Human Sexuality

Psychoanalytic Theory holds that human behavior is motivated by two main instincts and drives, BLANK and BLANK.

Libido; thanatos

BLANK is the energy generated by sexual instinct; BLANK is the energy generated by aggressiveness or the death instinct.

Libido; thanatos

The stages of BLANK are theoretical childhood stages of development during which the id’s pleasure-seeking energies focus on distinct erogenous zones.

Psychosexual Development

BLANK is the idea that personality comes from the id, ego, and superego.

Personality Development

Psychosexual Development Theory holds that the child has only the BLANK; the BLANK developed during the second year of life; the BLANK develops by age 5.

id; ego; superego

The BLANK is the collection of unconscious urges and desires that continually seek expression; if this were the only part of the personality humans would constantly seek pleasure without concern for others.

Id

The BLANK is the part of the personality that mediates between environmental demands (reality), conscience (superego), and instinctual desires (id); it keeps the id in check by being realistic about what they child can have or achieve; the desires of the id may be socially unacceptable, so this aspect works to constrain the id; if balance is not maintained, the superego could take over and the person could be overwhelmed by guilt.

Ego

BLANK refers to the societal and parental standards an individual has internalized; it places more restrictions on what a person can and cannot do.

Superego

Psychosexual Development includes the BLANK, BLANK, BLANK, and BLANK stages; if a stage is not completed, energy would be trapped in that stage’s erogenous zone and the child would experience a BLANK.

Oral, anal, phallic, genital; fixation

BLANK are areas of the body that are sensitive to touch and associated with sexual pleasure.

Erogenous zones

BLANK refers to the tying up of energy at a particular psychosexual stage, resulting in adult behaviors characteristic of that stage.

Fixation

The oral stage is the BLANK stage of psychosexual development in which the mouth, lips, and tongue are the erogenous zones; it lasts thru the first 18 months of life; problems in this stage could result in a fixation on smoking, nail-biting, overeating, alcoholism.

First

The anal stage is the BLANK stage of psychosexual development that begins when a child starts toilet training; the anal area is the primary erogenous zone; problems in this stage could result in stubbornness, orderliness, or cleanliness.

Second

The genital stage is the BLANK and most important stage of psychosexual development in which the genital region is the primary erogenous zone and in which the Oedipus or Electra Complex will arise; occurs between ages 3-6; at the end of this stage children should identify with the same-sex parent and adopt masculine or feminine characteristics; the superego starts to form during this stage as well.

Third

BLANK Complex is a child’s unconscious sexual desire for the opposite-sex parent and the consequent conflicts.

Oedipus/Electra

The BLANK stage of psychosexual development occurs between 6-12 and involves a repression of libido and sexual interest; one may observe an aversion in children to children of the opposite sex and a preference for same-sex playmates.

Latency

The BLANK stage of psychosexual development is the final stage marked by puberty in which the person develops the ability to engage in adult sexual behavior; sexuality becomes less internally directed and more directed at others as erotic objects.

Genital

BLANK theorists might ask, how are sexual problems later in life related to early childhood experiences?

Psychoanalytic

BLANK are theorists who believe that behavior is learned and alterable; it is necessary to observe behavior in order to understand it; feelings, states, and the unconscious are not measurable and thus are not valid areas for study.

Behaviorists

BLANK believe we do not actually control how we behave; environmental rewards and punishments dictate behavior; B.F. Skinner

Radical Behaviorists

BLANK holds that learning results from a reinforcing response a person receives after a certain behavior; reinforcements encourage a person to engage in a behavior by associating it with positive outcomes; punishments do the opposite

Operant Conditioning

BLANK is a type of therapy based on operant and classical conditioning principles used to change behavior.

Behavior modification

BLANK is a technique used that reduces the frequency of maladaptive behavior by associating it with aversive stimuli.

Aversion Therapy

BLANK are less concerned with why a behavior was developed than with how to change or eradicate it; they might ask, what reinforces a person’s attraction to same-sex partners?

Behaviorists

BLANK holds that both external and internal events influence behavior.

Learning Theory

According to Learning Theory, BLANK and BLANK are important in the development of sexuality and gender identity.

Imitation, identification

According to Learning Theory, BLANK influences sexuality; someone may engage in certain sexual behaviors because others encourage it.

Peer pressure

A BLANK might ask, what effect does media have on sexuality, or, are children influenced by sexual messaging on television?

Learning theorist

BLANK is a theory proposing that our thoughts are responsible for our behavior; people differ in how they process information, resulting in personality differences; we feel what we think we feel; behavior does not come from early childhood experiences or reinforcement, it comes from how we perceive the events around us.

Cognitive Theory

BLANK holds that the largest sexual organ is the brain; what sexually arouses us is what we think sexually arouses us; we pay attention to sensations and label them.

Cognitive Theory

BLANK is person-centered; it holds that we all strive to develop ourselves to the best of our abilities and to self-actualize.

Humanistic Theory

According to humanistic theory, self-actualization is facilitated by BLANK- the acceptance of another person without restrictions on their behavior or thoughts; children who were raised with this learn to accept their flaws, while children who were not may try to ignore their flaws because they know others would not approve.

Unconditional Positive Regard

BLANK holds that sexual behavior is primarily a result of physiological processes; human sexual behaviors, gender roles, and sexual orientation are due to inborn, genetic factors rather than social factors; sexual problems can be solved with medication or surgery.

Biological Theory

BLANK incorporates both sociology and evolution to look for trends in human behavior; it holds that sexuality exists for the sole purpose of reproduction and individual sexuality is designed to maximize the chances of passing on one’s genes.

Evolutionary Theory

BLANK focuses on how the society one lives in influences sexual behavior; it holds that the basic capacity to be sexual may be biologically inherent, but how this is expressed varies widely.

Sociological Theory

Sociological Theory holds that BLANK is the first factor that influences a person’s sexuality, followed by religion, economy, medicine, law, and the media. For example, the U.S. economy is capitalist, which influences the availability of sex-related services; these services are available because they are profitable; laws influence sexual behavior by establishing norms and influencing societal attitudes; media bias results in the perception that sexual activity is more acceptable in young, attractive, able-bodied, cisgendered heterosexuals.

Family

BLANK holds that sexology in the U.S. has historically been dominated by white, middle-class, heterosexist attitudes; it aims to redefine sexual functioning and remove medical and biological aspects of sexology.

Feminist Theory

Feminist theorist Leonor Tiefer argued that sexuality has been BLANK; there may be no biological sex drive at all, and culture may be the primary influence on sex drive.

Overmedicalized

Feminist theory holds that the social construction of sexuality is based on BLANK; there is a sexual gender inequality that sees women as subordinate and submissive; power over women is maintained through pornography, sexual violence, and sex work.

Power

BLANK theorist MacKinnon argued that male-dominated views of sexuality have resulted in a society that believes what is sexual is what gives a man an erection.

Feminist

Feminist theorists hold that there is much to be gained from BLANK research, but that researchers need to be aware of how the questions they ask affect how subjects respond and conceptualize their experiences.

Qualitative

Humans began walking on two feet over 3 million years ago; before that we were BLANK who only stood for brief moments to survey the terrain.

Quadrupeds

In the upright position, the male genitals are on display; because male confrontation often involved acts of aggression, the BLANK became associated with acts of aggression.

Phallus

The upright posture of the female displays her hips and breasts, and the rotation of the pelvis forward resulted in the possibility of face-to-face intercourse. Because more body area is in contact in this position, stimulation of the breasts and clitoris was also possible. BLANK seems to be a common part of sexual contact only in human females.

Orgasm

Of all the ancient civilizations, modern Western society owes most to the interaction of the BLANK, BLANK, and BLANK.

Hebrews, Greeks, Romans

The BLANK contained explicit rules about sexual behavior, forbidding adultery, homosexuality, and some forms of incest. The Bible includes tales of sexual misconduct even by admired figures, but it also contains tales of marital love and the importance of intimacy in marital relations.

Hebrew Bible

The focus on marital sexuality and procreation and the prohibition of homosexuality were adopted from the BLANK by Christianity and formed the basis of sexual attitudes in the west.

Hebrew Bible

The BLANK were more sexually permissive than the Hebrews; their myths are full of sexual exploits, incest, and rape; they clearly distinguished between love and sex, and gave each a separate god.

Greeks

BLANK was one of the few major civilization in Western history to institutionalize homosexuality; BLANK was a commonly accepted practice where an older man would mentor a post pubescent boy who had finished his orthodox education in return for sexual favors; the mentor was always the penetrator and the student was always the receiver.

Greece; pederasty

In BLANK, the male form was idealized; when they spoke of love they did so almost always in homoerotic terms; man’s nonsexual love for another man was seen as the ideal form of love; Plato discussed such an ideal love, and it has come to be known as BLANK love.

Greece; platonic

BLANK had few restrictions about sexuality until the late history of the empire, and early history was marked by permissive attitudes toward homosexual and bisexual behavior.

Romans

In BLANK, marriage and sex were viewed as a means to improve one’s economic and social standing; passionate love was rarely discussed; bride and groom need not love each other for that relationship would grow over time; wives encouraged their husbands to have enslaved people of either sex for the purposes of sexual release.

Rome

In BLANK and BLANK, adult males who took the passive sexual position in homosexual encounters were viewed with scorn, whereas the same behavior by youths, foreigners, enslaved people, or women was seen as an acceptable way to please a person who could improve one’s place in society.

Greece, Rome