The Impact of Intimate Partner Violence on Sexual Attitudes, Sexual Assertiveness, and Sexual Functioning in Men and Women

Topics and timing of sexuality and relationship education for autistic and non-autistic adults in the United States

INTRODUCTION

Sexuality and relationship education is a learning area that historically has been overlooked, especially for autistic individuals. To inform future programming, we are in need of evidence-based reasoning to guide program design, such as what to cover and when. In particular, the social aspects of sexuality and relationship education, which are less commonly addressed, need further scrutiny.

OBJECTIVE

To identify sexuality and relationship education priorities and timelines based on feedback from autistic and non-autistic adults.

METHODS

An online anonymous survey of adults in the United States posed questions about sexuality and relationship education, sexual and relationship experiences, and autistic traits.

RESULTS

Comparisons by diagnostic group (autistic and non-autistic) revealed no significant differences in the timing of sexual experiences. Autistic individuals were significantly more likely to indicate that they wanted to learn more about gender identity, sexual orientation, consent, and assertiveness than non-autistic peers. However, the majority of all participants across diagnostic groups wanted more information across all surveyed topics.

CONCLUSIONS

Lack of differences in timing of sexuality-related experiences highlights the importance of beginning sexuality and relationship education early for all learners. Important diagnostic group differences highlight critical areas of development for sexuality and relationship education programming. The importance of incorporating needs of autistic learners into program design is highlighted for future work. Overall findings support the idea that more sexuality and relationship education across the lifespan would best meet the learning needs of all people.

Measurement Invariance across Sexual Orientation for Measures of Sexual Attitudes

Despite the growing interest in the study of sexual attitudes across sexual orientation, few studies have tested whether the instruments used to measure them are invariant. This study examined measurement invariance (configural, weak, strong, and strict) across sexual orientation in three different sexual attitude scales: the Sexual Opinion Survey (SOS) to assess erotophilia, the Hurlbert Index of Sexual Fantasy (HISF) to assess attitudes toward sexual fantasies, and the Negative Attitudes Toward Masturbation Inventory (NATMI) to assess negative attitudes toward masturbation. A total of 2293 Spanish adult men and women with different sexual orientations (i.e., heterosexual, bisexual, and gay) participated in the study. The results indicated strict invariance for HISF across sexual orientation and only weak invariance for SOS and NATMI. Differential item functioning was also found in two items of the NATMI scale. Evidence of validity was provided for the three scales that were studied.

Identifying themes relevant to sexual dissatisfaction of dual career couples: Design and effectiveness of a psycho-educational package - A mixed method study

BACKGROUND: Today, dual-career couples are becoming increasingly prevalent around the world. Due to the nature of the life of this group of people, their sexual and marital life can be damaged. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to develop a psycho-educational model based on the lived experiences of dual career couples who are dissatisfied with sexual relations and its effectiveness on sexual satisfaction. METHODS: This research was done based on a mixed (qualitative and quantitative) method. The qualitative part was performed using the phenomenological method and 13 couples were selected for semi-structured interviews using the purposive sampling method. In a small part of this study, a single case plan (AB plan) was used, and three couples were selected from those who referred to counseling centers in Ardabil and underwent counseling interventions. In a small part, the Sexual Satisfaction Questionnaire was used to measure the changes of couples during the implementation of the intervention program. The information obtained in the qualitative part was analyzed through content analysis and the quantitative part was analyzed using visual analysis, clinical significance and recovery percentage. RESULTS: Based on the results obtained in the qualitative analysis section, the experiences of sexual dissatisfaction of dual-career couples can be classified into 10 main themes, 20 sub-themes and 30 categories that affect the sexual satisfaction of dual-career couples. The results of the quantitative section indicate that the designed psycho-educational model has led to an increase in sexual satisfaction of dual-career couples. CONCLUSION: Achieving sexual and marital satisfaction and finally mental health and reducing divorce is a process that begins with pathology in the cultural context and is achieved by emphasizing indigenous culture through developing a counseling package for appropriate intervention by therapists and counselors.

Sexual Assertiveness and Its Correlates in Emerging Adults: An Exploratory Study in Cuenca (Ecuador)

Objective: Sexual assertiveness (SA), i.e., the ability to communicate thoughts and desires that may be translated into satisfying sexual activity within an intimate relationship, is important for safe and satisfying sexual behavior. In an attempt to unravel which cultural, relational, and individual variables are related to the development of SA in emerging adults, an exploratory study was conducted in Cuenca, Ecuador. Methods: Five hundred and thirty-eight participants completed scales that measured their levels of SA, endorsement of the sexual double standard, relationship satisfaction, and mental well-being. Results: This study showed a negative effect of the sexual double standard on SA in both men and women and this effect was slightly tempered by the level of education. Women reported higher levels of SA than men. In women, SA was associated with general mental well-being and relationship satisfaction; but not in men. For both women and men, no association was found with relationship status or duration. Conclusions: These findings corroborate evidence highlighting the importance of SA for healthy sexual relationships and emphasize the importance of (sex) education for SA for lower educated women and men. The results are discussed in relation to findings on SA in other contexts.

Association of Sexual Attitudes with Sexual Function: General vs. Specific Attitudes

Background: Sexual attitudes are related to the expression of sexuality and have been associated with indicators for sexual health. The main aim of this study was to determine the explanatory capacity of general (i.e., erotophilia) and specific (i.e., toward sexual fantasies and masturbation) sexual attitudes on different sexual functioning dimensions (sexual desire, sexual arousal, lubrication/erection, ability to have an orgasm and orgasm satisfaction). Methods: The sample consisted of 2000 heterosexual adults (1044 women, 956 men) aged 18-83 years. Results: The explanatory models for women mainly showed that positive attitudes toward sexual fantasies (β range = -0.35, -0.249) and age (β range = -0.111, 0.086) explained sexual function. The models proposed for men revealed a more diverse pattern, although the variable essential for explaining sexual function was a positive attitude toward sexual fantasies (β range = -0.266, -0.097). Conclusions: These results indicate that specific sexual attitudes, particularly in relation to sexual fantasies, are more sensitive variables than erotophilia in examining sexual health.

Sexual assertiveness in women with and without substance-dependent partners: a comparative study

Sexual assertiveness is one of the main issues in the sexual relationships between couples. Since substance dependence might disrupt this relationship, the present cross-sectional study was conducted to assess and compare sexual assertiveness in women with and without substance-dependent partners living in Tehran, Iran. To assess sexual assertiveness, the Hurlbert Index of Sexual Assertiveness was used. The data then were compared between the study samples. Logistic regression analysis was performed. In all 300 women with and without substance-dependent partners entered into the study. The mean age of women was 37.31 ± 8.79 and 32.70 ± 7.24 years respectively. The mean score of sexual assertiveness was 50.66 ± 14.31 in the women with substance-dependent partners and 58.42 ± 13.86 in those with non-substance-dependent partners (P < .001). In addition, sexual assertiveness differed significantly among subgroups of women having a partner using different types of substances (P = .039). The risk of lower assertiveness for women with substance-dependent partners was 2.2 times more than women with non-substance-dependent partners (OR = 2.2, 95% CI: 1.28-3.70; P = .004). Indeed, the partner's substance dependency is an issue that is worthy of attention in sexual and marital counseling. Perhaps sexual assertiveness can be improved in women with substance-dependent partners through the implementation of appropriate interventions, such as educational and counseling programs.