Chapter 9: Variations in Sexual Behavior → Kinks, Fetishes, Paraphilias

Historical Context: Krafft-Ebing describing and categorizing different sexual behaviors as disorders caused by genetic weakness, Kinsey study destigmatizing these beliefs

Kinks: Sexual interests outside of norms (fetishes are more specific)

Atypical Sex Behaviors/Paraphilias: Not necessarily pathological (need distress or harm)

Paraphilic Disorder → Atypical pattern of sexual arousal that becomes problematic

• Causes impairment → Causes distress to person, or harm to nonconsenting people (such as children or partners who are not on board)

• Study: Paraphilia-Associated Arousal Patterns in German Males → Nearly all who experienced a pedophilic fantasy also experienced distress, whereas exhibitionist disorder didn’t need distress to be a disorder → exposing yourself to nonconsenting people

Fetishes & Fetishistic Disorder → Requires situation for arousal

• Interest in nonsexual objects, or narrow scope of sexual objects such as body parts (partialism)

• Situation-based → dom/sub, role play, BDSM

• Transvestic Fetish → Person repeatedly cross-dresses to achieve arousal, or is disturbed by urges to cross dress

• Study: object associated with body → shoes to stethoscopes, wide range

• Partialism Study → Feet and toes most popular

Furries → Differences in personality traits, but not pathological

BDSM → Bondage, Domination, Sadism, Masochism

• Involves inflicting or receiving pain, humiliation, or restraint for sexual pleasure

• 20-47% of public has engaged in some BDSM, 69% when including fantasies

• Gender differences → data from college study indicates men have more sadistic/masochistic fantasies/behaviors, as well as more power=less adherence to norms

• Relationships: Based on lifestyle and who’s in control rather than who’s providing sexual service

  • Collared = commitment

Sexual Sadism and Masochism Disorder: Distressing/disturbing

• Hypoxyphilia: sexual arousal from oxygen deprivation (very dangerous)

• Most rapists aren’t sexual sadists

Consenting Disorders:

• Fetishistic

• Transvestic

• Sexual Masochism and Sadism

Nonconsenting Disorders:

• Exhibitionistic → Exposing yourself to nonconsenting strangers to get off

  • Linked to low social skills similar to voyeurs

  • Either urges are acted on or are disturbing

• Frotteuristic → Rubbing against or touching genitals to nonconsenting person

  • Reported exclusively among men

  • Toucherism is related and characterized by the persistent urge to fondle nonconsenting strangers

• Pedophilic→ Sexual attraction to prepubescent children

  • Vast majority are men

  • Some cases are limited to incest

  • Many are victims of child sexual abuse themselves

  • Many molesters aren’t pedophiles

  • Most are married, hetero men, not attracted to adult women

  • Hebephilia → pubescent children (distinct) risk factors with stepfathers

• Voyeuristic → Observing unsuspecting strangers who’re naked, undressing, or having sex w/o their knowledge

  • History of this behavior early in life, less likely to be married or have sexually experience than other sex offenders

Not Otherwise Specified

• Zoophilistic → Urges and fantasies involving sexual contact with animals

  • Bestiality involves actual sexual contact with animals

  • Typically limited to one species

• Necrophilistic → desire for sex with corpses

  • 3 types: Regular, necrophilic homicide, necrophilic fantasy

  • Many of these people have access

Risky Kinks

• Apotemnophilia → Arousal around the fantasy of amputation

Origins

• Bio → Studies show people with kinks have a higher sex drive, hormones, gender differences

• Psych → high in N, Low in C and A, risk taking and sensation seeking behavior, Analytic: paraphilias are a psychological defense, Learning: Paraphilias are learned behaviors through experience, Social: Link with relationship success, access to subcultures

Disgust and Arousal: When we’re aroused, we perceive things with less disgust

• Study → list of sex activities, aroused men found a wider range of things arousing

• Study → Women watching sexual/arousing/or not video then touch disgusting things, arousal increased likelihood of participation

Prevention and Treatment → Similar cycle to addiction

• Systematic Desensitization: Method for breaking learned learned association, relaxation replaces arousal

• Aversion Therapy; Behavior is paired with aversive stimulus (like shock) so you’re conditioned with an aversion

• Covert Sensitization: Form of aversion therapy which thoughts become aversive stimulus (imagine consequence, doesn’t often work)

• Orgasmic Reconditioning: Method to strengthen connection between accepted stimuli

• SSRIs: Used to treat exhibitionism, voyeurism, and fetishism (may treat obsessive-compulsive quality of paraphilias

• Anti-Androgen (chemical castration: Suppresses sex drive, used on sex offenders, effects can be reversed

Best combo is drugs and therapy

• CBT: Lasting change, helps person change behaviors, focusing on cognitive distortions (denial, rationalization), biases, etc

Issues in Treatment: not everyone wants treatment, ethical issues b/t providers and judicial system, treatment success varies by disorder (better for exhibitionists, worse for pedophiles, better overall when treatment is voluntary