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Sexology Summary
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A detailed summary of the whole book for the sexology course at Tilburg University. :)
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SEXOLOGYCHAPTER 1
*remarks*
Gender: Being male, female, or some other gender such as trans.
Gender binary: Conceptualizing gender as having only two categories, male and female.
Sexual behavior: Behavior that produces arousal and increases the chance of orgasm.
HISTORY
The Dutch microscopist Anton van Leeuwenhoek had discovered sperm swimming in human semen.
In 1875 Oskar Hertwig first observed the actual fertilization of the egg by the sperm in sea urchins,
although the ovum in humans was not directly observed until the 20th century.
Havelock Ellis believed that women, like men, are sexual creatures. A sexual reformer, he believed
that sexual deviations from the norm are often harmless, and he urged society to accept them. In his
desire to collect information about human sexuality rather than to make judgments about it, he can
be considered the forerunner of modern sex research.
Another important figure in 19th-century sex research was the psychiatrist Richard von Krafft-Ebing
His special interest was “pathological” sexuality He coined the concepts of sadism, masochism,
and pedophilia, and the terms heterosexuality and homosexuality
the German Magnus Hirschfeld founded the first sex research institute and administered the first
large-scale sex survey
THE MEDIA
Cultivation theory: In communications theory, the view that exposure to the mass media makes
people think that what they see there represents the mainstream of what really occurs.
Framing theory: The theory that the media draw attention to certain topics and not to others,
suggesting how we should think about or frame the issues.
Social cognitive theory: In communications theory, the idea that the media provide role models
whom we imitate.
selectivity, which refers to the principle that people select and pay attention only to certain media
and their messages, and not to others
Reinforcing spiral theory: A theory that one’s social identities and ideologies predict one’s media use
and, in turn, media use affects our identity and beliefs.
Differential susceptibility model: A theory that some people are more susceptible than others to
certain types of media (e.g., violent media).
Cross-Cultural Perspectives on Sexuality
Culture: The part of the environment created by humans, including the set of meanings that a group
adopts; these meanings facilitate social coordination and clarify where boundaries between groups
lie.
, Individualistic cultures: Cultures that stress independence and autonomy and the individual rights of
people.
Collectivistic cultures: Cultures that emphasize interdependence and connections among people; the
group is more important than the individual.
Honor cultures: Cultures that stress “face”—that is, individuals’ reputation and the respect or honor
that people show toward others.
Ethnocentrism: The tendency to regard one’s own ethnic group and culture as superior to others and
to believe that its customs and way of life are the standards by which other cultures should be judged.
Incest taboo: A societal regulation prohibiting sexual interaction between blood relatives, such as
brother and sister or father and daughter
No matter how a particular society treats homosexuality, the behavior always occurs in at least some
individuals— that is, same-gender sexuality is found universally in all societies, and (2) same-gender
sexual behavior is never the predominant form of sexual behavior for adults in any of the societies
studied.
One standard does seem to be a general rule: A poor complexion is considered unattractive in the
majority of human societies.
o Familismo: Among Latinx, a strong cultural valuing of one’s nuclear and extended family
o Historical trauma: Cumulative psychological wounding passed down across generations as a result of
massive group trauma.
o Racial microaggressions: Subtle insults directed at people of color and often done non-consciously.
The Sexual Health Perspective
Sexual health: A state of physical, emotional, mental, and social well-being in relation to sexuality.
Sexual rights: Basic, inalienable rights regarding sexuality, both positive and negative, such as rights to
reproductive self-determination and sexual self-expression and freedom from sexual abuse and
violence.
CHAPTER 2
EVOLUTIONARY THEORIES
Sociobiology: The application of evolutionary biology to understanding the social behavior of animals,
including humans.
Evolution: A theory that all living things have acquired their present forms through gradual changes in
their genetic endowment over successive generations.
Natural selection: A process in nature resulting in greater rates of survival of those plants and animals
that are best adapted to their environment.
Parental investment: In evolutionary theories, behaviors or other investments in the offspring by the
parent increase the offspring’s chance of survival.
Infant vulnerability is greatly reduced if the mother provides continuing physical care, including
breastfeeding. It is further reduced if the father provides resources and security from attack for the
mother and infant a pair-bond between mother and father and attachment between infant and
parent
Sexual selection is selection that creates differences between males and females. It consists of two
processes: (1) competition among members of one gender (usually males) for mating access to
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, members of the other gender, and (2) preferential choice by members of one gender (usually
females) for certain members of the other gender.
CRITICISM OF SOCIOBIOLOGY
Some critics object to the biological determinism that it implies.
sociobiology has been criticized for resting on an outmoded version of evolutionary theory that
modern biologists consider naive
sociobiology has focused mainly on the individual’s struggle for survival and efforts to reproduce;
modern biologists focus on more complex issues such as the survival of the group and the species.
sociobiologists assume that the central function of sex is reproduction; this may have been true
historically but is not true today
EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY
focuses on psychological mechanisms that have been shaped by evolution
If behaviors evolved in response to selection pressures, it is plausible to argue that cognitive or
emotional structures evolved in the same way.
Sexual strategies Women and men face different adaptive problems in short-term, or casual,
mating and in long-term mating and reproduction. These differences lead to different strategies, or
behaviors, designed to solve these problems Females engage in intrasexual competition
(competition against other women) for access to males
men and women are very similar in their stated mating preferences. Both prefer long-term strategies
and few or no short-term partners
criticism of evolutionary psychology
it assumes that every characteristic that we observe must have some adaptive significance, but some
human traits may be simply “design flaws”
traditional societies such as the Ache and MayanResearch on male sexual strategies in these two
societies finds that male strategies are not constant but change in response to personal
characteristics and environmental contingencies
Critics also question the data used to support much of the research These theories claim that the
processes and behaviors are the results of human evolution, and therefore universal, but most of the
data testing them comes from WEIRD
tests of sexual strategies theory rely heavily on data from undergraduates at four-year colleges and
universities; note this criticism applies to research testing other theories as well.
GENDER-NEUTRAL EVOLUTIONARY THEORY
o Evolutionary biologist Patricia Gowaty of UCLA has proposed a gender-neutral evolutionary theory
that offers an alternative to sociobiology and evolutionary psychology
o it is most adaptive for individuals to be flexible in their behaviors, and that is exactly what evolution
has selected for—flexibility and adaptability.
o An individual may behave in ways that are more male-typical in some situations and more female-
typical in others because different behaviors are adaptive in those different situations
o a fixed mating strategy for females (or males) would not be adaptive across numerous
environments a flexible mating strategy would be most successful.
o The evidence for this theory, at least so far, is based on mathematical modeling and proofs that show
that individuals who can and do change their mating behaviors in adaptive ways depending on the
environment have the best reproductive fitness—and are the most likely to mate successfully.
PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY
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, S.FREUD
one of the most influential of all psychological theories.
Freud saw sex as one of the key forces in human life,
Freud termed the sex drive or sex energy libido, which he saw as one of the two major forces
motivating human behavior (the other being Thanatos, or the death instinct).
Id: According to Freud, the part of the personality containing the libido the basic part of
personality and is present at birth. It is the reservoir of psychic energy (including libido), and it
operates on the pleasure principle
Ego: According to Freud, the part of the personality that helps the person have realistic, rational
interactions operates on the reality principle and tries to keep the id in line
Superego: According to Freud, the part of the personality containing the conscience It contains the
values and ideals of society that we learn, and it operates on idealism it aims to inhibit the
impulses of the id and to persuade the ego to strive for moral goals rather than just realistic ones.
The id, ego, and superego develop sequentially The id contains the set of instincts present at birth
The ego develops later, as the child learns how to interact realistically with their environment and
the people in it The superego develops last, as the child learns moral values.
Freud saw the libido as being focused in various regions of the body known as erogenous zones
The lips and mouth are one such erogenous zone, the genitals a second, and the anus a third.
Stages of Psychosexual Development
Freud believed that the child passes through a series of stages of development. In each of these
stages, a different erogenous zone is the focus.
The first stage, lasting from birth to about 1 year of age, is the oral stage The child’s chief pleasure
is derived from sucking and otherwise stimulating the lips and mouth.
The second stage, which occurs during approximately the second year of life, is the anal stage.
During this stage, the child’s interest is focused on elimination.
The third stage of development, lasting from age 3 to perhaps age 5 or 6, is the phallic stage
Oedipus complex
Oedipus complex: According to Freud, the sexual attraction of a little boy for his mother.
Electra complex: According to Freud, the sexual attraction of a little girl for her father.
Freud said that following the resolution of the Oedipus or Electra complex, children pass into a
prolonged stage known as latency, which lasts until adolescence During this stage, the sexual
impulses are repressed or are in a quiescent state, and so nothing much happens sexually.
With puberty, sexual urges are reawakened, and the child moves into the genital stage During this
stage, sexual urges become more specifically genital, and the oral, anal, and genital urges all fuse
together to promote the biological function of reproduction.
According to Freud, people do not always mature from one stage to the next as they should Most
adults have at least traces of earlier stages remaining in their personalities.
Evaluation of Psychoanalytic Theory
most of its concepts cannot be evaluated scientifically to see whether they are accurate
Freud postulated that many of the most important forces in personality are unconscious, and thus
they could not be studied using the scientific techniques common to the 20th century.
Another criticism is that Freud derived his data almost exclusively from his work with patients who
sought therapy from him Thus, his theory may provide a view not so much of the human
personality as of disturbances in the human personality.
Feminists have also been critical of Freudian theory as a male-centered theory that may cause harm
to women They object to Freud’s assumption that because women do not have a penis they are
biologically inferior to men.
feminists also criticize the distinction Freud made between vaginal orgasm (obtained through
heterosexual intercourse with the penis stimulating the vagina) and clitoral orgasm (obtained through
clitoral stimulation) in women.
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