A study will be conducted to determine whether Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), improves the sexual well-being of survivors of sexual assault by decreasing experiential avoidance. The hypotheses for this study are that 1) Levels of reported sexual well-being will increase in participants in the ACT condition; 2) Based on ACT’s explicit emphasis on reduction of experiential avoidance (Hayes, 1999; Hayes, 2016), it is hypothesized that levels of reported avoidance will decrease in participants in the ACT condition; 3) Due to the link between avoidance and sexual problems in female survivors of sexual assault proposed by Ensink & Van Berlo (2000), it is hypothesized that avoidance will act as a mediator in the relationship between ACT and sexual well-being such that lower levels of avoidance will be correlated with higher levels of sexual well-being. A minimum of 128 female college students who have survived sexual violence will be recruited and randomly assigned to receive either the ACT condition or the Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) condition, which will serve as a control. Prior to experiencing therapy, participants will take the Demographic and Sexual History Questionnaire, adapted from Byers & Lemieux, 2008. After going through therapy, participants will take a survey measuring sexual well-being and avoidance. Since there are no established measures for sexual well-being, it will be measured by creating a composite score from three measures: sexual self-esteem, sexual functioning, and sexual anxiety.

Sexual pleasure and intimacy are fundamental and innate human needs. Individuals with physical disabilities often find it difficult to meet these needs because of such factors as impaired mobility and lack of knowledge about sexual health. People with physical disabilities are often seen as asexual and not capable of having sex, and sexuality is often not considered a concern among this population. These misconceptions can result in individuals with physical disabilities not receiving basic sex education or advice and guidance when issues arise. Not receiving this attention may impede disabled individuals' sexual potential and personal relationships. This study's focus was on the unique challenges individuals with muscular dystrophy (MD) face regarding sexual pleasure and intimacy. Humanistic psychology and the human rights theory provided the theoretical framework for this study. Using a qualitative multiple case study approach, 4 individuals with MD were asked what sexual education, if any, they received, and if they did receive sexual education, whether it met their needs. Data were analyzed using open and axial coding. Key findings were that there is an overarching theme of sexual silence and lack of sex education for people with MD. These findings can help inform efforts to provide more inclusive education for people with MD and individuals with other types of physical disabilities. Study findings contribute to social change by showing the importance of the need for more inclusive sexual education. Providing such education will better meet the basic human needs of an often undeserved and stigmatized population and end the silence that individuals with physical disabilities have regarding sexual health and intimacy.

Recent researchers have highlighted the need to consider the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) individual's experience in various social contexts. Only a few studies have examined LGBTQ adolescent and young adult religious experiences. In the current study, 106 LGBTQ adolescent and young adults (18-24 years) were surveyed to gain a better understanding of LGBTQ religious experience, identity integration and the relationship between LGBTQ religiosity and psychosocial outcomes. A multidimensional understanding of LGBTQ religious experiences is presented; participants exhibited a propensity to disidentify with religion and reported religious and sexual identity conflict. While participants did not report a high degree of religious and sexual identity integration, factors related to successful identity integration are presented. Finally, levels of reported depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and minority stress are discussed with suggestions for future research.

The difference in evolutionary interests of males and females can select for traits that favour an individual??s fitness at the expense of their mate??s lifetime fitness. Despite the widespread occurrence of this sexual conflict over reproductive interactions, however, research to date has largely focused on the fitness costs imposed on females by manipulative males. Empirical evidence is particularly sparse for how mating can also be costly for males, the genetic structure of traits involved in reproductive interactions, and how sexual conflict can modify sexual selection in general. My aim was to explore the broader evolutionary consequence of sexual conflict and male-female interactions. In the nuptial-feeding Australian ground cricket, Pteronemobius sp., I used an experimental evolution approach to explore how diet and sexual conflict interact to determine the costs of mating. In the Australian black field cricket, Teleogryllus commodus, I used molecular and quantitative genetic approaches to characterise the fitness consequences and genetic basis of spermatophore attachment, a trait at the centre of inter-locus sexual conflict, and then related this to both condition and male attractiveness. Finally, in T. commodus, I quantified how sexual conflict alters the sexual selection acting on male sexual traits and how this in turn shapes genetic architecture and the persistence of additive genetic variance. My results demonstrate the complex nature of reproductive interactions between males and females. Importantly, I show that diet can mediate the expression of sexual conflict in a mating system and shape the evolution of male life-span. I also show that reproductive interactions influence the fitness benefits that both male and females obtain from mating in ways that are not predicted by current theory and that much of the potential for such traits to co-evolve is via a common genetic association with condition. Finally, I demonstrate that sexual conflict can profoundly modify the process and outcome of sexual selection, thereby influencing how additive genetic variation is maintained in a suite of male sexual traits. These results highlight the need for a greater integration of sexual conflict and sexual selection theory as the evolutionary potential and significance of sexual conflict may currently be underestimated.

This thesis investigates the relationship between identity, behaviour and desire to examine the nature of research among homosexually active men. The hypothesis is that samples of such men necessarily reflect the definitions of sexuality and homosexuality, and their interpretation, by both the researchers themselves and their research subjects, meaning that the research process itself is marked by the subjectivity of the field of sexuality. The relationship between the observer and the observed is intrinsic to research into homosexual subjectivity and the samples obtained, therefore, represent particular kinds of sexual subjects in a particular social and sexual cultural milieu. Research in this field has given pre-eminence to behaviour over identity and desire, and, as such, has usually failed to account for these differences in sexual subjectivities. To investigate this problem, I have reviewed the relevant literature both on subjectivity and on methodological approaches to research among homosexual men, and I have appraised my own ideological and personal relationships with the subject matter. I have examined the nature of the samples of homosexual men I have obtained during my work as a researcher within the Sydney gay community and reanalysed these with regard to the particular problematic I have identified. These investigations and analyses have shown that there are numerous differences within and between the various samples of homosexual men obtained, indicating that methodological frameworks can determine the nature of the samples obtained. These differences in samples also appear to reflect differences in the ways of enacting homosexual desire among the men in the studies. However, they also parallel differences in the definitions and understandings of the target population by the researchers themselves. These differences reflect differences in definition and understanding both of homosexuality and of the population of gay men, but they also represent differing patterns in the ways of being and living ?gay?, differences in sexual subjectivity. ?Gayness? and homosexuality, as concepts in research, are both the subjective basis on which the research endeavour itself is based, as well as its representational outcome.

This thesis is an exploration of perceptions of sexual harassment in Thailand, together with policies and measures against the practice. My main research questions are: How do Thai people perceive sexual harassment? And what can be done to combat and address sexual harassment in Thailand? My research also provides recommendations for measures against sexual harassment in Thailand. The Thai term &quot kan kukkam tang phet &quot is used to convey ???sexual harassment??? in this study. The participants in my study understand kan kukkam tang phet as a broad term covering sexual behaviors that range from verbal harassment to rape. In general, the participants consider that sexual harassment is a big problem in Thailand. However, my research found that there are some perceptions and attitudes of Thai people that need to be dealt with as obstructions of measures against sexual harassment, such as blaming women as a cause of sexual harassment, anti-women prejudices, and the use of the excuse of cultural differences in implementing anti-sexual harassment laws. In regard to the question of legislation addressing sexual harassment in Thailand and what can be done to help to counter it, my findings are that Thailand has no clear approach to sexual harassment; no clear legal definition of sexual harassment; no specific authority or organization at the national level to redress sexual harassment; and no statistics on sexual harassment by national surveys. The promotion of awareness of sexual harassment has not yet been the subject of formal campaigns. My thesis presents recommendations to address sexual harassment in Thailand, through both legal measures and social measures. The legal measures proposed are sexual harassment law, a code of practice, and revision of the Penal Code. I suggest that sexual harassment law should be based on an ???anti-discrimination??? approach, to be consistent with the obligations of Thailand to implement suitable measures to give effect to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW). Social measures including education, campaigns and surveys on sexual harassment in the Thai community are also recommended in terms of raising the understanding of the concept and awareness of the issue.

In the last thirty years there have been many research studies which have examined the reasons why adolescents and young adults engage in sexual behaviours. Most of these studies have lacked a theoretical basis, Consequently there are many links made between variables, but no consistency across studies, or attempts to develop an underlying theory to explain the results. However, there have been theoretical models developed to explain adolescents’ and young adults’ sexual decision making. Unfortunately, many of these models have not been empirically validated. This thesis attempts to address these deficiencies in the literature by utilising a theory of behaviour and applying it to adolescent and young adult sexual decision making. This theory is the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). Two longitudinal studies were conducted to examine the utility of an adaptation of the TPB to sexual decision making among adolescents and young adults. In the first study 58 adolescent males, aged between 14 years and 18 years participated in a longitudinal study using a questionnaire adapted from the Depth of Sexual Involvement Scale. In the second study, 194 young adults (156 female, 38 male) aged between 18 years and 21 years participated in a similar study. The first study found that intention to engage in behaviour was well predicted, although some of the variables in the model, did not in fact, contribute significantly to the prediction. The prediction of behaviour was less strong than that of intention. Study two found that intention to engage in behaviours was well predicted by the model. However, the degree to which intention led to behaviour was not well predicted. Overall, the results of these studies suggest that the TPB is a good theoretical basis from which to launch a systematic and theoretically informed explanation of adolescent and young adult sexual decision making. However, other factors may need to be added to the model to fully describe the decision making process and accurately predict behaviour. Suggestions are made for future research, as well as interventions that may arise as more knowledge is gathered using this paradigm.

Thesis (M.S.)--Brigham Young University. Dept. of Marriage and Family Therapy, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 63-72).

The purposes of this study are illustrated as follows: to investigate the current situation of demography, internet pornography experience, sexual attitude and behavior among senior high school students, to exam the difference and correlation of those students¡¦demography which is represented on internet pornography experience and sexual attitude, and to try to find out the variables of pornography experience and population, which could be used to predict senior high school students¡¦ sexual attitude in such environment which internet pornography overloads. The data gathered from questionnaires are analyzed by statistical methods such as frequency distributions, mean deviation, reliability analysis, factor analysis, chi-square test, t-test of dependent sample, ANOVA of dependent sample, Pearson¡¦s correlation, and the multiple regression. Results and discussion are summarized as follows: 1. There are 63.7% senior high school students have touch the internet for 5 years, and the degree increase by the years that they touched. They usually talk and make friend on the internet(78.7%) . 2. There are 71.1% senior high school students have touch the internet pornography, and that is they main way to connect the pornography. They touched it for vagary, and they touched it for one hour a day, in nine in the night to twelve in the noon. They touched it at their home. 3. The senior high school students¡¦ sexual attitude is between agree and disagree. 4. There are 10.5% students have sexual behavior, which gather 15 to 17 years old. The contraception they usually took is condom. 5. Sex, school, talking about sexual issues with friend have significant different to internet pornography experience. 6. Sex, grade, school, the school location have significant different to sexual attitude. 7.Internet pornography has different to sexual attitude. Without connecting internet pornography, connecting less time, and taking disagree option, the sexual attitude are more guard. 8.Internet pornography experience and sexual attitude have lower negative correlation. 9.Internet pornography has different to sexual behavior. The more connecting, the more frequency, and the more time cost the students have, their sexual behavior are deeper. 10.Internet pornography experience and sexual behavior have lower correlation. 11.Population and internet pornography information to sexual attitude can validly predict 12% senior high school students¡¦ sexual attitude. Population and internet pornography information to sexual behavior can validly predict 12.6% senior high school students¡¦ sexual behavior.

The purpose of this research was to identify the contributors to optimal sexual experiences. At present, there is a lack of clinical knowledge, research knowledge and in-depth public discourse concerning the nature of healthy sexuality. The theoretical and research literature in this area has focused almost exclusively on defining and conceptualizing sexual dysfunctions with little attention paid to either normal or satisfactory experiences. Very little theory exists on the nature and components of optimal sexuality. To date, no empirical investigations have been done to determine the contributors to optimal sexual experiences. In order to identify the contributors to optimal sexual experiences, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 individuals who reported having experienced “great sex”. A phenomenologically-oriented content analysis was performed on interview transcripts to determine the contributors to optimal sexual experiences. Analysis led to the identification of seven major contributors, two pathways towards optimal sexual experiences and two minor contributors. The major contributors included developmental contributors, individual qualities overall, individual qualities in-the moment, skills, relationship qualities overall, relationship qualities in-the-moment and environmental, situational and preparatory contributors. Each of these larger themes was also characterized by a variety of more specific themes. The two pathways that led to optimal sexual experiences included individual qualities that facilitated relationship qualities and relationship qualities that facilitated individual qualities. Finally, the minor contributors consisted of personal proclivities and miscellaneous contributors. Noteworthy findings of this investigation are discussed and then compared and contrasted with existing research and theory. The implications of this work for the general public, sex therapy, sex education, theory and research are considered as well as the strengths and limitations of this study.