Research Methods in the Study of Human Sexuality

1. Research in
Sexuality
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2. What is a Theory?
A set of assumptions, principles, or methods
that helps a researcher under-stand the
nature of a phenomenon being studied.
It provides an intellectual structure to help
conceptualize, implement, and interpret a
topic

3. Theories on Sexuality: Psychoanalytic
 Freud believed that sex drive was one of the most important forces in life
 Human behavior is motivated by instincts and drives
 Libido – sexual motivation
 Thanatos – aggressiveness motivation
 Psychosexual Stages: erogenous zones
 Oral
 Anal
 Phallic
 Oedipus Complex
 Electra Complex
 Castration Anxiety
 Latency
 Genital
 Fixations
 Structures of Personality:
 Id – pleasure principle; dominant in child
 Ego – reality principle; begins when the child begins to interact
 Superego

4. Theories on Sexuality: Behaviorism
Overt Behavior
Operant Conditioning
We learn through reinforcement and
punishment
Behavior Modification
Aversion Therapy

5. Theories on Sexuality: Learning
Bandura
There are internal and external influences
Imitation and identification are important

6. Theories on Sexuality: Cognitive
Information processing creates personality
differences
The biggest sexual organ is between the ears
What sexually arouses us is what we think
that arouses us

7. Theories on Sexuality: Humanistic
Self-Actualization
Sexual intimacy in loving and commitment in
relationship can lead us to self-actualization
Unconditional Positive Regard
Conditional Love

8. Theories on Sexuality: Biological
Sexual Functioning, Release of Hormones,
Ejaculation, Conception, Pregnancy, and Birth
are controlled physiologically, as well as
human sexual behavior and intervention

9. Theories on Sexuality: Evolutionary
Study animal behavior and sexual patterns
Sexuality exists for the purpose of
reproduction

10. Theories on Sexuality: Sociological
Different societal standards
Social institutions have an effect on one’s
sexuality
Family is the one that influences our sexuality
first
Economy – sex-related services
Media
Laws
Medical

11. Theories on Sexuality: Feminism
Much collaborative research on sex is needed

12. Theories on Sexuality: Queer
Shares something in common with Feminist
Theory
Discover mismatches between sex, gender,
and desire
Abandon categorization

13. History of Sexuality Research
 Socrates, Plato, Aristotle
 developed theories regarding sexual responses and dysfunctions,
sex legislation, reproduction and contraception, and sexual ethics
 18th Century
 Increased discussion of sexual ethics
 Public and private sex education
 19th Century
 Heinrich Kaan – 1843 Psychopathia Sexualis
 Sexuality research was thwarted in the Victorian Era
 Late 19th Century – physicians as sexologists
 Spread throughout Germany
 Part of medical research
 Researchers used pseudonyms

14. History of Sexuality Research
20th Century
Freud
1921 – Committee for Research
in Problems of Sex
John D. Rockefeller and
Andrew Carnegie funded
sexuality research
Alfred Kinsey – Father of
Sexology
American Law Institute lawyers
recommended
decriminalization of sexual
behavior

15. Iwan Bloch
Dermatologist
Journal of Sexology
Medical view of sexual
behavior was shortsighted
Historical and
anthropological research
would broaden sexology

16. Magnus Hirschfeld
 German physician
 Homophobic behavior were inhumane
and unfounded
 Funded his own work
 Fought for the repeal of anti-LGBT laws
that seeks to punish
 1896- first sexology article
 1899 – Yearbook for Sexual Intermediate
Stages; educating about homosexuality
and devious sexual acts
 1900 – questionnaires on sexuality
 1919 – Institute for Sexology

17. Albert Moll
Conservative
1897 – Investigations
Concerning the Libido Sexualis
1913 – International Society for
Sex Research
1926 – International Congress
of Sex Research
Rejected

18. Richard von Krafft-Ebing
Defiant sexual behavior is a
result of engaging in
nonreproductive sexual
practices
1886 – Psychopathia Sexualis, a
case history of 200 individuals
who experienced sexual
pathology

19. Havelock Ellis
Pursued medical degree to study
sexuality
Rebelled against the secrecy of
sexuality
Studies in the Psychology of Sex
(1897-1910)

20. Clelia Mosher
Asked women about
sexual behavior
Helped married women
to have satisfying sex lives
Her works were never
published

21. Katharine Bement Davis
Interested in prostitution and
STDs
Defended homosexuality

22. Evelyn Hooker
Compared a homosexual
and heterosexual male
Challenged the view that
homosexuality was a mental
illness

23. Alfred Kinsey
1938 – professor of zoology
Atheoretical research
Worried about interviewer bias
Probability Sampling
Volunteer Bias
100% sampling
Sexual practices that were seen as
unacceptable were found to be
widely practiced

24. Morton Hunt
Large scale sexuality study in the
1970s
Generalizable results
Premarital sex was increasing
Reviewed his findings in a series
of articles in Playboy magazine

25. Alan Bell and Martin Weinberg
Colleagues from
the Kinsey Institute
1968 – studied
influences on
homosexuality
Supported Evelyn
Hooker’s findings

26. William Masters and Virginia Johnson
 Masters – gynecologist
 Johnson – psychology researcher
 Observed and measured sexual
intercourse
 Reduced gender bias
 1966 – Human Sexual Response
 Penile Strain Gauges
 Photplethysmographs
 1970 – Human Sexual Inadequacy;
explored sexual dysfunction
 Female orgasms results from direct and
indirect clitoral stimulation
 Used clinical terms to avoid censorship

27. Large Scale Sexuality Research
Funded by family foundations:
The Ford
Robert Wood Johnson
The Rockefeller
Henry J. Kaiser

28. Privately Funded Organizations
Conducting Sexuality Studies
 National Health and Social Life Survey
 1987 – AIDS outbreak
 Americans were more sexually conservative than previously thought
 Sex engagement is few times a month or less
 Median of 2 to 6 sexual partners
 The Social Organization of Sexuality
 Sex in America: A Definitive Study
 National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior
 Published in late 2010
 Masturbation was common throughout the life span
 25% of teens aged 14 to 17 were involved in vaginal intercourse
 Results could not be generalized among the LGBT
 National College Health Assessment
 Funded and established by American College Health Association
 Began in 2000
 NCHA examined the habits, behaviors, and perceptions of college students’ sexual health, alcohol and
tobacco use, weight, nutrition, exercise, violence, and mental health.
 4% of women engaged in anal sex

29. Government Funded Organizations
Conducting Sexuality Studies
 National Survey of Family Growth
 is an ongoing government study that gathers data on family life, marriage and divorce, pregnancy,
infertility, contraceptive use, and men’s and women’s health.
 Sponsored by U.S National Center for Health Statistics in the Centers for Disease Control
 Began in 1973
 Included men in 2002
 Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing and Audio-Computer Assisted Self-Interviewing
 Youth Risk Behavior Survey
 Monitors health-risk behaviors among Grade 9 – 12 pupils. 47% engaged in sex with 6% of age 13
 Injuries and Violence, Tobacco/Drug/Alcohol Use, Sexual Behavior, and Unhealthy Dietary Behaviors
 National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health
 Grades 7 to 12
 In-school questionnaire
 National Survey of Adolescent Males
 Longitudinal study on males
 a significant number of heterosexual adolescent males engage in sexual activities beyond
vaginal intercourse, such as mutual masturbation and oral and anal sex

30. Research Methods in Sexuality
Case Study
Interviews
Questionnaires and Surveys
Direct Observation
Participant Observation
Experimental Method
Correlational Method
Internet-Based Research Method

31. Problems in Sexuality Research
Ethical Issues
Volunteer Bias
Sampling
Reliability