Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy

Problematic pornography use and its adverse consequences are prevalent, but little is known about its psychosocial contributors. Drawing on the Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model (DSMM), this study explores whether and how perceived problematic Internet pornography use is associated with psychological factors from three domains: social (i.e., family adaptability), dispositional (i.e., self-acceptance), and development factors (i.e., impulse control difficulties). Analysis of an anonymous survey of 1,483 Chinese emerging adults showed that family adaptability and self-acceptance were negatively correlated with perceived problematic pornography use, whereas impulse control difficulties were positively correlated with perceived problematic pornography use...

Parallel to the advent of social media and the easy access to online pornographic content there is a sharp increase in adolescent females expressing gender dysphoria worldwide. This paper argues that treatment of gender dysphoria in female adolescents must include explicit exploration into their use and exchange of pornographic content, as well as possible online or offline contacts with adults. Possible avenues of how pornographic content may increase the shame and fear of becoming a woman include the acquisition of misogynistic sexual scripts based on false assumptions on sexuality including the normalization of the violation of females as pleasurable for them, peer influence among female friendship groups, the susceptibility of our medical systems to "mass hysteria" phenomena, easier access of adults with sexually abusive intentions to youth through social media, sexual abuse and victim blaming on females, as well as the influence of pornography on mentalization capacities...

This study investigated patterns of sexual agreement for extra-dyadic sex and their associations with sexual risk behaviors among men who have sex with men (MSM) having a regular male sex partner (RP) in China. A cross-sectional telephone survey was conducted among 530 MSM recruited through multiple sources in Hong Kong, China, between April and December 2020. This study was based on a subsample of 368 participants who had an RP in the past 6 months. Logistic regression models were fitted. Among the participants, 27...

Negative genital self-image is linked with lower sexual satisfaction, but no research has examined its association with perceptions of partners' sexual satisfaction. In two studies ( N  = 475, N  = 234), we examined links between genital self-image and own and individuals' perceived partner sexual satisfaction. In the second study, we tested whether a mindfulness intervention moderated these associations. In both studies, more negative genital self-image was significantly associated with individuals' lower own and perceived partner sexual satisfaction concurrently and over a two-week period...

According to models of responsive sexual desire, desire emerges from sexual arousal. This study examined how sexual desire type (dyadic-partner, dyadic-other, solitary) and relationship satisfaction affect the connection between subjective sexual arousal (SSA) and desire. Women ( N  = 100; 27% with sexual interest/arousal disorder symptoms) reported SSA while viewing a sexual film. Solitary and dyadic responsive sexual desire were assessed immediately before and following the film (immediate desire) and three days later (delayed desire)...

Increased research attention to interpersonal factors in genitopelvic pain conditions, such as vulvodynia, have led to more comprehensive understanding of couple dynamics in pain, sexual, and relationship outcomes. There has been very little examination of interpersonal factors in Persistent Genital Arousal Disorder/Genitopelvic Dysesthesia (PGAD/GPD), a distressing condition involving persistent sensations of arousal and often pain. The aims of the present study were to examine whether individuals disclose their symptoms to intimate partners and whether interpersonal variables (e...

Metacognitions about sex are theorized to shape cognitive appraisal, coping mechanisms, and regulation or dysregulation before, during, and/or after exposure to sexual stimuli. In our study, we examined the construct structure and validity of the Metacognitions about Sex Scale (MSS) among a sample of adolescents. We estimated the convergent validity of the MSS by factors: negative affect, dysregulated thoughts, and impulsivity, and compulsive sexual behavior (CSB). We also ran a structural equation model in which we examined the possibility that metacognitions about sex would mediate the association between negative affect, dysregulated thoughts, and impulsivity on the one hand, and CSB on the other...

The Sexual Satisfaction Scale for Women (SSS-W) is a psychometrically sound, widely used instrument for assessing sexual satisfaction and distress in women. Because the majority of scale items are gender nonspecific, numerous researchers have adapted this scale for use in male samples. The goal of the current study was to assess the reliability and validity of a slightly modified version of the SSS-W in a male sample ( N  = 268). A Confirmatory Factor Analysis of five previously established factors provided evidence for consistency of internal structure in men...

Studies have indicated the impact of exposure to objectifying media on objectification and relationship satisfaction from a romantic context. This study examined the association between viewing objectified short-form videos and self-and partner-objectification (i.e., objectifying one's partner), as well as relationship satisfaction among Chinese women. The study participants comprised 241 Chinese women in romantic relationships who were recruited online. Participants completed measures of viewing objectified male and female videos, self-objectification (SO), partner-objectification (PO), and relationship satisfaction...

This study assessed dyadically the relationship between psychosocial impact of infertility experienced by 87 couples and individual coping strategies, perceived social support and some medical factors. Although problem-focused strategies emerged as positive, certain side effects on partner were revealed. Social support was related to psychosocial outcomes in a positive way, cognitive component of coping strategies resulted as a prominent factor on individual's adjustment as well as the partner's role. Findings suggest the convenience of promoting the awareness about the effects of each partner's feelings, behaviors and beliefs on his/her individual's well-being in this field due to the interdependent context in which they are...

Despite much empirical study of the complex association between pornography use and relationship health, little research has been conducted on the quality of communication about pornography use within relationships, which may meaningfully impact its association with relationship health. We used reflexive thematic analysis and behavioral intimacy theory to analyze responses to an online survey in which 146 individuals (77.3% women) in committed relationships described their communication with their partner about pornography use...

Relationship maintenance has shifted from understudied to extensively researched in the past two decades due to its close association with satisfaction. This study aimed to validate the Relationship Maintenance Scale (EMP) in a sample of young adults in Lima. The sample included 899 participants aged 18-25 (Mean = 20.67, SD  = 2.54); 690 females (76.80%) and 209 males (23.20%), all in relationships of at least three months (Mean = 22.05, SD  = 19.95). Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) were used to determine the EMP's structure, with Omega coefficient (ω) estimating reliability...

We investigated distinct profiles in emotion regulation strategies (reappraisal and suppression) and their associations with sexual function and mental health. The online survey sample consisted of 5436 adult participants. The gender stratified cluster analysis resulted in a four-cluster solution for both men and women. Better sexual function and mental health scores were found for participants with high cognitive reappraisal and low expressive suppression. High expressive suppression was associated with higher anxiety and depression and worse sexual function...

Virtual Reality (VR)-based treatments for anxiety disorders are efficacious but there is a lack of research examining anxious responses to VR erotica, which could innovate treatments for sexual difficulties. We examined erotica features that elicited anxiety and sexual presence in women. Thirty-eight women viewed erotic videos from different modalities (2D, VR) and points of view (1st , 3rd person) and completed anxiety and sexual presence measures before and after each video. Women experienced greater anxiety for VR than 2D films and reported the most anxiety for VR 1st person films...

Several questionnaires have been developed to evaluate female sexual dysfunction (FSD) and sexual health problems. However, there is a lack of validated versions of these questionnaires in Arabic. One of the most used instruments is the female version of The Sexual Dysfunctional Beliefs Questionnaire (SDBQ). The current study aimed to validate an Arabic version of the SDBQ. The Arabic version of SDBQ-Female was incorporated into an online questionnaire using and distributed among Jordanian Facebook groups and women-only groups...

Sexual aversion disorder (SAD) is a chronic condition that impacts sexual and psychological well-being. However, the relevance of SAD as a discrete disorder remains highly debated. This study aimed to clarify the status of SAD as either a distinct disorder or a trans-diagnostic symptom shared among sexual dysfunctions. This cross-sectional study used a latent class analysis approach among a Canadian community sample ( n  = 1,363) to identify how patterns of SAD symptoms (i.e., sexual fear, disgust, and avoidance) emerge across different spheres of sexual functioning (i...

Sexual violence has been defined as any sexual act perpetrated against someone's will. Sexual violence has many negative consequences for the victims. The most prevalent mental health issue in victims is posttraumatic stress disorder. However, a new trend in positive psychology suggests that many survivors of traumatic events, in addition to negative repercussions, adapt and develop positive personal changes, i.e., Posttraumatic growth (PTG), to mitigate their impact. This review explores the literature on posttraumatic growth among survivors of sexual violence...

The Sexual Self-Consciousness Scale (SSCS) is an instrument for assessing dispositional propensities for self-consciousness experienced in a sexual context, with wide application in both clinical and research settings. The objective of the current study was to test some psychometric characteristics of the Portuguese version of the SSCS using a convenience sample of 210 men and 210 women. Participants completed a sociodemographic questionnaire and the Portuguese version of the SSCS. A subsample of 87 participants was assessed at a second time point after a 2-week period for measuring test-retest reliability of the instrument...

This study aimed to develop the Therapists' Attitude toward Sexual and Erotic Feelings (TASEF) scale for assessing therapists' attitudes and responses toward sexual and erotic feelings in therapy. A total of 507 therapists participated in two separate studies. Study 1 focused on finalizing the format of the TASEF and evaluating its construct validity. Through Exploratory Graph Analysis, four factors were identified within the TASEF questionnaire: Gratification, which captures the positive affect experienced by therapists in response to a patient's sexual attraction toward them; Fear, which represents therapists' apprehension or discomfort when encountering sexual feelings from the patient; Threat, which reflects the perception of risk or danger that erotic transference poses to the patient, therapist, and the therapeutic process; and Aversion, which encompasses the therapist's discomfort or aversion toward the patient's sexual feelings...

Approximately 1 in 3 women experience low sexual desire. Despite this being a common concern, many women never seek professional help for their difficulties and will instead turn to online resources for information. We sought to address this need for digitally-accessible, evidence-based information on low sexual desire by creating a social media Knowledge Translation (KT) campaign called #DebunkingDesire. Our team led a 10 month social media campaign where our primary outcomes for the campaign were impressions, reach, and engagement...