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The COVID-19 pandemic has had far-reaching impacts on many aspects of life, including sexual behaviours and preferences. In this longitudinal study, the authors used attachment theory to investigate changes in [...]

Long-lasting internal arousal states motivate and pattern ongoing behaviour, enabling the temporary emergence of innate behavioural programs that serve the needs of an animal, such as fighting, feeding, and mating. However, how internal states shape sensory processing or behaviour remains unclear. In Drosophila, male flies perform a lengthy and elaborate courtship ritual that is triggered by the activation of sexually dimorphic P1 neurons.sup.1-5, during which they faithfully follow and sing to a female.sup.6,7. Here, by recording from males as they court a virtual 'female', we gain insight into how the salience of visual cues is transformed by a male's internal arousal state to give rise to persistent courtship pursuit. The gain of LC10a visual projection neurons is selectively increased during courtship, enhancing their sensitivity to moving targets. A concise network model indicates that visual signalling through the LC10a circuit, once amplified by P1-mediated arousal, almost fully specifies a male's tracking of a female. Furthermore, P1 neuron activity correlates with ongoing fluctuations in the intensity of a male's pursuit to continuously tune the gain of the LC10a pathway. Together, these results reveal how a male's internal state can dynamically modulate the propagation of visual signals through a high-fidelity visuomotor circuit to guide his moment-to-moment performance of courtship. Specific neurons in the fly brain that are activated when males are aroused modulate visual processing to underlie courtship., Author(s): Tom Hindmarsh Sten [sup.1] , Rufei Li [sup.1] , Adriane Otopalik [sup.1] , Vanessa Ruta [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) Laboratory of Neurophysiology and Behavior, The Rockefeller University, New York, [...]

Abstract: The present study utilized Grounded Theory Methodology to analyze qualitative data concerning sexual desire among young women in emerging adulthood. Specifically, twenty women aged 18-29 in longer-term relationships (mean [...]

Abstract: This qualitative study explored the meaning and experience of sexual desire for women. Data were gathered through semi-structured interviews with 40 partnered heterosexual women aged 20 to 61 years [...]

Experimental research on sexual decision making is limited, despite the public health importance of such work. We describe formative work conducted in advance o fan experimental study designed to evaluate the effects of alcohol intoxication and sexual arousal on risky sexual decision making among men who have sex with men. In Study 1, we describe the procedures for selecting and validating erotic film clips (to be used for the experimental manipulation of arousal). In Study 2, we describe the tailoring of two interactive role-play videos to be used to measure risk perception and communication skills in an analog risky sex situation. Together, these studies illustrate a method for creating experimental stimuli to investigate sexual decision making in a laboratory setting. Research using this approach will support experimental research that affords a stronger basis for drawing causal inferences regarding sexual decision making., From the outset of the HIV epidemic in the United States, men who have sex with men (MSM) have been disproportionately affected by HIV and AIDS. MSM represent approximately 50% [...]

Despite the literature's focus on (hetero)sexual initiation, little is known about the degree to which young people are satisfied by their first vaginal intercourse experience, let alone the factors that predict satisfaction. This study analyzed data from a cross-sectional survey of 1,986 non-Hispanic White and Black 18- to 25-year-old respondents from four university campuses. Respondents were asked to rate the degree to which their first vaginal intercourse was physiologically and psyehologically satisfying. Both Black and White women were significantly less likely than Black and White men to experience considerable or extreme satisfaction at first vaginal intercourse, particularly physiological satisfaction. Among all four gender-race groups, being in a committed relationship with one's sexual partner greatly increased psychological satisfaction, particularly among women. Experiencing less guilt at first sexual intercourse was also strongly associated with psychological satisfaction for women. Developing sexual relationships with partners they care for and trust will foster satisfaction among young people at first vaginal intercourse. These findings highlight strong gender asymmetry in affective sexual experience., No sexual milestone carries as much cultural significance as virginity loss, which we define here as first vaginal intercourse. (1) The experience of first coitus is imbued with enormous personal [...]

The current investigation examines the etiology of men's errors in sexual perception after moderate alcohol use. Sensitivity and bias estimates, derived from multidimensional signal detection analysis, revealed that men's alcohol-influenced performance was associated with declining sensitivity to the distinction between women's friendliness and sexual interest. However, sensitivity to the distinction between conservative and provocative clothing was unaffected. Similarly, an alcohol dose led to an increased bias to respond that women's ambiguous cues were sexual interest (rather than friendliness) but did not influence response thresholds for clothing style. Thus, there was specificity to the perceptual and decisional changes associated with alcohol use rather than a simple degradation of men's capacity to process all dating-relevant cues in the environment. Given the link between alcohol use, sexual misperception, and acquaintance-initiated sexual coercion, understanding the etiology of sexual misperception in the context of alcohol use may inform sexual coercion prevention efforts. Keywords: alcohol, social perception, sexual misperception, signal detection DOI: 10.1037/a0019343

This article examines cognitive links between romantic love and creativity and between sexual desire and analytic thought based on construal level theory. It suggests that when in love, people typically focus on a long-term perspective, which should enhance holistic thinking and thereby creative thought, whereas when experiencing sexual encounters, they focus on the present and on concrete details enhancing analytic thinking. Because people automatically activate these processing styles when in love or when they experience sex, subtle or even unconscious reminders of love versus sex should suffice to change processing modes. Two studies explicitly or subtly reminded participants of situations of love or sex and found support for this hypothesis. Keywords: love; sex; processing styles; priming; construal level

The goals of this study were to examine the effectiveness of emotional reappraisal in regulating male sexual arousal and to investigate a set of variables theoretically linked to sexual arousal regulation success. Participants first completed a series of online sexuality questionnaires. Subsequently, they were assessed for their success in regulating sexual arousal in the laboratory. Results showed that the ability to regulate emotion may cross emotional domains; those men best able to regulate sexual arousal were also the most skilled at regulating their level of amusement to humorous stimuli. Participants, on average, were somewhat able to regulate their physiological and cognitive sexual arousal, although there was a wide range of regulation success. Whereas some men were very adept at regulating their sexual arousal, others became more sexually aroused while trying to regulate. Age, sexual experience, and sexual compulsivity were unrelated to sexual arousal regulation. Conversely, sexual excitation, inhibition, and desire correlated with sexual arousal regulation success. Increased sexual excitation and desire were associated with poorer regulator), performance, whereas a propensity for sexual inhibition due to fear of performance consequences was related to regulatory success., A small body of research indicates that men have some voluntary control over sexual arousal, as assessed using penile plethysmography (PPG; Abel, Blanchard, & Barlow, 1981; Adams, Motsinger, McAnulty, & [...]

Abstract: This study investigated the relationships between sexual self-esteem, sexual assertiveness and sexual satisfaction. It was hypothesized that higher levels of sexual self-esteem would be associated with greater sexual satisfaction [...]

An integrative theoretical framework and model for understanding sexual motivation, arousal and behavior is presented, combining the principles of incentive motivation theory and the hierarchical control of behavior. It is intended to stimulate discussion. The framework can serve as a 'route map' in understanding the links between different component processes and their interactions, as well as the relations between different academic perspectives on understanding sexuality. It is suggested that both excitation and inhibition of sexual motivation, arousal and behavior act at various levels in a hierarchical structure, and much confusion can be avoided by distinguishing these levels. The model integrates information from different branches of psychology: biological, evolutionary, clinical cognitive, developmental and social. It describes interactions between sexual behavior and anxiety, attachment, aggression, and drug taking; and it is applied to gender differences, evolutionary psychology, sexual deviancy, sexual addiction, and the biological bases of sexuality., In trying to explain sexual motivation and behavior, a bewildering array of terms is employed for the excitatory concepts--for example, lust, arousal, desire, libido, drive, fantasy, attraction, and incentive. A [...]

Based on studies of heterosexual male fetishists, transvestites, and transsexuals, Blanchard (1991) proposed the existence of a hitherto unrecognized paraphilic dimension, erotic target location errors (ETLEs), involving the erroneous location of erotic targets in the environment. ETLEs can involve preferential attention to a peripheral or inessential part of an erotic target, manifesting as fetishism, or mislocation of an erotic target in one's own body, manifesting as the desire to impersonate or become a facsimile of the erotic target (e.g., transvestism or transsexualism). Despite its potential clinical and heuristic value, the concept that ETLEs define a paraphilic dimension is underappreciated. This review summarizes the studies leading to the concept of ETLEs and describes how ETLEs are believed to manifest in men whose preferred erotic targets are women, children, men, amputees, plush animals, and real animals. This' review also describes ETLEs in women; discusses possible etiologies of ETLEs; considers the implications of the ETLE concept for psychoanalytic theories of transvestism and male-to-female transsexualism, as well as for the forthcoming revision of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition; suggests reasons why the concept of ETLEs has been underappreciated; and describes what might result if the concept were more widely appreciated., Although the unusual erotic interests called paraphilias have been the subject of considerable attention by clinicians and researchers, a generally accepted classification scheme for paraphilic sexual interests has remained elusive. [...]

The literature on the role of attention in sexual arousal is reviewed, especially, that which has implications for noninvasive treatment of sexual dysfunction. Findings suggest that voluntary control of sexual arousal can be achieved through attentional focus on nonsexual cognitions or sexual fantasy. Cognitive biases may direct attention and thus facilitate or impede sexual arousal. Sexual arousal may be influenced by directed attentional focus, and preliminary evidence suggests that mindfulness techniques may result in longer-term changes in attentional focus; these changes, in turn, may improve sexual response. Information-processing models of sexual arousal developed in light of such findings are discussed. This research establishes the central role of attentional processes in facilitating physiological and, especially, subjective sexual arousal. Implementing approaches that capitalize on attentional processes could advance noninvasive treatment of sexual dysfunction. Future avenues of research might investigate how play, mammalian play circuits, and flow states are relevant to sexual response and satisfaction., Sexual arousal has been defined as an emotional and motivational state arising from an interaction between genital response, central arousal, information processing of sexual stimuli, and behavior (e.g., Bancroft, 2003). [...]

It is assumed that psychological stress may inhibit sexual arousal in women. Research on the effect of (acute and chronic) psychological stressors on genital and subjective sexual arousal, however, is scarce. To investigate whether psychological stressors indeed inhibit sexual responding, sexually functional women were randomly assigned to an experimental condition (n = 30) in which acute psychological stress was induced by a frustrating computer task or a control condition (n = 29). After the acute psychological stress or control induction women were exposed to an erotic stimulus. Genital sexual arousal was assessed using vaginal photoplethysmography. Self-report ratings of subjective sexual arousal were collected after the erotic stimulus. Furthermore, women were post hoc divided into a 'low' and a 'high' chronic stress group, based on their pre-assessment scores on a chronic daily stress questionnaire. As predicted, it was found that women in the acute stress condition responded with lower levels of genital and subjective sexual arousal to an erotic stimulus than women in the control condition. In addition, women with high levels of chronic stress responded with lower levels of genital sexual arousal to an erotic stimulus than women with low levels of chronic stress. Chronic stress did not affect the level of subjective sexual arousal. [c] 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Psychological stress; Sexual arousal; Vaginal photoplethysmography; Women

Previous research on sexual arousal resulting from auditory stimuli indicates that visual imagery acts as a mediator between stimulus input and resulting arousal. This leads to the question of whether imagery, and subsequent arousal, can be manipulated by providing differing information to hold in semantic memory. This research hypothesizes that attractive images, held within semantic memory and pattern matched with an erotic auditory stimulus, facilitate higher and more rapid self-reported arousal than do unattractive images. Participants in an unattractive condition experienced slower rates and lower mean levels of arousal in response to an auditory stimulus compared with participants in an attractive or no picture condition. No differences existed between groups in maximum arousal scores or the tendency to visualize the target during the listening task. Implications for the role of imagery in sexual response, possible measurement issues, and suggestions for future research are addressed in the discussion., People become sexually aroused through a variety of external stimuli, including auditory stimuli and written accounts. Sexual arousal produced from such stimuli likely requires mental imagery processes that have been [...]

Expression of one's sexuality is a fundamental mental health need of all individuals, regardless of age and gender. While the popularity and widespread use of Viagra and similar medications for male erectile dysfunction have helped many individuals, it has also reinforced a more male-dominated view of sexuality--one that focuses more on genital function, and less on the relationship and issues of intimacy and meaning. Highlighting important issues and recent trends, the paper provides an overview of the diagnosis, description, etiology, assessment and treatment of women's sexual problems. A broad perspective on sexuality is emphasized, along with an understanding of the sexual response cycle. A selected review of the literature on older women and sexual dysfunction shows wide variability and the important role of biomedical, health and relational factors. In working with the sexual needs of older women, any therapeutic intervention should be based upon a solid understanding of the myths and realities of the sexual aging process, a keen understanding of the sexual challenges faced by older women, and a respect for the continuity of one's sexual lifestyle. doi: 10.1300/J074v19n01_09 KEYWORDS. Sexuality, aging, women, dysfunction, sexual desire, arousal, orgasm