Clozapine vs. Haloperidol: Antipsychotic Effects on Sexual Function in Schizophrenia

This exploratory study compares the effects of clozapine and haloperidol on the sexual function of male and female patients with schizophrenia. Eighty-two relatively young patients with schizophrenia were randomly assigned to a clozapine (N = 40) or haloperidol (N = 42) treatment group for a 2 year period. Items from the Premorbid Asocial Adjustment Scale, the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) and the Quality of Life Scale (QOL) measured sexual function. Results indicated that in late adolescence, prior to being diagnosed for schizophrenia, casual relationships, with or without sexual activity was commonly reported with no significant difference between males and females. After 6 months of treatment, the clozapine treated group showed greater improvement in sexual interest and activity. Clozapine treated males maintained greater interest and activity than clozapine treated females and haloperidol treated males and females. When sexual function is defined as the ability to maintain mature intimate relationships and satisfying sexual activity, females, regardless of drug treatment were superior to males with clozapine females maintaining grossly superior improvement at 24 months.     

Early sexual experience as a factor in prostitution

Using the literature of the early sexual histories of normal women and two recent studies on the sexual histories of prostitutes, this article examines the pattern of early sexual experience among prostitutes and how it differs from that common to nonprostitute women. Some significant differences found between the samples of prostitutes and the samples of normal women were that the prostitute samples, on the whole, learned less about sex from parents and more from personal experiences, as children experienced more sexual advances by elders, were more victimized by incest, generally initiated sexual activity at a younger age, more often had no further relationship with their first coital partner, and experienced a higher incidence of rape. The analysis of these data on early sexual history concentrates on abusive sexual experiences such as incest and rape. The authors believe that an abusive sexual self-identity relates to the development of an adult female pattern of occupational deviance such as prostitution.Research funded through the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service, Division of Research, National Institute on Drug Abuse, Grant No. 1 R01 DA 00918.     

Some sexual,personality, and demographic characteristics of women readers of erotic romances

In two experiments, 24 college women and 48 housewives and businesswomen in Atlanta, Georgia, volunteered to fill out questionnaires to investigate sexual, personality, and demographic variables associated with the reading of best-selling erotic romances. While there were some differences in the results obtained from younger and older women, readers tended to be between 25 and 35 years old (mean age = 30.6) while nonreaders were either younger or older. No differences between readers and nonreaders were found in marital status, income, or education. Measures of traditional versus liberal attitudes toward women's roles, locus of control, self-esteem, and intimacy were similar for both groups. Readers and nonreaders of erotic romances reported different motives for recreational reading (escape versus self-knowledge) and read different kinds of books. Readers reported having sexual relations twice as ofter per week as nonreaders and stated that they frequently used fantasy as a complement to intercourse, while nonreaders did so rarely or never. It was concluded that erotic romances provide a form of sexual stimulation for their readers similar to that provided by sexual fantasies and that they are a form of soft-core pornography that women find socially acceptable and nonthreatening.A preliminary report of this investigation was given at the Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Psychological Association, Atlanta, March 1978.     

Early Childhood Exposure to Parental Nudity and Scenes of Parental Sexuality (“Primal Scenes”): An 18-Year Longitudinal Study of Outcome

As part of the UCLA Family Lifestyles Project (FLS), 200 male and female children participated in an 18-year longitudinal outcome study of early childhood exposure to parental nudity and scenes of parental sexuality(primal scenes). At age 17-18, participants were assessed for levels of self-acceptance; relations with peers, parents, and other adults; antisocial and criminal behavior; substance use; suicidal ideation; quality of sexual relationships; and problems associated with sexual relations. No harmful "main effect" correlates of the predictor variables were found. A significant crossover Sex of Participant × Primal Scenes interaction was found such that boys exposed to primal scenes before age 6 had reduced risk of STD transmission or having impregnated someone in adolescence. In contrast, girls exposed to primal scenes before age 6 had increased risk of STD transmission or having become pregnant. A number of main effect trends in the data (nonsignificant at p < 0.05, following the Bonferonni correction) linked exposure to nudity and exposure to primal scenes with beneficial outcomes. However, a number of these findings were mediated by sex of participant interactions showing that the effects were attenuated or absent for girls. All effects were independent of family stability, pathology, or child-rearing ideology; sex of participant; SES; and beliefs and attitudes toward sexuality. Limitations of the data and of long-term regression studies in general are discussed, and the sex of participant interactions are interpreted speculatively. It is suggested that pervasive beliefs in the harmfulness of the predictor variables are exaggerated.     

Premarital sexual attitudes of unmarried university students: 1968 vs. 1972

Information on premarital sexual attitudes of unmarried undergraduates was obtained from random samples on the same campus in 1968 and 1972. Students in 1972, compared with those in 1968, reported (1) more permissive attitudes toward premarital sexual behavior (both men and women), (2) fewer differences in attitudes between men and women, and (3) less adherence to the double standard. In contrast to earlier research on premarital sexual attitudes, these differences need not be due to the markedly different populations compared, or generalizable only to sociology and psychology students, or indicative of only those who chose to volunteer for study (volunteer bias).This research received support from the Institute for Research in Social Science and the University Research Council, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.     

Sexual Risk-Taking in Gay Men: The Relevance of Sexual Arousability, Mood, and Sensation Seeking

This paper examined the relationship of three aspects of personality to sexual risk-taking in gay men: (1) sexual arousability, as propensity for sexual excitation, and propensity for inhibition of sexual arousal in the face of threat (measured by the Sexual Excitation, SES, and Sexual Inhibition, SIS1, SIS2, scales); (2) the relation between negative mood and sexuality; and (3) sensation seeking. Risk-taking was assessed for the past 6 months in relation to unprotected anal intercourse (UAI), oral sex, number of casual partners, and patterns of cruising behavior. A combination of number of partners and use of condoms was used to derive a longer-term risk grouping. Two patterns of association were identified. UAI and high risk oral sex were more likely in those with low inhibition of sexual response due to threat of performance consequences" (i.e., low SIS2) and low trait anxiety (low STAI). High numbers of casual partners and frequent cruising were associated with increased sexual interest in states of depression and high propensity for sexual excitation (SES). Higher long-term risk was also associated with low SIS2. Unexpectedly, high SIS1, which is strongly related to vulnerability to erectile failure, was also predictive of higher long-term risk. Possible reasons for this are discussed. Disinhibition from the Sensation Seeking Scales was a positive predictor of all types of sexual risk assessed. All three aspects of personality are of potential relevance to designing better interventions to reduce high risk sexual behavior and in evaluating their effectiveness.     

Premarital coitus and commitment among college students

In contrast to some popular speculations about a massive increase in sexual behavior labeled permissiveness without commitment, this survey of 2453 undergraduate students from four geographical areas in the United States provides data which suggest a behavioral pattern of permissiveness with commitment. This pattern of coitus with commitment was evident not only for females, but for males as well. With minor exceptions, the pattern was detected for both sexes in all four geographical regions. Speculation is made about ways in which this pattern may be one outcome of the alleged intersex convergence in sexual attitudes and behavior among American college youth. Implications are drawn for the increment of theory.This is a revised version of a paper presented at the annual meetings of the Southern Sociological Society, New Orleans, Louisiana, April 5, 1972.     

Chronic effects of inorganic and organic mercury onDaphnia magna: Toxicity,accumulation, and loss

The chronic toxicity of mercury (Hg) toDaphnia magna was studied under flow-through and renewed static conditions. Concentrations of mercuric chloride (HgCl₂), methyl mercuric chloride (MMC) and phenyl mercuric acetate (PMA) in flow-through tests significantly affecting survival were 1.92, between 0.26 and 0.98, and 2.25g Hg/L, respectively. Concentrations of HgCl₂, MMC, and PMA significantly impairing young production (P0.05) were 0.72, 0.04, and 1.90g Hg/L, respectively. Body accumulation of mercury was greatly influenced by the chemical form of mercury in the water. About nine times more mercury, added as MMC, was tolerated in daphnids at water concentrations permitting survival than was tolerated when added as HgCl₂. At about the same mercury concentration in water (0.26g Hg/L) daphnids accumulated 20 times more mercury when it was added as MMC than when it was added as HgCl₂. Mercury was rapidly accumulated in daphnids; however, 35 and 57% of the mercury added as MMC and HgCl₂, respectively, was lost when animals were placed in control water for four days following exposure. Different forms of mercury behaved quite differently in renewed-static and flow-through systems. The results also indicate the shortcomings of renewed-static tests with volatile and readily degradable compounds.     

The prevalence of sexually stressful events among females in the general population

Five hundred sixteen adult females were administered a questionnaire inquiring into the nature of sexually stressful events in their lives. There were 500 responses, and, of those, 298 (59.9%) had experienced an event of this type. A total of 416 different incidents were reported. They were categorized by the authors as either noninvasive (harassment, obscene calls, exposures, peepers) or invasive (fondling, attempted rape, rape). The invasive incidents were most often initiated by a friend, acquaintance, or relative. The noninvasive events were almost always perpetrated by strangers. The subjects were asked to report the emotional impact of the events. All were reported to be stressful, with rape being the most stressful event. Regardless of whether formal therapy was sought, all victims reported lowered stress levels over time. There were 98 incidents reported when the subjects were 13 years of age or younger. There were 45 invasive events, including 9 rapes. All the rapes were committed by acquaintances or relatives. Only one victim of childhood rape received professional attention. Of the 41 women who were raped, nearly 75% were raped by acquaintances or relatives. This does not parallel existing emergency room data, suggesting that the group of patients who report to medical authorities may be a skewed sample of rape victims. Only four victims reported their rapes to either legal or medical authorities.     

Sexual orientation and boyhood gender conformity: Development of the Boyhood Gender Conformity Scale (BGCS)

Two hundred twenty-eight respondents (110 heterosexuals and 118 homosexuals) completed a survey containing a 20-item Boyhood Gender Conformity Scale (BGCS). This scale was largely composed of edited and abridged gender items from Part A of Freund et al.'s Feminine Gender Identity Scale (FGISA) and Whitam's childhood indicators. The combined scale was developed in an attempt to obtain a reliable, valid, and potent discriminating instrument for accurately classifying adult male respondents for sexual orientation on the basis of their reported boyhood gender conformity or nonconforming behavior and identity. In addition, 33% of these respondents were administered the original FGIS-A and Whitam inventory during a 2-week test-retest analysis conducted to determine the validity and reliability of the new instrument. All the original items significantly discriminated between heterosexual and homosexual respondents. From these a 13-item function and a 5-item function proved to be the most powerful discriminators between the two groups. Significant correlations between each of the three scales and a very high test-retest correlation coefficient supported the reliability and validity assumption for the BGCS. The conclusion was made that the five-item function (playing with boys, prefering boys' games, imagining self as sports figure, reading adventure and sports stories, considered a sissy) was the most potent and parsimonious discriminator among adult males for sexual orientation. It was similarly noted that the absence of masculine behaviors and traits appeared to be a more powerful predictor of later homosexual orientation than the traditionally feminine or cross-sexed traits and behaviors.     

Comparison of attitudes toward transsexuality and homosexuality

Attitudes toward transsexuality and homosexuality were compared in a sample of 318 university students. More people felt that homosexuality was wrong than felt that transsexuality was wrong. This difference in favor of transsexuality was more pronounced in female than in male respondents. In addition, more people rejected the notion that biological factors were responsible for homosexuality than was the case for transsexuality. General attitudes about the morality of transsexuality and homosexuality, however, were not mirrored in response to questions pertaining to job discrimination. To the contrary, male respondents, especially, were more inclined toward equal opportunity for homosexuals than for transsexuals. One hypothesis supported by this study was that homosexual denial and homophobia in some transsexuals may, in part, be a reflection of society's greater moral condemnation of homosexuality relative to transsexuality.     

State mental hospitals and their host communities: the origins of hostile public reactions

This article examines the hostile public reactions of a community that, through a state policy to consolidate all long-term behavioral health services, was to become the site of the state's only mental hospital. A telephone survey conducted in the host community (n=800) and a matched community (n=800) was used to test whether the origins of hostility toward consolidation were related to the public's negative attitudes toward mental illness and homelessness or to the beliefs about the discharge and supervisory behavior of the hospital. The host community was not found to have more negative views of mental illness, although it did have significantly more negative views about the homeless. Disapproval of consolidation was unrelated to negative views of mental illness or homelessness but was strongly related to the expected bad behavior of the hospital. These results suggest that the best way to improve relations between hospitals and their host communities is for hospitals to behave like good neighbors.     

Feelings About Risk and the Epidemic Diffusion of Adolescent Sexual Behavior

Rapid initiation of sexual risk behavior in adolescents can be explained by diffusion processes similar to those used to model epidemics. These models suggest that novel behavior can spread to all individuals exposed to the behavior. An alternative interpretation places greater emphasis on developmental changes in feelings toward risk behavior that can explain or limit the diffusion process. This research examined the initiation of sexual behavior in adolescents living in high-poverty urban environments. A cross-section of African American youth (N = 355) ages 9–17 living in public housing were interviewed using privacy-enhancing talking computers. Sexual risk behavior (unprotected sexual intercourse) was assessed along with perceived sexual behavior of friends and personal feelings about sexual intercourse and condom use. Age trends in both peer-group perceptions and personal feelings displayed increasing attraction toward risky sex. Diffusion processes were strongly related to sexual initiation and condom use even after controlling for changes in personal feelings. Nevertheless, feelings toward sexual risk behavior moderated the diffusion process. Adolescents with less favorable feelings toward sex were less susceptible to the diffusion of sexual initiation and those with more favorable feelings toward condoms were more likely to use them consistently. Interventions that focus on adolescents' feelings toward risk behavior can help to limit the diffusion of risk behavior in high-risk urban environments.     

Assessment of Sexual Behavior,Sexual Attitudes,and Sexual Risk in Sweden (1989–2003)

To assess changes in sexual behavior, sexual attitudes, and sexual risk related to HIV, we conducted mailed questionnaire surveys in random samples of the Swedish general population in 1989, 1994, 1997, 2000, and 2003 (total N = 13,762). Each sample consisted of 4,000–6,000 subjects aged 16–44 years, stratified by age: 16–17, 18–19, 20–24, 25–34, and 35–44 years. The overall participation rate was 63.8% (for men, 55.9%; for women, 71.9%). The prevalence of three or more sexual partners and casual sexual contacts without the use of a condom was comparatively high for men, for persons aged 16–24 years, single persons with and without a regular partner, and persons living in towns and urban areas. The prevalence of multiple sexual partners and casual sexual contacts increased significantly over time. There was a significant decrease in the proportion of participants who agreed with the statement Sexual intercourse should only take place in a stable relationship. Personal risk assessments related to HIV did not change significantly over time. The study shows that risky sexual behavior related to HIV/AIDS increased in the Swedish population between 1989 and 2003, and that attitudes concerning casual sexual relations became more permissive.     

Formal and informal sex education as determinants of premarital sexual behavior

Controversies exist regarding the effects of sex education in the schools and informal sex education obtained from parents, peers, the mass media, and other sources. Similarly, there is widespread interest in premarital sexual behavior, especially its determinants. This study presents several issues reflecting these concerns which have been the subject of much speculation but which have received little attention by researchers. The purpose of this study was to investigate — through the use of respondent reports — how formal and informal sex education influences premarital sexual behavior during college. A national probability sample of 1177 college students was studied using face-to-face interviews with approximately equal numbers of males and females. These interviews, which were conducted for the Institute for Sex Research, included questions about past and present sexual involvement and other attitudinal, behavioral, and background variables. Accordingly, the data about sexual behavior and attitudes are based on the interviewees' self-reports. Indices were created which operationalized independent variables such as familial sexual conservatism, exposure to eroticism, perceived sex knowledge, and sexual exposure and assault during childhood and adolescence. Individual items reflecting childhood sex play, masturbation, current religiosity, religiosity while growing up, social class, sources of sex information, sex education in classrooms, and high school and college dating were used. The dependent variable, premarital sociosexual involvement, is a composite measure of incidence and prevalence of premarital heterosexual involvement which meets Guttman scaling criteria. An Automatic Interaction Detector analysis was used to determine the relative influences of reported sexualization variables on premarital sexual behavior. Major findings can be summarized as follows: Heterosexual behavior progresses in stepwise fashion from elementary to advanced levels of involvement, with each level representing a threshold. Reports of current influences and pressures explain more variance in premarital sexual behavior than reports of past informal sexualization influences, which, in turn, explain more variance than reported formal sex-educating experiences. Limited success was reported with the use of a four-stage AID analysis which attempted to ascertain whether variables represented in later stages of the sexualization process mask the effects of variables in earlier stages and whether a developmental process can be identified. It may be concluded that these data do not support the belief that exposure to sexuality through formalsex education influences premarital sexual behavior. Informalsex education has significantly more impact on premarital sexual behavior, but there are indications that pressures and experiences confronting young people in a given dating or peer group situation take precedence over all past sexual socialization influences. The original study was funded by NICHD Grant PHS RO1 HD 02257. The secondary analysis for this article was supported by a grant from the Woodrow Wilson Foundation.     

Sexuality,Fertility, and Danger: Twentieth-Century Images of Women with Cognitive Disabilities

Historically, women with cognitive disabilities in the United States have been portrayed as sexually and socially threatening, and in need of professional management and control. Expressions of concern over the sexual nature of this group are still present in medical, legal, and popular cultural discourse. This presentation considers five examples (four nonfiction and one fictional) where the sexual identities of women with cognitive disabilities received national scrutiny: the sterilization of Carrie Buck; the institutionalization of Deborah Kallikak the Glen Ridge sexual assault case; the sterilization of Cindy Wasiek; and the movie The Other Sister. These examples reveal that implicit cultural assumptions (modern fairy tales) about the sexuality and fertility of women with cognitive disabilities are embedded in United States history, and still very much in evidence today.     

The Magical Age of 10

Developmental processes of puberty and their cultural contexts in understanding the emergence of sexual subjectivity, especially sexual attraction, prior to gonadarche are critically examined. In particular, we consider the hypothesis that sexual attraction follows the onset of adrenal puberty, termed adrenarche, precipitating the development of stable and memorable attraction toward others approximately by the age of 10. In a prior study, the authors suggested that adrenarche is a significant source of this developmental change in sexuality (McClintock, M., and Herdt, G., 1996). The inferential evidence from New Guinea is compared with recent studies from the United States, including clinical findings on precocious puberty. We conclude with the question of whether the age of 10 is a human universal in the development of attraction and sexuality.     

Selecting films for sex research: gender differences in erotic film preference

The aim of this study was to explore gender differences in sexual responsiveness to erotic films that had been selected for their differential appeal for men and women. A secondary objective was to identify variables that influence sexual arousal and explore whether these variables differ for men and women. Fifteen men (M age = 26 yrs) and 17 women (M age = 24 yrs) were presented with 20 film clips depicting heterosexual interactions, half of which were female- and the other half male-selected, and were asked to rate the clips on a number of dimensions. Overall, men found the film clips more sexually arousing than did the women. Gender differences in arousal were negligible for female-selected clips but substantial for male-selected clips. Furthermore, men and women experienced higher levels of sexual arousal to clips selected for individuals of their own gender. Cluster regression analyses, explaining 77% of the variance for male and 65% for female participants, revealed that men's sexual arousal was dependent upon the attractiveness of the female actor, feeling interested, and both imagining oneself as a participant and watching as an observer. For women, with all variables entered, only imagining oneself as a participant contributed to sexual arousal ratings. The findings suggest that how films are selected in sex research is an important variable in predicting levels of sexual arousal reported by men and women.     

The role of body image in sexually avoidant behavior

Spectatoring refers to a cognitive self-absorption, wherein individuals fixate on and carefully monitor personal body parts and/or the adequacy of personal sexual functioning. To examine this process within a university population, undergraduate and graduate students (108 male and 140 female) filled out questionnaires that assessed body image, sexual knowledge, global sexual attitudes (i.e., liberal—conservative), general psychological adjustment, and frequency of sexual behaviors. Multiple regression analyses were used to determine if spectatoring, operationalized by measures of body image, would significantly predict sexually avoidant behavior. Results indicated that body image scores significantly predicted frequency of sexual behaviors for both genders, while general sexual knowledge and psychological adjustment did not predict sexual behavior. Overall, sexual attitude scores were the best predictors of sexual approach/avoidance behaviors for both genders. Implications are drawn for future research using the assessment of more global sex attitudes in the study of spectatoring.     

Cognitive and hormonal factors affecting coital frequency

Sexual behavior of female undergraduates was assessed by daily questionnaires. Of the 24 subjects, 13 were taking oral contraceptives (pill subjects) and 11 were using other methods of birth control (nonpill subjects), primarily diaphragm or male prophylactic methods. Three main results were obtained: (1) Intercourse rates were lowest during menstruation and highest immediately following menstruation. (2) Self-rated sexual arousal on a given day correlated with the type of heterosexual encounters on that day rather than with period of the menstrual cycle. (3) Pill subjects reported intercourse on more days than nonpill subjects but reported a lower number of intercourse sessions on days with intercourse than nonpill subjects. These results are interpreted within a general framework of sexual behavior which recognizes the sexual behavior of humans as primarily influenced by cultural and cognitive factors. The possibility is discussed that female sexual behavior might also be found to be affected by hormones if more sensitive measures were used.This research was made possible by Grant M 72.0125C from The Population Council to Cathy J. Spitz and Faculty Research Grants from Wesleyan University to Alice R. Gold and David B. Adams.This paper is based on a thesis submitted by the first author in partial fulfillment for the Master of Arts in Psychology at Wesleyan.