Room 524-C | Sexuality and Gender Friday, July 15, 2005 Time: 8:30 AM-10:30 AM |
Women′s Sexual Well-Being: Sources of Stress and Resilience.
Byers, E. Sandra*,1, Reissing, Elke*,, Archibald, Shannon*,, Cohen, Jacqueline N*,, Payne, Kimberly*,, Weaver, Angela D*,, 1 University of New Brunswick department: Psychology, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
ABSTRACT- Prevailing models of women′s sexuality have been criticized for reducing women′s sexual satisfactions and problems to their capacity for physiological response, effectively discounting the sociocultural, relational, and psychological factors that affect women′s sexual lives (e.g., Tiefer, 1991). This symposium will consist of presentations by four researchers who will discuss factors that affect the sexual well-being of different groups of women. Together these studies identify a number of factors (both positive and negative) that impact on women′s sexuality. Elke Reissing will discuss these factors, emphasizing women′s resilience in negotiating their sexual pleasure and well-being despite substantial stressors. She will also discuss how the diversity in these women′s experiences highlights the multidimensional nature of women′s sexuality. Objectives: (1) To communicate the results of current research on women′s sexuality; (2) To encourage discussion regarding conceptualizations of women′s sexual well-being. Outline & Methodology: The session will include four 20-minute presentations, a 15-minute commentary by a discussant, and a discussion period. Kimberly Payne will present research that examined the influence of sexual arousal on genital and non-genital sensation in women suffering from vulvar vestibulitis syndrome and healthy matched-controls. The results hold implications for the treatment of this condition and inform us as to the nature of healthy sensory function in women across the sexual response cycle. Shannon Archibald will present research indicating that sexual coercion can negatively impact women′s sexual well-being. Her study found that self-blame following sexual coercion was associated with university women′s decreased sexual satisfaction in their opposite-sex dating relationships. Angela Weaver will present research that examined the relationship between women′s body image and their sexual functioning. She will discuss the relations between body image, body mass index, exercise, and sexual functioning among heterosexual university women. Jacqueline Cohen will present findings from interviews with lesbian women regarding their sexual relationships. The women′s responses suggest that the traditional model of sexual response does not adequately capture their sexual experiences, and that relationship and cultural factors are important aspects of their sexual relationships. Relevance: The symposium will comprise current research regarding female sexuality, which has implications in terms of how women′s sexual health is conceptualized, as well as how women′s sexual problems are defined, assessed, and treated. Audience: The symposium will be of interest to sex researchers, particularly those interested in women′s sexual well-being. It will also be of interest to clinicians who treat sexual difficulties.
Key words: women, sexual problems, sexual satisfaction, sexual pleasure, sexual dysfunction