Many feminist researchers believe that sexology in the United States is still dominated by white, middle-class, heterosexist attitudes, which permeate sexuality research (Ericksen, 1999; Irvine, 1990). Others add that sexuality research has been based on a model of male sexuality, which also promotes heterosexuality as the norm (M. Jackson, 1984). Feminist researchers often claim that they have a different view of sexuality that enables them to see things not seen by men (Ericksen, 1999). Many feminist researchers have been leaders in the effort to redefine sexual functioning and remove the medical and biological aspects that permeate sexuality today. Leonore Tiefer, a feminist researcher, has written extensively about the overmedicalization of sexuality. Tiefer argues that there may not be any biological sex drive at all—it may be that our culture is what influences our sexual desire the most (Kaschak & Tiefer, 2001; Tiefer, 2001). We will talk more about Tiefer’s work in Chapter 14.
Typically there are a number of different variations of feminism with some more liberal or radical than others. Overall, however, feminist scholars believe that the social construction of sexuality is based on power, which has been primarily in the hands of men for centuries (Collins, 1998; Schwartz, 2000). They believe there is sexual gender inequality that, for the most part, sees women as submissive and subordinate (Collins, 2000). This power over women is maintained through acts of sexual aggression such as rape, sexual abuse, sexual harassment, pornography, and prostitution (M. Jackson, 1984; MacKinnon, 1986). In addition, feminists argue that male sexuality consistently views sex as an act that involves only a penis in a vagina. For “sex” to occur, the erect penis must penetrate the vagina and thrust until the male ejaculates. Catharine MacKinnon (1987, p. 75) suggests that male-dominated views of sexuality have resulted in a society that believes that “what is sexual gives a man an erection.” Andrea Dworkin (1987), one of the more radical feminists, took this one step further; she believed that sexual intercourse itself was a women’s punishment by men. Thrusting during sexual intercourse was meant to be painful for women, Dworkin claimed, and this pain was to prove to the woman that the man was in charge and possessed the power. All of this led to the repression of female sexuality and, as a result, the lack of attention to the female orgasm.
Feminist researchers also believe that there is much to be gained from collaborative or group research, which uses interviews to gain information, because they can provide rich, qualitative data. Controlled laboratory experiments, which have been viewed as more “masculine” in structure (due to the rigid nature of experiments), remove the study from the social context, which affects the outcome of the study (Peplau & Conrad,
1989) . We will discuss this more later in the chapter.