35 Sexual Motivation

35.2 The Psychology of Sex

35-4 How do external and imagined stimuli contribute to sexual arousal?

Biological factors powerfully influence our sexual motivation and behavior. Yet the wide variations over time, across place, and among individuals document the great influence of psychological factors as well (FIGURE 35.1). Thus, despite the shared biology that underlies sexual motivation, 281 expressed reasons for having sex ranged widely—from “to get closer to God” to “to get my boyfriend to shut up” (Buss, 2008; Meston & Buss, 2007).

Figure 35.1
Levels of analysis for sexual motivation Compared with our motivation for eating, our sexual motivation is less influenced by biological factors. Psychological and social-cultural factors play a bigger role.

External Stimuli

Men and women become aroused when they see, hear, or read erotic material (Heiman, 1975; Stockton & Murnen, 1992). In 132 experiments, men’s feelings of sexual arousal have much more closely mirrored their (more obvious) genital response than have women’s (Chivers et al., 2010).

People may find sexual arousal either pleasing or disturbing. (Those who wish to control their arousal often limit their exposure to such materials, just as those wishing to control hunger limit their exposure to tempting cues.) With repeated exposure, the emotional response to any erotic stimulus often lessens, or habituates. During the 1920s, when Western women’s rising hemlines first reached the knee, an exposed leg was a mildly erotic stimulus.

Can exposure to sexually explicit material have adverse effects? Research indicates that it can:

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Rape acceptance. Depictions of women being sexually coerced—and liking it—have increased viewers’ belief in the false idea that women enjoy rape, and have increased male viewers’ willingness to hurt women (Malamuth & Check, 1981; Zillmann, 1989).
Devaluing partner. Viewing images of sexually attractive women and men may also lead people to devalue their own partners and relationships. After male collegians viewed TV or magazine depictions of sexually attractive women, they often found an average woman, or their own girlfriend or wife, less attractive (Kenrick & Gutierres, 1980; Kenrick et al., 1989; Weaver et al., 1984).
Diminished satisfaction. Viewing X-rated sex films has similarly tended to reduce people’s satisfaction with their own sexual partner (Zillmann, 1989). Reading or watching erotica’s unlikely scenarios may create expectations that few men and women can fulfill.

Imagined Stimuli

The brain, it has been said, is our most significant sex organ. The stimuli inside our heads—our imagination—can influence sexual arousal and desire. Lacking genital sensation because of a spinal-cord injury, people can still feel sexual desire (Willmuth, 1987).

Wide-awake people become sexually aroused not only by memories of prior sexual activities but also by fantasies, which in a few women can produce orgasms (Komisa-ruk & Whipple, 2011). About 95 percent of both men and women have said they have sexual fantasies. Men (whether gay or straight) fantasize about sex more often, more physically, and less romantically (Schmitt et al., 2012). They also prefer less personal and faster-paced sexual content in books and videos (Leitenberg & Henning, 1995). Fantasizing about sex does not indicate a sexual problem or dissatisfaction. If anything, sexually active people have more sexual fantasies.

RETRIEVAL PRACTICE

What factors influence our sexual motivation and behavior?

Influences include biological factors such as sexual maturity and sex hormones, psychological factors such as environmental stimuli and fantasies, and social-cultural factors such as the values and expectations absorbed from family and the surrounding culture.

Teen Pregnancy

35-5 What factors influence teenagers’ sexual behaviors and use of contraceptives?

Sexual attitudes and behaviors vary dramatically across cultures. “Sex between unmarried adults” is “morally unacceptable,” agree 97 percent of Indonesians, 58 percent of Chinese, 30 percent of Americans, and 6 percent of Germans (Pew, 2014). We are all one species, but in some ways how differently we think. Compared with European teens, today’s American teens have a higher pregnancy rate—but a lower rate than their parents’ generation (CDC, 2011, 2012).

So, what produces these variations in teen sexuality and pregnancy? Twin studies show that genes influence teen sexual behavior—by influencing pubertal development and hormone levels, and also by influencing teen exposure to environments that stimulate sexual activity (Harden, 2014). Other influences include:

“Condoms should be used on every conceivable occasion.”

Anonymous

Minimal communication about birth control Many teenagers are uncomfortable discussing contraception with their parents, partners, and peers. Teens who talk freely with parents, and who are in an exclusive relationship with a partner with whom they communicate openly, are more likely to use contraceptives (Aspy et al., 2007; Milan & Kilmann, 1987).

Guilt related to sexual activity In another survey, 72 percent of sexually active 12-to 17-year-old American girls said they regretted having had sex (Reuters, 2000). Sexual inhibitions or ambivalence can restrain sexual activity, but also reduce planning for birth control (Gerrard & Luus, 1995; MacDonald & Hynie, 2008).

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Alcohol use Most sexual hook-ups occur among people who are mildly to very intoxicated (Fielder et al., 2013; Garcia et al., 2013). Those who use alcohol prior to sex are less likely to use condoms (Kotchick et al., 2001). By depressing the brain centers that control judgment, inhibition, and self-awareness, alcohol disarms normal restraints—a phenomenon well known to sexually coercive males.

Mass media norms of unprotected promiscuity Media help write the “social scripts” that affect our perceptions and actions. So what sexual scripts do today’s media write on our minds? Sexual content appears in approximately 85 percent of movies, 82 percent of television programs, 59 percent of music videos, and 37 percent of music lyrics (Ward et al., 2014). And sexual partners on TV shows rarely have communicated any concern for birth control or STIs (Brown et al., 2002; Kunkel, 2001; Sapolski & Tabarlet, 1991). The more sexual content adolescents and young adults view or read (even when controlling for other predictors of early sexual activity), the more likely they are to perceive their peers as sexually active, to develop sexually permissive attitudes, and to experience early intercourse (Escobar-Chaves et al., 2005; Kim & Ward, 2012; Parkes et al., 2014).

Media influences can either increase or decrease sexual risk taking. One study asked more than a thousand 12-to 14-year-olds what movies they had seen, and then after age 18 asked them about their teen sexual experiences (O’Hara et al., 2012). After controlling for various adolescent and family characteristics, the more the adolescents viewed movies with high sexual content, the greater was their sexual risk taking—with earlier debut, more partners, and inconsistent condom use. Another study analyzed the effect of MTV’s series 16 and Pregnant, which portrayed the consequences of unprotected sex and the challenges of having a child. By analyzing viewership and pregnancy rates over time in specific areas, the researchers concluded that the program led to a 6 percent reduction in the national teen pregnancy rate (Kearney & Levine, 2014).

Keeping abreast of hypersexuality An analysis of the 60 top-selling video games found 489 characters, 86 percent of whom were males (like most of the game players). The female characters were much more likely than the male characters to be “hypersexualized”—partially nude or revealingly clothed, with large breasts and tiny waists (Downs & Smith, 2010). Such depictions can lead to unrealistic expectations about sexuality and contribute to the early sexualization of girls. The American Psychological Association suggests countering this by teaching girls to “value themselves for who they are rather than how they look” (APA, 2007).

Later sex may pay emotional dividends. One national study followed participants to about age 30. Even after controlling for several other factors, those who had later first sex reported greater relationship satisfaction in their marriages and partnerships (Harden, 2012). Several other factors also predict sexual restraint:

High intelligence Teens with high rather than average intelligence test scores more often delayed sex, partly because they appreciated possible negative consequences and were more focused on future achievement than on here-and-now pleasures (Halpern et al., 2000).
Religious engagement Actively religious teens have more often reserved sexual activity for adulthood (Hull et al., 2011; Lucero et al., 2008).
Father presence In studies that followed hundreds of New Zealand and U.S. girls from age 5 to 18, a father’s absence was linked to sexual activity before age 16 and to teen pregnancy (Ellis et al., 2003). These associations held even after adjusting for other adverse influences, such as poverty. Close family attachments—families that eat together and where parents know their teens’ activities and friends—also predicted later sexual initiation (Coley et al., 2008).
Participation in service learning programs Several experiments have found that teens volunteering as tutors or teachers’ aides, or participating in community projects, had lower pregnancy rates than were found among comparable teens randomly assigned to control conditions (Kirby, 2002; O’Donnell et al., 2002). Researchers are unsure why. Does service learning promote a sense of personal competence, control, and responsibility? Does it encourage more future-oriented thinking? Or does it simply reduce opportunities for unprotected sex?

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RETRIEVAL PRACTICE

Which THREE of the following five factors contribute to unplanned teen pregnancies?

Alcohol use
Higher intelligence level
Unprotected sex
Mass media models
Increased communication about options

a., c., d.