Human Sexuality Flashcards
What does human sexuality encompass?
- Gender identity
- Sexual responsiveness, behaviour + orientation
- Maintenance of emotional relationships
What biologically determines sex?
- Genetic makeup
- Reproductive anatomy + biological function
What is gender?
The social interpretation of sex
Gender role definition
Behaviours, attitudes, values, beliefs which society expects/considers appropriate to males/females
Gender stereotypes definition
Wildly held beliefs about psychological differences between males/females
Sex typing definition
Process by which children acquire sex/gender identity + learn gender appropriate behaviours
What is androgen insensitivity syndrome?
Male develops female external appearance due to insensitivity to androgens
What is androgenital syndrome?
Female develops male external appearance due to prenatal exposure to high levels of androgens
What happens in DHT deficient males?
Male develops female external appearance due to deficiency of alpha-reductase
What is Turner syndrome?
- XO chromosomes
- Short stature, swollen hands/feet, webbed neck
- Infertility, amenorrhoea, absent/incomplete pubertal development
What is Klinefelter syndrome?
- XXY chromosomes
- Gynaecomastia, small testes, less hair, infertility
- Tall with abnormal body proportions (long legs, short trunk)
Freud’s psychoanalytic theory
- Rooted in phallic stage of psychosexual development
- Resolution of Oedipus or Electra complex
Cognitive development theory
- Children’s discovery of their sex causes them to identify + imitate same-sex models
Gender-schematic processing theory
Gender identity alone can provide a child with sufficient motivation to assume sex-type behaviour
What are paraphilias?
Sexual urges directed to non-human objects, suffering/humiliation of oneself or partner, towards others incapable of giving consent (fetishism, exhibitionism, voyeurism, sadomasochism, paedophilia)
Stages of the sexual response
- Desire
- Arousal
- Plateau
- Orgasm
- Resolution
Types of sexual disorders
- Problems of desire
- Problems of arousal
- Problems of orgasm
Problems of desire
- Lack or loss of desire
- Sexual aversion
- Lack of sexual enjoyment
What do problems of arousal result in in women?
- Lack of subjective excitement
- Lack of adequate physiological response
What causes problems of arousal in women?
- Psychological (anxiety)
- Pathological (infections)
- Oestrogen deficiency (post-menopausal)
Main problem of arousal in men, and the causes
- Erectile dysfunction
- Organic + psychological
Problems of orgasm in men
- Inhibited ejaculation
- Ejaculatory pain
- Premature ejaculation
What is non-organic vaginismus?
- Involuntary muscular spasm
- Due to sexual abuse or relationship difficulties
What is non-organic dyspareunia?
Pain during sexual activity
How to ask about sensitive subjects
- Be empathic and non-judgemental
- Pre-empt the individuals embarrassment
- Reassure that sexual dysfunction is common
- Discuss in plain, clear and specific terms
- Inclusive language
- Start with open questions
- Never assume anything
