1 / 50

Studying Human Sexuality

2. Studying Human Sexuality. Sex, Advice Columnists, and Pop Psychology. The sex information/advice genre seeks to Inform : transmit information that is factual and accurate Entertain : attract audiences through hosts’ personalities, as well as high-interest or bizarre material

shira
Download Presentation

Studying Human Sexuality

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript


  1. 2 Studying Human Sexuality

  2. Sex, Advice Columnists, and Pop Psychology • The sex information/advice genre seeks to • Inform: transmit information that is factual and accurate • Entertain: attract audiences through hosts’ personalities, as well as high-interest or bizarre material • Focuses on “how-to” or morality • Uses the trappings of social science and psychiatry, without their substance.

  3. Use and Abuse of Statistics • Media frequently quotes or summarizes social science research, but in an oversimplified or distorted manner: • Sensationalizes findings • Overgeneralizes results of research • Promotes statistics that agree with widely-held preconceptions

  4. Thinking Critically about Sex • Basic to scientific studies is a commitment to objectivity • The observation of things as they exist in reality as opposed to researchers’ feelings or beliefs about them • Not easy to achieve objectivity in the study of sexuality • Sexuality can bring out powerful emotions and moral ambivalence • Sex is experienced subjectively

  5. Value Judgments vs. Objectivity • Objectivity about sex is challenging for us • Our culture has traditionally viewed sexuality in moral terms • We tend to make value judgmentsabout sex, i.e. evaluations based on moral or ethical standards

  6. Value Judgments vs. Objectivity • In sex research, value judgments can be blinders to understanding • Do not tell us what motivates people • Do not tell us how frequently people behave in a given way • Do not tell us how people feel • Only tell us how we ourselves feel

  7. Value Judgments vs. Objectivity • Value judgments imply how a person ought to behave • Objective statements describe how people actually behave • Value judgments cannot be empirically evaluated • Objective statements can be empirically evaluated

  8. Opinions, Biases, and Stereotypes • Opinions, biases, and stereotypes also interfere with the pursuit of knowledge • Opinions are unsubstantiated beliefs or conclusions according to an individual’s personal thoughts • Biases are personal leanings or inclinations • Stereotypes are sets of overgeneralized beliefs about an individual, a group, an idea, etc.

  9. Opinions, Biases, and Stereotypes • Sexual stereotyping is often used to justify discrimination • Targets are usually members of subordinate social groups, such as • Women • Poor people • African Americans, Latino/as, Asian Americans • Gay men, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people

  10. Stereotypes • Stereotypes structure knowledge. • They are a type of schema that organizes our thought process, affecting: • What we see • What we notice • What we remember • How we explain things

  11. Confusing Attitudes and Behavior • Attitude: a predisposition a person has to act, think, or feel in certain ways • Behavior: the way a person acts • Frequent discrepancies exist between the two, on individual and cultural levels • Example: someone who disapproves of casual sex, yet engages in it

  12. Egocentrism and Ethnocentrism • Fallacy: an error in reasoning that affects our understanding of a subject • Egocentric fallacy: the belief that our own personal experience & values are generally held by others • Ethnocentric fallacy: the belief that one’s own ethnic group, nation, or culture’s values and customs are innately superior to others’

  13. Sex Research Methods • Scientific Method: the method by which a hypothesis is formed from impartially gathered data and tested empirically. • Induction: drawing a general conclusion from specific facts • Seeks to describe the world rather than evaluate or judge it

  14. Research Concerns • Ethical • Concerns center on use of human beings as subjects of research • Methodological • Concerns center on information-gathering techniques and accuracy • A representative sample of people is necessary to draw accurate conclusions

  15. Ethical Issues • Informed consent • Full disclosure of purpose, risk, benefits • Protection from harm • Includes anonymity • Use of deception • Some experiments involve deceiving subjects • Researcher debriefs subject afterwards to reveal deception

  16. Sampling • Sample: a portion of a larger group of people observed or studied • Useful samples are: • Random • Representative • Reflect the larger group in terms of age, sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, etc. • An unrepresentative sample is called a “biased sample.”

  17. Limitations of Samples • Most samples in sex research are limited • They depend on volunteers or clients • Research takes place at universities or colleges with student volunteers • Students not representative of general population • Some ethnic groups are underrepresented • It is difficult to recruit homosexual and bisexual subjects who have not “come out”

  18. Clinical Research • Clinical Research: • An in-depth examination of an individual or group that comes to a specialist for assistance with disorders and problems • Limited by an emphasis on pathological (unhealthy or diseased) behavior • Dependent on cultural definitions of what is unhealthy

  19. Survey Research • Uses questionnaires or interviews to gather information. • Limitations: • People do not report their own sexual behavior accurately • Interviewers may allow their preconceptions to influence questioning, which biases responses • Some respondents may not want to reveal “embarrassing” sexual information in a face-to-face interview

  20. Survey Research • Limitations (continued): • Interviewer’s gender can influence disclosure • Accuracy of subjects’ memory fades as time passes • Difficult for subjects to accurately estimate factors such as how long sexual encounters last • New techniques: • Computer-based interviews • Internet questionnaires

  21. Observational Research • The researcher unobtrusively observes and makes notes about people’s behavior • Serious ethical issues in observing sexual behavior without subjects’ knowledge or consent • Known observation generally affects behavior

  22. Participant Observation • The researcher participates in the behaviors which she or he is studying • Used frequently by anthropologists • In sex research, more controversial • Snyder studied prostitution by becoming a customer • Humphreys studied anonymous sex by men in public bathrooms by becoming a lookout

  23. Experimental Research • The systematic manipulation of individuals or the environment to learn the effect of such manipulation on behavior • Can control experiments by using variables • Independent variables: factors that can be manipulated and changed by the experimenter • Dependent variables: factors that are likely to be affected by changes in the independent variable

  24. Experimental Research • Correlational studies: • Measure two or more naturally occurring variables to determine their relationship to each other • Can’t determine which variable causes which • Experimental studies • Manipulate the independent variables so researchers can determine which variables cause other variables to change

  25. The Sex Researchers • In 19th century, Western sexuality began to be studied from a scientific framework • Fascinated with “pathologies” of sex: fetishism, sadism, masturbation, homosexuality • Since that time, a liberalizing trend in our thinking about sexuality • 20th century researchers viewed sexuality more positively

  26. The Sex Researchers • Three themes evident in later 20th century sex researchers’ work: • Belief that sexual expression is essential to an individual’s well being • Desire to broaden the range of legitimate sexual activity, including homosexuality • Belief that female sexuality is equal of male sexuality

  27. Richard von Krafft-Ebing(1840-1902) • Psychopathia Sexualis (1886): • A collection of the case histories of fetishists, sadists, masochists, and homosexuals • Attributed variations in Victorian sexuality to “hereditary taint,” “moral degeneracy,” and masturbation • Brought public attention to sexual behaviors that had never been documented

  28. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) • Freud’s writings on sexuality have dramatically impacted Western ideas • Believed that sexuality begins at birth, with five-stage development: • Oral stage (birth to 1 year) • Anal stage (age 1-3) • Phallic stage (age 3-5) • Latency stage (age 6-puberty) • Genital stage (puberty onward)

  29. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) • Phallic stage (age 3-5) • Boy develops sexual desires for mother and fears father: Oedipal Complex • Fears his father will cut off his penis: castration anxiety • Girl develops sexual desire for father and fears mother: Electra Complex • Girl discovers she doesn’t have a penis: penis envy • Girls never acquire the “lost penis” and therefore fail to develop an independent character like that of boys • By age 6, both boys and girls resolve their complexes by relinquishing their desires for their parents and identifying with their same-sex parent

  30. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) • Freud was pioneering in commitment to science and explorations of the unconscious • His influence among American sex researchers has dwindled • Criticized for his lack of empiricism and inadequate description of female development • In the field of sex research, his work is now primarily of historical interest

  31. Havelock Ellis (1859-1939) • Set himself against Victorian repression of sexuality • One of the first modern affirmers of sexuality • Studies in the Psychology of Sex (1897-1910) • Pointed out the relativity of sexual values • Appealed to case studies as well as studies in animal behavior, anthropology, and history • Challenged view that masturbation was abnormal • Documented existence of women’s sexual desires • Reevaluated homosexuality as a congenital condition

  32. Alfred Kinsey (1894-1956) • “The Kinsey Reports” • Sexual Behavior in the Human Male (1948) • Sexual Behavior in the Human Female (1953) • Statistical documentation of American sexual behavior • Showed a significant discrepancy between public standards and actual standards of sexual behavior

  33. Alfred Kinsey (1894-1956) • Sexual Diversity & Variation • Extraordinary diversity in behaviors of subjects • Reevaluation of Masturbation • Deemed it important for women, harmless, and pleasurable

  34. Kinsey’s Scale from 0 to 6

  35. Alfred Kinsey (1894-1956) • Same-Sex Behavior • Many subjects (e.g. 50% of men) had had sexual experiences with members of the same-sex • Labels of “heterosexual” and “homosexual” are inadequate ways of understanding sexual behavior • Devised the “Kinsey Scale,” a continuum to chart the proportion of an individual’s sexual behaviors with same- or other-sex individuals

  36. Alfred Kinsey (1894-1956) • Rejection of Normal/Abnormal Dichotomy • Sexual differences are a matter of degree, not kind. • Became a leading advocate of the toleration of sexual differences • Criticisms of Kinsey: • Statistical methodology: unrepresentative sampling • Emphasis on quantification of sexual behavior • Rejection of the psychological dimension (reducing behavior to genital activity)

  37. Masters & Johnson • Human Sexual Response (1966) • Detailed the sexual response cycles of hundreds of male and female research subjects • Combined clinical observation with direct measurement of genital arousal using electronic devices • Outcomes: • Male and female sexual responses are very similar • Women achieve orgasm primarily via clitoral stimulation • Legitimized female masturbation

  38. Masters & Johnson • Human Sexual Inadequacy (1970) • Argued that sexual problems were not the result of neuroses or personality disorders • Rather, lack of information, poor communication, or relationship conflict contributed • Used behavioral therapy to treat sexual problems • Achieved astounding increase in rate of successful treatment

  39. Contemporary Research Studies • Several large-scale sexuality related studies have recently been conducted • The National Health and Social Life Survey (1994) • The Youth Risk Behavior Survey (biannual) • The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (annual) • The National Survey of Family Growth (periodic) • College Alcohol Study (every few years) • Community Intervention Trial for Youth Project

  40. The National Health & Social Life Survey (1994) • Findings: • Americans are largely monogamous • On average, Americans have sex about once a week • Adultery is the exception, not the rule • Most Americans are fairly “traditional” in the bedroom • Vaginal intercourse ranked as favorite activity

  41. The National Health & Social Life Survey (1994) • Homosexuality less prevalent than originally believed • Orgasms appear to be the rule for men and the exception for women • Married women more likely to report they “usually” or “always” have orgasms • Forced sex and the misperception of it remain critical problems • 3% of adult Americans claim never to have had sex

  42. The Youth Risk Behavior Survey • Measures health risk behaviors among high school students, including • Sexual behaviors that contribute to unintended pregnancy, STDs, & HIV • 2001 findings include: • 46% report having had sexual intercourse • 58% of those students used a condom during their last sexual intercourse • 26% of sexually active students report using alcohol or drugs during most recent sexual experience • Can show correlations between risk behaviors among students

  43. The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System • An annualstate-based survey of adults, age 18-49, sponsored by the CDC • Gathers information on health behaviors including those which prevent or transmit HIV • Some findings: • Half of those who used condoms at last intercourse used them to prevent disease & pregnancy, while only 1 in 10 used a condom only to prevent disease • Less than 1 in 10 believed that their chances of acquiring HIV were medium to high.

  44. The National Survey of Family Growth • Conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) • Collects data related to marriage, divorce, contraception, infertility, and health of women & infants • Some findings: • 1 in 4 women who cohabitates with a man does not expect to marry him • Cohabitating women’s marriage expectations are correlated to the social and economic status of the man

  45. College Alcohol Study • Conducted by Harvard School of Public Health • Examines college alcohol abuse & other high-risk behaviors including unsafe sex • Some findings: • 71% of respondents reported being sexually experienced • Less than one-half reported always using a condom, and 24% reported never using condoms • Younger students who lived on campus were more likely to report consistent condom use • Men reporting more sex partners tended to report less consistent condom use

  46. Community Intervention Trial for Youth Project • Funded bythe CDC • A multi-site evaluation of a comprehensive community-level HIV prevention intervention in 13 urban areas • Surveyed men age 15-25 who reported sexual experience with a male in the past year • One-fifth reported being high on drugs or alcohol during their most recent sexual encounter • One-quarter with a main sex partner reported anal intercourse without condom use

  47. Emerging Research Perspectives • Feminist Scholarship • Focuses on gender issues, distribution of power in sexual relationships • Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Research • Focuses on the psychological and social experience of being transgender and/or other than heterosexual

  48. Ethnicity and Sexuality • Researchers have begun to recognize the significance of ethnicity in sexuality • Differences among ethnic groups • Differences within ethnic groups • Related factors: socioeconomic status, environment, methodology, researcher’s stereotypes

  49. Ethnicity and Sexuality • Sexual stereotyping by Euro-Americans has distorted public & scientific understanding of the sexuality of minority racial groups • Examples of stereotypes: • African-Americans as hypersexual • Latina women as permissive and Latino men as macho • Asian sexuality as exotic

  50. Ethnicity and Sexuality • Some important factors in studying sexuality and ethnicity: • African-Americans: the role of socioeconomic status in sexual values and behaviors • Latino/as: the diversity of ethnic subgroups, the degree of acculturation into American culture • Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders: the diversity of cultures, the role of familial relationships

More Related