Adult Sexuality Young Adulthood What happens o Gender identity orientation sexual attitudes strengthen Problems deciding about gender differences Sexism o Hostile Sexism Overtly negative toward someone for their gender Reflective of male dominance Serves to put the woman back in her place o Benevolent sexism Subjectively positive Reward for conforming to gender roles o Questionnaire Looked at studies o What s the harm Both types of sexism exist cross culturally Supports that it is harmful Benevolent sexism is more harmful Job interview study Interviewer o Benevolent and likeably girl isn t competent enough Sex Alcohol And STIs 86 use of birth control o most common Pill STI risk o Condoms Low use compared to younger age 14 17 Correctly Often incorrectly o College age Highest risk for STIs worldwide Most common Chlamydia only one curable Herpes HPV warts Show no symptoms Get tested Too expensive Alcohol and Sex I don t want to know o Effects Problems Brain Impaired Inhibition Decision making Response time Motor function Planning Arousal What happens More sex when wouldn t Different sex than would have Less use of barrier method Frontal Lobe impairment Cohabitation and Marriage Cohabitation o Living together in a romantic relationship Increasing 1960 400 000 1990 3 2 million 2000 5 5 million 2008 6 8 million Marry or break up 75 say they plan to marry 55 actually get married 40 break up 5 stay living together strong trend toward cohabitation before marriage 40 of single mother births actually cohabitating More likely to divorce if cohabitated before marriage 60 Why More marriage cautious View divorce differently Slightly more liberalized than those who don t cohabitate Children of divorce tend to cohabitate Marriage o Trend toward waiting later and later Career and education Greater acceptance of singlehood and cohabitation o Gay marriage Defense of Marriage Act DOMA Civil rights issue not love and attraction Marriage is a legal issue Differences between gay couples and straight couples No distinction between the quality of relationships Small differences Gay couples better at o Keeping sense of humor in o Not taking things personally in o Maintaining low physiological arousal arguments arguments in arguments Why Socialized in the same direction Gay parenting Anti gay Do the kids differ from heterosexual raised kids o studies show that kids do much worse o Kids need a mom and a dad o Why Comparing single parent to dual parent families Does the dual parenting have to be husband and wife Or just two parent figures o Just need two adults participating in the parenting of kids One area of difference o Kids raised by same sex couple tend to be more flexible with gender roles with other people Gartrell Looked at 78 kids raised by lesbians donor sperm By parent report o Doing better with academics and confidence and lower on rule breaking Adoption Laws Depends on the state country or region o Marriage and Sex Do people stop having sex once they get married 80 cohabitating couples have sex 1 several a week 80 married couples say the same Difference 15 Cohabitating couples 4 or more 15 married couples say no sex Why the difference o Children o No longer high levels of infatuation Do happy couples have more sex Distress leads to less sex tend to have more yuck Couples who are happier DO have more sex Couples who have more sex are happier Why Circular reasoning Is orgasm the best definition of satisfaction Cannot be the only definition of satisfaction Sexual satisfaction is BIGGER than orgasm Aging and Sexuality Do we lose our sexuality as we age o SAGA Health Survey 2011 Over age 50 asked from age 30 85 said frequency had decreased 61 sex was more fulfilling 42 said they were sexuality active at least once a week Why 60 said it was more satisfying even after 40 No more kids No stresses of work less stress in general No unwanted pregnancy o Lindau 2007 Mutually voluntary sexual activity 73 of youngest sex still having regular sex 25 older set were still having regular sex Why Lower availability of a partner More of a problem from women men die earlier Physical changes o Gradual age related changes Women estrogen and testosterone decline Menopause Lubrication takes longer to occur Men testosterone decline Erections less firm but last longer before orgasm Longer refactor period Orgasmic changes Physical intensity is lower Subjective intensity has not changed People who report more sexuality have been sexual all Factors in decline o Use it of lose it along o Availability of partner o Opportunity of sexual activity Other issues o LGBT invisibility Nursing communities are built around heterosexuals Report sex being important in both hetero and homo people o Sexuality and dementia Lose inhibitory control Can you give consent Large ethical issues about consent o Role of professionals Restricting intimacy Wishes of family member is more important than the wishes of the resident Tend to engage in biases against old people sex 68 older than 65 topic of sex had never come up o STIs 11 of all new AIDS are people over 50 In Florida 25 of HIV occur in heterosexual couples Why Not talking about prevention of STIs No longer testing Mucus thins easier to get STI o Should you encourage your grandparents to have sex YES Why Better well being Lower rates of depression May live longer