Sexual Arousal

Pheromones
• Pheromones are biochemicals that are
secreted outside the body.
– In research on animals, some pheromones
appear to be important in sexual
communication and even have been called sex
attractants.
– Menstrual synchrony in humans is the
convergence over several months of the dates
of onset of menstrual periods among women
who are in close contact with each other.
 Anaphrodisiacs
• Substances that decrease sexual
desire
• Examples:
– Potassium nitrate (saltpeter)
– Cyproterone acetate
 Aphrodisiacs
• There is no known substance that works
well as an aphrodisiac.
• Myths: oysters, bananas, powdered
rhinoceros horn, bull’s testicles, amyl
nitrite, butyl nitrite.
• So-called natural aphrodisiacs include
yohimbe, cayenne, argininer, aventa sativa,
and damiana.
• Viagra and Cialis have been approved for
use in treating male sexual dysfunction.
The Sexual Response Cycle:
Definitions
• Vasocongestion occurs when a great deal of
blood flows into the blood vessels in a region,
in this case the genitals, as a result of the
dilation of the blood vessels in the region.
• Myotonia occurs when the muscles contract,
not only in the genitals but also throughout the
body.
 The Sexual Response Cycle:
Stages of Sexual Response
• Masters and Johnson described four
stages of sexual response:
– Excitement
– Plateau
– Orgasm
– Resolution
 The Sexual Response Cycle:
Excitement Phase
• The excitement phase is the beginning
of erotic arousal.
– Erection is the obvious arousal response in
the male.
– Lubrication of the vagina is an important
response of females.
– Both result from vascongestion.
 The Sexual Response Cycle:
Plateau Phase
• Vasocongestion reaches its peak during the
plateau phase.
– The penis is completely erect, the glans swells,
and the testes are pulled higher and closer to
the body.
– The orgasmic platform is a tightening of the
outer third of the vagina and the elevation of
the clitoris.
 The Sexual Response Cycle:
Orgasm
• In both males and females, there are sharp
increases in pulse rate, blood pressure, and
breathing rate during orgasm.
– For males “ejaculatory inevitability” is a
sensation that ejaculation is just about to
happen and cannot be stopped.
– For women the main feeling begins around the
clitoris and then spreads outward through the
whole pelvis.
 The Sexual Response Cycle:
Resolution Phase
• Following orgasm is the resolution phase,
during which the body returns
physiologically to the unaroused state.
– Men enter a refractory period during
which they are incapable of being aroused
again.
– Women do not enter into a refractory
period, and some can have multiple
orgasms.
 Multiple Orgasms in Women
• If stimulated again, a female can immediately be
aroused & move back into the excitement or
plateau phase & have another orgasm.
• Multiple orgasm is more likely to results from
hand-genital or mouth-genital stimulation than
from intercourse.
• Masters & Johnson found that women in
masturbation might have 5 to 20 orgasms.
• When a vibrator is used, some women were
capable of having 50 consecutive orgasms.

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Inc. All Rights Reserved.
1-11
 The Sexual Response Cycle:
Vaginal and Clitoral Orgasms
• Masters and Johnson concluded that,
physiologically, there is no difference
between a vaginal orgasm and a clitoral
orgasm.
– This does not mean that psychologically
there are not different kinds.
Changes During the Sexual
Response Cycle in Males
Changes During the Sexual
Response Cycle in Females
 Criticisms of
Masters and Johnson’s Model
• Focused almost entirely on the
physiological aspects of the response,
ignoring what the person is thinking and
feeling emotionally.
• Masters and Johnson’s research
excluded anyone whose pattern of sexual
response did not include orgasm, so the
model cannot be generalized to the entire
population.
 Should Intercourse
and Orgasm Be the Goal?
• Our culture has traditionally held the
belief that a sexual encounter should
climax with intercourse and orgasm.
• Another goal of sex has been
simultaneous orgasm.
• Orgasm is good, but a large part of
pleasure is the buildup to orgasm.
Cognitive-Physiological Models:
Triphasic Model
• Helen Singer Kaplan’s triphasic model of
sexual response conceptualizes three
relatively independent phases:
– sexual desire
– vasocongestion of the genitals
– reflex muscular contractions of the orgasm
phase
Cognitive-Physiological Models:
Walen & Roth
• Walen and Roth apply a cognitive approach to
understanding the psychology of human sexuality.
– Perception: The perception of a stimulus as
sexual.
– Evaluation: If the stimulus is positive, it leads to
arousal; if not, the arousal cycle stops.
– Sexual behavior results from a positive
evaluation.
Walen and Roth Model
Nervous System Control
of Erection
 Hormonal & Neural Bases of Sexual
Behavior: Erection & Ejaculation
• Erection and ejaculation are controlled by
fairly simple spinal cord reflexes.
– Men, who have had their spinal cords
completely severed as a result of
accidents, at a level above that of the
reflex center, are still capable of erections
& ejaculations produced by rubbing their
genitals.
 Hormonal and Neural Bases of
Sexual Behavior: The Brain
• Sexual responses may be brought under voluntary
control and may be initiated by purely
psychological forces, such as fantasy.
• Environmental factors, such as having been taught
that sex is dirty and sinful, may also affect one’s
sexual response.
• Brain control of sexual response is complex and
only partly understood at the present time.
Hormonal & Neural Bases of Sexual
Behavior:
The Limbic System
• The limbic system is a set of structures that
form a border between the central part of the
brain and the outer part (the cerebral cortex).
– The brain scanning technique called
functional MRI confirmed that several
structures in the limbic system were
activated in healthy men by watching erotic
films.
Limbic System of the Brain
 Hormonal & Neural Bases of
Sexual Behavior:
Effects of Hormones
• Sex hormones interact with the nervous
system to influence sexual response.
– Hormones present during prenatal development
have important organizing effects and cause a
relatively permanent change in the nervous or
reproductive systems.
– Activating effects either activate or deactivate
certain behaviors.
 Hormonal and Neural Bases of
Sexual Behavior: Testosterone
• Testosterone has well-documented effects
on libido in humans.
– Sexual desire is rapidly lost if a man is given an
antiandrogen drug.
– Androgens are used successfully in the
treatment of women who have low sexual
desire.
 Erogenous Zones

• Parts of the body that are sexually

sensitive.
• Stroking them or otherwise stimulating
them produces sexual arousal.
 Erogenous Zones
• Examples:
– Genitals
– Breasts
– Lips
– Neck
– Thighs
– Back
– Ears, stomach, and feet
 One-Person Sex
• Autoeroticism - sexual self-stimulation
– Masturbation - self-stimulation of
genitals with the hand or some other
object.
– Some men and women masturbate as
they view erotic images in magazines,
on video or DVD, or on the Internet.
 Sexual Fantasy

• Sexual thoughts or images that

alter the person’s emotions or
physiological state.
 Vibrators, Dildos, and Such
• Dildo - rubber or plastic cylinder, often
shaped like a penis, that can be inserted into
the vagina or anus.
• Vibrators - some shaped like a penis and
others not, some are electric and some
battery-operated; used for masturbation.
• Body oils - popular for sexual use and have
a sensuous quality that heightens erotic
feelings.
 Two-Person Sex
• Kissing
• Touching
• Hand stimulation of the male genitals
• Hand stimulation of the female genitals
 The Other Senses
• Sights
• Smells
• Sounds
• Fantasy during two-person sex
 Mouth-Genital Stimulation
• Cunnilingus - mouth stimulation of the female
genitals.
• Fellatio - mouth stimulation of the male
genitals.
• Sixty-Nining - simultaneous mouth-genital
stimulation; also called soixante-neuf.
• Anilingus - mouth stimulation of the partner’s
anus.
 Genital-Genital Stimulation:
Positions of Intercourse
• Coitus (sexual intercourse) - the insertion of the
penis into the vagina.
– Man on top - missionary position
– Woman on top
– Rear entry
– Side to side
– Other variations
• Anal intercourse - insertion of the penis into the
partner’s rectum.
From Inexperience to Boredom:
Boredom
• Possible consequence of long-term sexual
relationships.
– communicate
– sex manuals
– rejuvenate other aspects of relationship
– don’t expect too much from sex
From Inexperience to Boredom:
Inexperience
• Not everyone is as experienced as
society expects, which may cause
performance anxiety.
– accept inexperience
– “how-to” manuals
– communicate
Retrograde Ejaculation
 Hormonal and Neural Bases of
Sexual Behavior: G-Spot
• The Grafenberg spot (G-spot, female
prostate, or Skene’s glands) is located on
the top side of the vagina, about halfway
between the pubic bone and the cervix.
– Stroking it produces sexual pleasure.
G-spot
Hand Stimulation of the Penis
Man-on-Top Intercourse Position
 Woman-on-Top
Intercourse Position
Rear-Entry Intercourse Position
Side-to-Side Intercourse Position
Sixty-Nine Position
Techniques of Lesbian and Gays
• Mutual masturbation
• Use of dildo to stimulate partner
• Fellatio
• Cunnilingus
• Anal sex
• Interfemoral intercourse - a man moves his
penis between partner’s thighs.
• Tribadism - a woman lies on top of another and
moves rhythmically in order to produce sexual
pleasure.
Female-to-Female
Sexual Expression
Male-to-Male Sexual Expression