1. Relationships and Sexual Health Chapter 12

2. Outline • Relationships • Attraction • Theories of Love • Communication • Gender Roles • Sexual Identity • Sexual Anatomy • Sexual Functioning • Sexual Dsyfunctions

3. Relationships • Three types: • Relationship with yourself • Relationships with friends • Relationships with intimate partners • Relationships begin with who you are as an individual and what you bring to the relationship • Healthy Sense of Self • Examples of important attributes are as follows: • A reasonably high self-esteem • A capacity of empathy • The ability both to be alone and to be with others

4. Friendship and Other Relationships • Friendship is a reciprocal relationship based on: • Mutual liking and caring • Respect and trust • Interest and companionship • Compared to romantic relationships, friendships are considered more stable and longer lasting • Friendships offer psychological and emotional buffers against stress, anxiety and depression

5. Characteristics of Successful Partnerships • Independence and maturity • Self-esteem and mutual respect • Good communication • Good sexual relationship, open expression of affection and respect • Enjoy spending time together in leisure activities • Acknowledge strengths and failings, and take responsibility for both • Handle conflict constructively • Assertive and flexible in wants and needs • Good family and friend relationships • Shared spiritual values

6. What is Attraction? • A systematic screening process when deciding if someone could be a potential partner • Factors which promote attraction are: • Proximity or familiarity • Physical attraction • Similar characteristics with values and attitudes

7. Theories of Love • Similarity theory: • Based on the concept that people select mates who are similar to us in important ways • Social Exchange Theory: • Suggests that falling in love and choosing a partner are based on the exchange of ‘commodities’ • Sternberg’s Love Triangle: • Intimacy • Passion • Commitment

8. Communication • Nonverbal communication • Includes facial expressions, eye contact, gestures, body position and movement • Nonverbal and verbal communication cues make up the metamessage, or the unspoken message you send or get when communicating http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQENwD-QlRA&feature=related

9. How to Keep your Relationships Strong and Vital • Cohesion • Dynamic balance between separateness and togetherness in both couple and family relationships • Relationships are strongest when there is a balance between intimacy and autonomy • Flexibility • Dynamic balance between stability and change • Communication is the tool that partners and families use to adjust levels of cohesion or flexibility when change is needed; • It is ok to seek help if after a few months, problems still exist.

10. Gender Roles • Sex: • Refers to a person’s biological status as a male or female • XX chromosomes – female genitals • XY chromosomes – male genitals • Intersex: • A condition in which the genitals are ambiguous at birth • Gender: • Refers to the behaviors and characteristics considered appropriate for a gender in a particular culture • Gender role: • A set of behaviors and activities a person engages in to conform to society’s expectation of his or her sex

11. Sexual Orientation • Sexual orientation refers to a person’s emotional, romantic, and sexual attraction to a member of the same sex, the other sex, or both • Heterosexuality:Emotional and sexual attraction to the opposite sex • Homosexuality: Emotional and sexual attraction to the same sex • Bisexuality: Emotional and sexual attraction to both sexes • Transgender: Having a sense of identity as a male or a female that conflicts with one’s biological sex • Sexual orientation is known to be influenced by a complex interaction of biological, psychological, and societal factors

12. Sexual Anatomy - Female

13. Sexual Anatomy - Male

14. Sexual Functioning • Sexual Response – Psychological and motivational mechanism • Sex Drive (libido): Biological urge for sexual activity • Testosterone – principle hormone responsible for the sex drive in both men and women • Sexual Arousal: Occurs at the physiological level • Vasocongestion – An inflow of blood to tissues in erogenous areas • Myotonia – Voluntary or involuntary muscle tension occurring in response to sexual stimuli • Human Sexual Response Model • Excitement  Plateau  Orgasm  Resolution

16. Common Forms of Sexual Expression • Rather than thinking in terms of “normalcy,” social scientists think of behaviors as typical or less typical • The following are typically considered acceptable forms of sexual expression: • Celibacy • Erotic touch (foreplay) • Self-stimulation (masturbation) • Oral-Genital stimulation (cunnilingus/fellatio) • Anal Intercourse (sodomy) • Sexual Intercourse (coitus)

17. Paraphilias • Culturally unaccepted sexual practices do exist in our society • Not consensual • Potential for causing harm • Classified as mental disorders characterized by recurrent, intense sexual urges, fantasies, or behaviors involving: • Voyerusim • Exhibitionsim • Pedophilia

18. Female Sexual Dysfunction • A disturbance in sexual drive, performance, or satisfaction that may occur at any point in the sexual response cycle • Examples for women include: • Vaginismus (painful intercourse) • Sexual desire disorder • Female sexual arousal disorder • Orgasmic dysfunction • Treatment • Testosterone

19. Male Sexual Dysfunctions • A disturbance in sexual drive, performance, or satisfaction in men that may occur at any point in the sexual response cycle • Examples include: • Pain during intercourse • Sexual desire disorder • Erectile dysfunction (ED) • Ejaculation dysfunction • Treatment: • Testosterone and prescription medications • Correcting unhealthy lifestyles and working on relationships

20. Sex and Culture in the 21st Century • Three phenomena that are issues today are: • Cybersex • The Internet offers people immediate, anonymous, and solitary sex without the complexities of having a relationship • Sexting • “Hook-up” culture

21. For Next Time • Chapter 13 Reproductive Choices