SEXUAL VARIATIONS AND DISORDERS CHAPTER 8 SEXUAL VARIATIONS AND DISORDERS

SEXUAL BEHAVIOR Changing Views of Sexual Behavior Change over time Sometimes permissive, at other times restrictive Views toward sexual preferences vary across cultures and over time Sigmund Freud – People innately sexual; sexual repression has negative effects. Havelock Ellis – Emphasized psychological basis of sexual problems

SURVEYS OF SEXUAL BEHAVIOR

HOMOSEXUALITY Homosexual behavior Homosexuals Bisexual behavior Sexual behavior with member’s of one’s own sex Homosexuals Individuals who prefer to engage in sexual activity with members of their own sex over an extended period of time Bisexual behavior Preferred partners are sometime same sex, sometimes opposite sex Origins of sexual orientation Multiple determinants, including psychosocial and biological factors

HOMOSEXUAL EXPERIENCES OF MEN AND WOMEN Description Men Women Self-identified as homosexual or bisexual 2.8 % 1.4% Had sex with person of same sex at least once since puberty 5.3% 3.5% Felt desire for sex with person of same sex 7.7% 7.5% Total reporting some same-sex desires or experiences 10.1% 8.6%

SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION A persistent impairment of sexual interest or response Types Sexual desire – Low desire or related to physical conditions Sexual arousal Male - Erectile dysfunction Female – Hypoactive sexual desire Orgasm Male – Premature or retarded ejaculation Female – Lack of orgasm

REMOTE AND IMMEDIATE STRESSORS CONTRIBUTING TO SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION Performance anxiety Sexual or life-style problems Inappropriate concerns and attitudes learned early in life Relationship stress

GENDER IDENTITY DISORDER Individual sexual self-concept- Feeling of being male or female Differs from sexual preference Gender identity problems in childhood Prior to puberty, children express distress at their gender and intense desire to be the opposite sex Gender identity disorder in adults Transsexualism Intense desire to change sexual identity and anatomical status Nontranssexual gender identity disorder Uncomfortable with their sex, frequently cross-dress, no desire to change anatomy

THE PARAPHILIAS Deviant sexual attraction Fetishism - Objects Transvestic fetishism – Cross-dressing Sexual sadism – Orgasm through inflicting pain Sexual masochism – Orgasm through receiving pain or humiliation Voyeurism – Gratification by watching others Exhibitionism – Arousal from exposure of genitals in public setting Pedophilia – Children are main source of sexual desire

PARAPHILIAS – CAUSES AND TREATMENT Little research into causes but variety of factors probable: Psychodynamic Behavioral Cognitive Interactional Treatment Hormone treatment Behavioral and cognitive-behavioral therapy sometimes effective Conventional psychotherapy of little value

SEXUAL VICTIMIZATION Types Sexual victimizers Effect on victims Sexual assaults like rape and child sexual abuse Sexual victimizers Most have Axis I and II diagnoses Resistant to treatment, but cognitive-behavioral therapy is promising Effect on victims At least 500,000 victims a year Victims may suffer long-lasting anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder, and depression Many suffer from low self-esteem Often leads to hypervigilance for cues associated with victimization

TREATMENT OF SEXUAL DYSFUNCIONS Masters and Johnson Focus on couples and verbal and nonverbal communication Sensate focus – Sexual-retraining techniques Cognitive-Behavioral Individual or couples Relaxation Modeling Systematic desensitization Use of fantasy Psychodynamic For individuals whose symptoms are rooted in confect Couples or individual Sometimes combined with sex therapy