День: 15.11.2015

Prevalence of Rape

Despite the fact that rape is a significant problem in our society, it has been difficult to obtain accurate statistics on its frequency. One reason is that many individuals do not report this crime. A recent study suggests that ethnic minority women may be especiallylikely not to disclose or report sexual assault (Ullman et al., […]

Pressing Charges

The decision to press official charges is a very difficult one that takes much considera­tion. It has often been said that a rape victim goes through a second rape because he or she seems to be put on trial more than the accused rapist. Court proceedings take up a great deal of time and energy, […]

Sexual Addiction: Fact, Fiction, or Misnomer?

■ The concept of sexual addiction suggests that some people who engage in excessive sexual activity are manifesting symptoms of a psychological addiction, in which feelings of depression, anxiety, loneliness, and worthlessness are tempo­rarily relieved through a sexual high. ■ Many sexologists do not believe that sexual addiction should be a distinct diagnostic category, because […]

Increase Your Touch Vocabulary

Touch has been called the true language of sex. From the first gentle grazing of fingertips to sexual intercourse, touch is how we form an intimate bond with a partner and experience a wide variety of physi­cal pleasures. Your ability to communicate different positive moods and messages with touch can greatly enhance your sexual experiences. […]

Telling the Police

On college campuses, campus police are often notified before the local police. Campus police may be able to take disciplinary action, such as fines or dismissal if the assailant is a student, but they are not able to press formal charges. Pressing charges with the lo­cal police may be important for two reasons. First, it […]

Coercive Paraphilias

■ Coercive paraphilias are invasive, in that they involve unwill­ing recipients of behavior such as voyeurism or exhibition­ism. Coercive acts may harm their targets, who may be psychologically traumatized by the experience. ■ Exhibitionism, obscene phone calls, voyeurism, frotteur — ism, zoophilia, and necrophilia are all varieties of coercive paraphilias. ■ Exhibitionism is behavior in […]

Noncoercive Paraphilias

■ Noncoercive paraphilias are often solo activities or behav­iors that involve the participation of adults who agree to engage in, observe, or just put up with the particular variant behavior. ■ Fetishism, transvestic fetishism, sexual sadism, sexual mas­ochism, autoerotic asphyxia, klismaphilia, coprophilia, and urophilia are all varieties of noncoercive paraphilias. ■ Fetishism is a form […]

Cultural Metaphors

Similar themes are present in our language’s metaphors regarding sex­ual activity. These cultural metaphors provide important clues about the conceptualization of sexual behavior. Language is powerful in defining the experiences of people in a society. Therefore, an examination of cultural metaphors is necessary to understand the sexual experiences of people in our culture and its […]

Reporting a Rape

It is estimated that about 1 in 7 rapes is reported (Resnick et al., 2005); the likelihood of reporting is increased if the assailant was a stranger, if there was violence, or if a weapon was involved (U. S. Department of Justice-Office of Justice Programs, 2002). This probably has to do with the fact that […]