Paraphilic Disorders
Paraphilic disorders: recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or
behaviors and involve:
1. abnormal targets of sexual attraction e.g., shoes, children,
2. unusual courtship behaviors e.g., watching others undress without their knowledge,
or exposing oneself to others against their wishes
3. the desire for pain and suffering of oneself or others
Paraphilia VS Paraphilic Disorder
Paraphilias are unusual sexual interests, but they need not cause harm either to the
individual or to others. Only if they cause such harm do they become paraphilic disorders
E.g. foot fetishists have a paraphilia, but only those who suffer due to their sexual interest
have a paraphilic disorder.
Paraphilias have a compulsive aspect and mostly men are involved in these
disorders.
Types of Paraphilias
1) fetishism,
2) transvestic fetishism,
3) pedophilia,
4) voyeurism,
5) exhibitionism,
6) frotteurism,
7) sexual sadism,
8) sexual masochism.
rarer disorders: such as telephone scatologia (obscene phone calls), necrophilia (sexual
desire for corpses), zoophilia (sexual interest in animals), apotemnophilia (sexual excitement
and desire about having a limb amputated), and coprophilia
Some of the different paraphilias tend to co-occur together
Fetishistic Disorder
Fetishism: the individual has recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, urges, and
behaviors involving the use of some inanimate object or a part of the body not typically
found erotic (e.g., feet) to obtain sexual gratification. Usually the fetishistic object is required
or strongly preferred during sexual arousal and activity.
, frequently in the context of sadomasochistic activity but is relatively rare among
sexual offenders
mode of using these objects to achieve sexual excitation and gratification varies
does not normally interfere with the rights of others
Some paraphilic men are so ashamed of their desires that they cannot bring themselves to
ask partners.
Cause: Hypothesis that classical conditioning and social learning individual differences in
conditionability of sexual responses. Men high in sexual conditionability would be prone to
developing one or more fetishes.
Transvestic Disorder
Transvestic disorder: heterosexual men who experience recurrent, intense sexually arousing
fantasies, urges, or behaviors that involve cross-dressing as a female, if they experience
significant distress or impairment.
Onset: during adolescence and involves masturbation while wearing female clothing
or undergarments.
the strength of autogynephilic fantasies strongly predicts gender dysphoria. It is
rare to act badly on that.
More in males than females, mostly heterosexual
Men who had cross-dressed had experienced more sexual abuse before age 10,
were more easily sexually aroused, had a higher frequency of masturbation, made
greater use of pornography, and had other paraphilias.
Voyeuristic Disorder
Voyeuristic disorder: recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, urges, or behaviors
involving the observation of unsuspecting females who are undressing or of couples
engaging in sexual activity
Voyeurism often co-occurs with exhibitionism, and it is also associated with interest
in sadomasochism and cross-dressing
Most common illegal sexual activity
Cause: Arousal by the sight of female body undressing, the privacy and mystery
increases curiosity. If a shy man avoids sexual activity in case of rejection, he prefers
arousal by watching others.
If a man finds a woman despite that he is not highly engage in sexual relationships.
Reported more: More psychological problems, less satisfaction with life, higher rates
of masturbation, greater use of pornography, and greater ease of sexual arousability
