Lecture 21 Sexual Disorders Lecture Outline I. Introduction II. Homosexuality A. Homosexuality as abnormal B. Homosexuality as normal III.Discussion: (Guests) ------------------------------------------- I. Introduction Your text discusses various abnormal patterns of sexual behavior as identified in the DSM-III-R. These include sexual dysfunctions and sexual deviations or the paraphilias (from the Greek para meaning "beside" or "amiss", and philia meaning love). These are two quite distinct classes of disorders: the former referring to problems with normal sexual performance (eg: male erectile disorder, or what was once called impotence), the latter referring to deviations in what society accepts as normal sexual behavior (eg: fetishes). Let us look in more detail at this second class of behaviors: deviations from normative behavior. It is exceedingly difficult to find The definition for what constitutes sexual deviation. There is nothing absolute about what is appropriate sexually. For example (Bootzin & Acocella, 1984): a) Mangaia (an island in the South Pacific): adolescents have sex every night, both males and females are instructed by their older partners, it is expected that each youth have around three orgasms per night. The general expectation for all people who live here: many partners all through one's life. b) Inis Beag (an island off the coast of Ireland): sex is a taboo topic, couples wear underwear during sex, women report never having orgasms. Even within our culture, there is nothing absolute about accepted sexual practices. Traditional sexual morality has come under widespread question in recent decades. II. Homosexuality Perhaps the most controversial sexual variation in Western culture is homosexuality: sexual activity with a member of one's own sex. Homosexuality has been practiced since the earliest periods of recorded history, and has even been widely accepted in certain cultures (Strong & Johns, 1977). Yet in our society, homosexuality is severely stigmatized. Many homosexuals are still faced with the difficult choice of remaining "in the closet" or "coming out". Historically, psychology once viewed homosexuality as a disorder. This view was reflected in the DSM-II: homosexuality was listed as one of the sexual deviation disorders. During the 60's and 70's, however, there was growing debate over this. Defining homosexuality as a disorder seemed more based on values than on any data. In 1973, the board of trustees of the American Psychiatric Association voted to drop homosexuality from its list of disorders. They stated that homosexuality is "a normal form of sexual life" (APA, 1974, quoted in Bootzin & Acocella, 1984). The DSM-III reflected this change: a new diagnostic category was formed: "ego-dystonic homosexuality". This category included only those homosexuals who were distressed by and rejected their own homosexuality. In the revised DSM-III, even this category has been dropped. Now there is merely a category termed "Sexual disorders not otherwise specified" - a residual category for disorders in sexual functioning that are not classifiable in any of the other specific DSM-III-R categories. A person with persistent and marked distress about his/her sexual orientation could be placed in this category. Homosexuality per se has thus been removed, at least "officially", from the list of psychopathologies. This is not to suggest that all psychologists see homosexuality as normal: A. Homosexuality as abnormal There have been numerous theories identifying homosexuality as abnormal. Some researchers (eg: Bieber, 1976) claim to have identified abnormal patterns of upbringing and relationships that seem to lead to homosexuality. Homosexuality is thus said to be the result of disturbed early experiences, including poor family life (eg: for men - extremely poor father-son relationships and an overly involved mother) and poor relationships with same-sex peers. Psychoanalytic theorists suggest that these experiences caused the homosexual to be afraid of heterosexuality, so they become homosexual as a means of denying their fear of same-sex peers. B. Homosexuality as normal There has been much criticism (eg: Davidson, 1976) concerning the data used to support the "abnormality" argument. These criticisms are typically along these lines: Research shows that homosexuals do not in fact suffer from more mental illness than heterosexuals. The families of homosexuals also do not seem to differ in significant ways from those of heterosexuals. The psychological problems suffered by homosexuals may be caused instead by the prejudices and discrimination they meet. Human behavior, this argument continues, is infinitely variable. There is no rational or scientific reason to see homosexuality as abnormal; it is merely a value judgment. III. Discussion The remainder of today's class will be devoted to a discussion with representatives from the local gay/lesbian support group. They are here to answer your questions and clarify your misconceptions, and maybe even challenge you preconceptions. Many of you undoubtedly have questions as well as misconceptions. How about: -do you want to be the opposite sex? Is that the problem? -how can we let you have contact with our children? Won't you "convert" them? -what about AIDS? Is it your fault? Your punishment? -are all gay men effeminate? All lesbian women "butch"? -is there a distinctly homosexual personality type? -do you want to be heterosexual if you could? -what was your childhood like? -what is your present life like? -what are "gay-bars" like? -what are the differences between gay men and lesbian women? -what about the Bible's prohibition? How can some of you claim to be religious? -what was it like for you to "come out of the closet"? -what were the reactions of your family and friends when they found out? I leave the remainder of the hour to our guests... ==== Discussion ====