develops biosocial models of adolescent sexuality that combine traditional sociological models with models derived from a biological theory of hormone effects. Data are presented from a representative sample of 102 males and 99 females, drawn from grades 8, 9, and 10 in public schools in a southern U.S. city, and ranging in age from 13 to 16 years old. Although the sociological models alone look quite satisfactory, the combined models are stronger and give a different picture of the determinants of adolescent sexuality. The combined models show not only additive contributions of sociological and biological variables, but interactions between sociological and hormonal variables. Some sociological relationships are shown to be spurious. In other cases, sociological predictors are shown to be endogenous to biological predictors.
A nearly universal stereotype holds that men are driven by their sexual impulses or drives while women rarely feel desire. This paper will consider the reported differences in sexual desire between men and women and the biological and social considerations fueling these differences. The effect of menstruation, gestation and lactation on female sexual desire will be briefly reviewed as well as the influence of estrogens and androgens on sexual drive. The suggestion will be made that, while differences in sexual drive and its behavioral expressions certainly exist, these gender differences may be narrowing as women gain political, social, economic and reproductive freedom. Finally, it will be argued that these differences may be precisely what makes sex interesting and meaningful and more than the simple release of biological tension.
One might expect lesbian and bisexual women to form a strong alliance because of their common marginalization in a heterosexist and sexist society. But previous research has shown that tension exists between lesbian and bisexual women and that some segments of the lesbian community consider bisexuality a threat to lesbian politics. In this article I report data on beliefs about bisexual women gathered from 346 self‐identified lesbians via self‐administered questionnaires and discuss the relationship between lesbian and bisexual women as a special case of intergroup relations. Most lesbian respondents believed that bisexual identity is more likely than lesbian identity to be a phase or a way of denying one's true sexuality and that bisexual women are less personally and politically loyal and more willing and able to pass as heterosexual than are lesbians. Lesbians’ beliefs about bisexual women were uncorrelated with demographics, but lesbians who reported having some heterosexual feelings were less inclined to hold derogatory beliefs about bisexual women than were lesbians whose feelings were exclusively homosexual. On the basis of intergroup relations theory, I argue that lesbian‐bisexual relations are in the “amicable consensus” stage of political development (Jackman & Senter, 1983) and that lesbians’ attitudes are likely to change as the nascent bisexual political movement grows in strength. Methodological issues pertaining to the measurement of lesbians’ attitudes toward sexuality, including the reactivity of these attitudes to various measurement strategies, are discussed.
A nonclinical population of 100 married women was stratified into 2 equivalently matched groups, mothers and nonmothers. A sex diary was used to compare the 2 groups on frequency of sexual activity, number of orgasms, sexual desire, and sexual arousal. In addition, comparative assessments were made between the 2 groups on 6 measures: Index of Marital Satisfaction, Hurlbert Index of Sexual Assertiveness, Sexual Opinion Survey, Index of Sexual Satisfaction, Hurlbert Index of Sexual Desire, and Crowne-Marlowe Social Desirability Scale. Compared to nonmothers, mothers had a significantly lower frequency of sexual activity, greater negative attitudes toward sex, and a stronger tendency to want to present themselves in a favorable light. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The origins of sex differences in human behavior can lie mainly in evolved dispositions that differ by sex or mainly in the differing placement of women and men in the social structure. The present article contrasts these 2 origin theories of sex differences and illustrates the explanatory power of each to account for the overall differences between the mate selection preferences of men and women. Although this research area often has been interpreted as providing evidence for evolved dispositions, a reanalysis of D. M. Buss's (see record
1989-32627-001) study of sex differences in the attributes valued in potential mates in 37 cultures yielded cross-cultural variation that supports the social structural account of sex differences in mate preferences. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
The genders are different because their brains are different. The brain is differently constructed in men and in women; it processes information in a different way, which results in different perceptions, priorities and behaviour. Men and women are equal only in their common membership to the same species, humankind.
The influence of testosterone on the prenatal brain is producing differences in personalities and social behaviours of this humankind.
The extraordinary journey from the sexual differentiation from the prenatal brain to the gender differences inherent in kindergarten play styles, classroom abilities and adult attitudes towards love, sex and marriage and social life in general have been analysed within the last 20 years.
Adolescence brings new pressures on girls to adopt traditional genderroles and to become heterosexual adults in ways defined as appropriate by their peer group, their family, and the culture more broadly. We first review descriptive data on adolescent girls' early experiences with heterosexuality, including first intercourse and the experience of desire. Within a theoretical framework of cognitive social learning theory, we examine messages conveyed to girls by peers, parents, the mass media, and the schools. All four sources convey antigay attitudes while making homosexuality invisible; they also encourage traditional gender roles, an important component of which is heterosexuality.
In this study, I examine a model through which I attempt to identify how peers mediate media influences on adolescent sexuality. The data for this paper came from a paper-and-pencil survey involving 213 late adolescents who were between the ages of 18 and 19. The findings show that (a) adolescents attend to sex-related media and believe that their peers attend to similar media, (b) adolescents make estimates of possible media influences on their friends, (c) perceptions of media influence on peer norms regarding sexual issues are positively related to adolescents’ own sexual permissiveness, and (d) the permissive sexual attitudes of adolescents predict the possibility for adolescents to engage in sexual activities.
The sexual initiating behavior of male and female cynomolgus monkeys (Macaca fascicularis) observed during standard laboratory tests is reviewed and compared with that of rhesus monkeys (M. mulatta) observed under identical conditions. Species differences in sexual behavior are related here to differences in habitat,
sexual dimorphism, and the dominance gradient between the sexes. Compared with rhesus monkeys, cynomolgus monkeys appear to
be more arboreal, less sexually dimorphic, and have a smaller dominance gradient between the sexes. They exhibit a facultative
single-mount copulatory pattern rather than the serial mount pattern of the rhesus monkey. Female cynomolgus monkeys are less
dominated than rhesus females by their male partners. Direct aggression between mates is more frequent and redirected aggression
occurs less often than in rhesus monkeys. These behavioral differences affect the interpretation of changes in initiation
rates that occur (1) during the menstrual cycle, (2) when females are ovariectomized and given hormone replacement treatments,
and (3) when males are castrated and treated with androgens. We conclude that estradiol in the female and testosterone in
the male increase the sexual motivation of both the treated and the untreated partner. Valid interpretations of changes in
initiation rates depend on accurate and exclusive definitions of behavior and on a consideration of the behavioral context
in which they are made.
Past research has revealed associations between television viewing and sexual attitudes and behaviors. We examined a burgeoning
new television genre, reality dating programs (RDPs). Undergraduate students (ages 18–24) reported their overall television
viewing, their RDP viewing, and their involvement with RDPs (watching in order to learn and watching in order to be entertained).
They also completed measures of attitudes toward sex, dating, and relationships, and answered questions about sexual behavior.
Most participants were occasional or frequent viewers of at least one RDP. Men reported using RDPs for learning more than
did women; there was no gender difference in use of RDPs for entertainment. Total amount of RDP viewing was positively correlated,
for both men and women, with adversarial sexual beliefs, endorsement of a sexual double standard, and the beliefs that men
are sex-driven, that appearance is important in dating, and that dating is a game. In all cases, however, these relationships
were partially or totally mediated through viewer involvement. Men and women who watched RDPs tended to be less sexually experienced;
there were few other correlations with sexual behaviors.
A content analysis was conducted to examine sexual consequences on teen programming. The sample consisted of prime-time television dramas that featured characters between the ages of 12 and 22 years. Two major goals guided the study. First, the types of sexual consequences in teen programming were investigated. Results showed that emotional and social consequences far outnumbered physical consequences. Second, the portrayal of the sexual double standard was investigated. Negative consequences were more common in scenes in which female characters initiated sexual activities than in scenes in which male characters initiated sexual activities. Implications for future content analyses and media-effects research are discussed.
The Social Organization of Sexuality reports the complete results of the nation's most comprehensive representative survey of sexual practices in the general adult population of the United States. This highly detailed portrait of sex in America and its social context and implications has established a new and original scientific orientation to the study of sexual behavior. "The most comprehensive U.S. sex survey ever." âUSA Today "The findings from this survey, the first in decades to provide detailed insights about the sexual behavior of a representative sample of Americans, will have a profound impact on how policy makers tackle a number of pressing health problems." âAlison Bass, The Boston Globe "A fat, sophisticated, and sperm-freezingly serious volume. . . . This book is not in the business of giving us a good time. It is in the business of asking three thousand four hundred and thirty-two other people whether they had a good time, and exactly what they did to make it so good." âAnthony Lane, The New Yorker New York Times Book Review Notable Book of the Year
This study investigated the relationships between self-rated attractiveness and self-reported sexual response changes (over the past decade) and current sexual satisfaction in 307 heterosexual, midlife women. Results indicated that regardless of the woman's specific age, she was more likely to consider herself more attractive when she was 10 years younger and her self-perceived attractiveness did not significantly differ based on her menopausal status. The more a woman perceived herself as less attractive than before, the more likely she was to report a decline in sexual desire or frequency of sexual activity. The more she perceived herself as attractive, the more likely she was to experience an increase in sexual desire, orgasm, enjoyment, or frequency of sexual activity. There were no significant statistical relationships between a woman's perception of her own attractiveness as she aged and her current sexual satisfaction.