When Do Motives to Sexually Please a Male Partner Benefit Women’s Own Sexual Agency?

Motivation to please a partner sexually, also known as sexual communal strength (SCS), has been positively associated with sexual and relationship functioning, particularly for partners. We used a critical sexuality studies approach to examine SCS as it relates to women’s own sexual agency. We also examined the potential moderating role of partner sexual coercion, defined as persistent pressure to attain sex. Specifically, we investigated whether frequency of partner sexual coercion moderates the effect of SCS on three different aspects of women’s sexual agency: sexual desire, sexual refusal assertiveness, and relational power. Participants were 172 U.S. women in dating relationships with men who responded to self-report measures. Results showed that SCS was positively related to women’s own sexual desire, regardless of how often women experienced partner sexual coercion. SCS and partner sexual coercion frequency were associated with sexual refusal assertiveness: The least assertive women reported both higher SCS and more frequent partner coercion. Sexual coercion frequency was negatively related to women’s relational power, regardless of their own SCS. These findings support educational and clinical interventions to reduce sexual coercion and suggest the concept of SCS be further refined to better account for the potential roles sexual coercion and heterosexual norms play more broadly.

     

Introduction to the Panel: “Time’s Up?”: The Psychodynamic Politics of Sexual Coercion and #MeToo

In deconstructing the alchemy of sexuality, awash in its painful pleasures, these papers consider how the eros of erotic pressure can default into the trauma of sexual coercion. They also consider how, from a feminist perspective, the “personal is (still) political,” but how, from a psychoanalytic perspective, the sheer messiness of sex makes it extremely difficult to hold it to account. In sexuality, surrender and submission live in very close quarters, making “coercion” a very complex matter.     

Improbable Possibilities

Whether or not a woman can “choose” her sexuality has been subject to debate because it contests essentialist notions of sexuality as fixed and determined early in life. This article explores the variabilities among women in sexual object choice and expression and elaborates on the claim that women's sexuality is fluid. It does so by presenting a summary of interviews with women of all sexual orientations who do, in fact, experience their sexuality as a conscious choice. Their own words reveal the plasticity of sexual attractions, experiences, and identities and the more fluid sexuality that emerges as a result. The article also highlights the importance of considering cultural and historical context—specifically the contemporary feminist movement—as it affects the range of possibilities in women's construction of their sexual desire and identity.     

The Book of Concord and Human Sexuality,Seen Through the Institution of Marriage

Abstract : Although The Book of Concord says only a few things about sexuality explicitly, by observing the distinction between law and gospel and the way the reformers correlate the law with their social situation, today's Lutheran readers may reach broader conclusions about their approach to such matters. The most important issue regarding sexuality in the sixteenth century arose from the reformers' desire to distinguish monastic celibacy from true chastity and thus to support their conviction that every‐day married life was a God‐pleasing, Christian vocation.     

Coercive Interference and Moral Judgment

Coercion is by its very nature hostile to the individual subjected to it. At the same time, it often is a necessary evil: political life cannot function without at least some instances of coercion. Hence, it is not surprising that coercion has been the topic of heated philosophical debate for many decades. Though numerous accounts have been put forth in the literature, relatively little attention has been paid to the question what exactly being subjected to coercion does to an individual that makes it so hostile to his person. This paper develops an analysis of the subjective aspect of coercion whereby this hostility is explained. It is argued that coercion is not just a matter of interference with one’s agency, but also affects one’s morality. Because coercion is a form of subjugation it does more than merely limit one’s freedom, it constitutes an affront to one’s dignity as well. A new account of coercion is developed that pays particular attention to the subjectivity inherent in coercion. This account takes a middle ground in the ongoing debate between advocates of moralised and non-moralised conceptualisations of coercion. The paper closes by applying this account to two prominent issues in the literature on coercion: the use of coercion claims in attempts to avoid being held responsible for one’s actions, and the coerciveness of the law.     

Sexuality and the ‘Non-Intentional’ Implications for Psychotherapy Practice

This article examines how sexuality and desire provide an opportunity to experience the separation between the self and the other, and were developed in association with the experience of working with a particular patient in weekly therapy. The main theme explored in this article is the degree with which a person imposes his or her understanding and experience onto other people around them, and thereby potentially missing the opportunity to enjoy real personal contact with another person. The work of Husserl, Heidegger, and Levinas is examined to highlight the separation between intentionality and nonintentionality. The distinction between the intentional and the nonintentional is also important in illustrating how a person can impose himself or herself on to others. A person's sexuality and desire for intimacy with another person is discussed in terms of how it provides the opportunity to experience the boundary between being for oneself and being in contact with the other; illustrating the separation of the nonintentional from the intentional. Finally, the implications for psychotherapy practice will be examined, particularly acknowledging the importance of a person's sexuality in determining how they relate to other people.     

Creating Trust among the Distrustful: A Phenomenological Examination of Supportive Services for Former Sex Workers

A phenomenological exploration was conducted into the lived experiences of 13 voluntary sex workers receiving supportive services in a major city in the southwestern United States. The study explored how participants viewed the services they received after exiting the sex industry, as well as experiences of coercion throughout their lives. Data analysis revealed, unexpectedly, that constructs of trust emerged. Respondents provided insight into how trust is learned throughout their lives and how coercion is often used by those around them to inspire trust before and during life in the sex industry. Participants also articulated how trust can be relearned, replacing coercion, while receiving supportive services after exiting the industry. Results from this study reveal processes by which sex workers learn to trust others by connecting through common experiences shared with other sex workers, modeling staff demonstrations of trust with other staff and clients, and being held accountable by others to their desires. The author offers implications for future research and practice areas.     

Perceptions of coercive sexual behavior by males and females

In this study male and female subjects were given six vignettes depicting heterosexual interactions between acquaintances. The vignettes described sexual advances representing different points along a coerciveness continuum. The gender of the aggressor and the victim were varied. The subjects were then asked to indicate their perception of the degree of coerciveness involved. In addition, they were asked to attribute both positive and negative feelings to the victim. The results indicated that male subjects perceived these sexual advances as slightly more coercive when the victim was a female, whereas females perceived the advances as slightly more coercive when the victim was a male. Also, there was a tendency to view the low-coercion activities as more coercive when the males were the victim, whereas the opposite was true for the vignettes rated high on coercion, especially the one describing physical coercion. The attributions of positive and negative feelings tended to parallel the coerciveness ratings. Typically, the more coercive activity was seen as, the less positive feelings and more negative feelings the subjects attributed to the victim. The results were discussed in terms of stereotypical beliefs regarding the sexuality of males and females and attribution theory.     

Sex and shame: the inhibition of female desires

A developmental narrative is presented that centers on bodily based narcissistic injury and sense of shame in response to unrequited oedipal longings. Through an experience of oedipal defeat in relation to both mother and father, a female sense of inadequacy and shame may be internalized and accepted as one's identity, in contrast to the male phallic-omnipotent trajectory. The demise of genital narcissism in females can underlie various expressions of pervasive inhibition and failure to actualize desire. The thesis offered goes beyond separation-individuation theory in suggesting that girls may inhibit sexuality and aggression, and themselves more generally, due to a representation of self as "not having what it takes" genitally, and then bodily and psychically. Mental representations of the self, based on positive imagery of the female body, are needed to give voice to a woman's bodily experience and sexual desire and agency in various realms. Two clinical vignettes illustrate female inhibitions in sexuality and in professional ambition as understood within the framework presented.     

The assessment of adolescents: preconceptions and realizations

The paper explores, in detail, the process of a single assessment as it unfolds session by session. It draws attention to the inevitability of the clinician's harbouring preconceptions of all kinds - especially when working with adolescents. It focuses on the difficulty of withstanding those preconceptions and allowing the patient's true anxieties, conscious and unconscious, to emerge. The process is a complex one requiring close attention to transference and countertransference manifestations, to the central significance of observation, to Bion's notion of the opacity of memory and desire. The case, that of a hypochondriacal 17-year-old young woman, highlights some main concerns and defences of the age group, for example, somatization, separation, fears of madness, issues of identity and, most fundamental of all, sexuality.     

What does sexual orientation orient? A biobehavioral model distinguishing romantic love and sexual desire

Although it is typically presumed that heterosexual individuals only fall in love with other-gender partners and gay-lesbian individuals only fall in love with same-gender partners, this is not always so. The author develops a biobehavioral model of love and desire to explain why. The model specifies that (a) the evolved processes underlying sexual desire and affectional bonding are functionally independent; (b) the processes underlying affectional bonding are not intrinsically oriented toward other-gender or same-gender partners: (c) the biobehavioral links between love and desire are bidirectional, particularly among women. These claims are supported by social-psychological, historical, and cross-cultural research on human love and sexuality as well as by evidence regarding the evolved biobehavioral mechanisms underlying mammalian mating and social bonding.     

Intentions and Causes, Actions and Right Actions

I argue in this essay that belief/desire explanations are not logically true and not causal, and further that the antecedent of a true belief/desire conditional cannot be strengthened in such a way as to transform it into a true causal statement. I also argue that belief/desire explanations are not dispensable: they are presupposed in our justifications of scientific claims. The proposal is not that psychological determinism is false, but that some at least of our activities are not describable in causal terms. These arguments prepare the ground for a puzzle. If all human intentional behaviour is caused, then all actual linkages between psychological states and behaviour should be expressed in causal statements. But neither the action of asserting a causal statement nor the action of justifying the assertion can be described as the result of a cause. Therefore if one accepts that scientific claims can be justified, not all linkages between psychological states and subsequent action are expressible in causal statements. I do not offer a solution to this puzzle.     

The embodied self: thinking psychoanalytically in a time of 'science'

Abstract :  In order to be relevant in our 'scientific' times, it is necessary that we psychoanalysts situate our ideas in thoughtful and respectful relationship to neighbouring disciplines such as genetics, cultural studies, and neuro-anatomy. In this paper I suggest that, although psychoanalysis still continues to have valuable contributions to make to the understanding of human sexual experience and behaviour, in order to make these contributions relevant we must tune in with openness to the challenges posed by the unfolding discoveries in the other disciplines that grapple with the arena of human sexuality.
I will suggest ways in which research on sexual desire and gender identity may be assimilated into psychoanalytic thinking and give some examples of its use in analytic practice.     

Constructing Sexuality: A Theory of Stability and Fluidity

Theories of human sexuality often rely on bio-evolutionary factors to explain sexual desire and development. Theories that do focus on socio-cultural factors tend to provide limited explanation of individual psychological underpinnings of sexual desire and behaviour. This paper presents an alternative, psychosocial account based on personal construct theory. The role of experience, including the active and constant interpretation of both external and internal events, is afforded a central role. Choice is recognized also as important but only in a channelized or limited manner. Although empirical support is very limited at this point in time, we believe that this theory represents a compelling and testable account of sexual desire and development.     

Feminist Ideals for a Healthy Female Adolescent Sexuality: A Critique

This paper explores the ideals of healthy sexuality for teenage girls in the U.S. proposed by feminist theorists and researchers. Current ideals emphasize desire, pleasure, and subjectivity, and appear to be a response to three historically problematic areas for women and girls: objectification; abuse and victimization; and stereotypes of female passivity. There are, however, several problems with using these qualities as markers of healthy sexuality. This essay discusses these problems, including the rigid dichotomizing of subject and object, the idea that desire, pleasure, and subjectivity may have different historical meanings for girls from diverse backgrounds; and that using pleasure as a gauge for whether sex is “good” has moral implications that may undermine other important goals of feminism.     

Sexuality and attachment: a passionate relationship or a marriage of convenience?

The ubiquitous and persistent bodily urges of sexuality and their vicissitudes are explored in this paper, focusing on the complex relationship between libidinal desire and the attachment system, especially the latter's affect-regulating function. This complicated interrelationship is highlighted with clinical vignettes. Implications for transference and countertransference are explored in the discussion of affect regulation and its possible sexual entwining. Clinical data is presented to highlight the plasticity of sexuality. Sexuality's protean nature allows for a reassessment of the case of Little Hans, with emphasis on the unique interconnections between sexuality and the vital need for an attachment relationship. Stressing such interconnections raises important questions about the traditional concept of psychosexual stages.     

Human sexuality: how do men and women differ?

A large body of scientific research documents four important gender differences in sexuality. First, on a wide variety of measures, men show greater sexual desire than do women. Second, compared with men, women place greater emphasis on committed relationships as a context for sexuality. Third, aggression is more strongly linked to sexuality for men than for women. Fourth, women's sexuality tends to be more malleable and capable of change over time. These male-female differences are pervasive, affecting thoughts and feelings as well as behavior, and they characterize not only heterosexuals but lesbians and gay men as well. Implications of these patterns are considered.     

MILFS and Matrons: Images and Realities of Mothers’ Sexuality

Motherhood and sexual appeal are rarely linked in Western culture. There seems to be a notion that once a woman has children she is first and foremost an example, and must be responsible and conservative in a culturally specific way. Most women become mothers at some point in their lives and this is a major physical, emotional, and role transition, one that many women struggle with privately given societal ideals of a ??good?? mother. Despite its essential role in motherhood and life, and the health benefits known to be associated with sexual activity, public expression of sexuality is still primarily associated with being young, childless, and unmarried. Using a social constructionist perspective, we look at the ways in which acceptable expressions of mothers?? sexuality are defined and negotiated by contemporary women. Based on in-depth interviews with fifty women in their 20s, 30s, and 40s, we discuss women??s images of mothers?? sexuality and the ways in which motherhood impacts women??s experiences of sexuality. We find that for most mothers interviewed, the way they felt about sex, their sexual appeal, and their level of sexual desire changed after having children. Coupled with the fatigue and responsibility associated with being a new mother, women felt disconnected from their sexuality for a period of time.