Introductory psychologyLesson 3 of 4 in the course Emotion and Motivation

Sexuality and Gender: Biology, Research, Identity, and Culture

5 flashcards · 4 quiz questions · 5 match pairs · 5 fill-in sentences · English

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Summary

Sexual behavior involves interacting bodily systems, but the ability to engage in sexual activity is not identical to the motivation to do so. This lesson introduces evidence about the brain, hormones, and sexual response.

Research on animals has helped scientists investigate the neural systems involved in sexual behavior. The hypothalamus contributes to motivated behaviors and endocrine regulation. In male rats, damage to the medial preoptic area, a region within the hypothalamus, disrupts the ability to perform sexual behavior. Yet the animals may still work to gain access to a receptive female.

All flashcards

How do sexual motivation and sexual ability differ?
Motivation concerns seeking sexual activity; ability concerns performing it. They are related but can involve partly distinct systems.
What does research suggest about testosterone and sexual motivation in humans?
Sexual motivation can vary in association with circulating testosterone, but hormone levels do not determine it on their own.
What is a refractory period?
A period after orgasm during which a person is temporarily unable to experience another orgasm; its length varies.
What did the Kinsey scale represent?
A historical continuum for categorizing patterns of sexual orientation, rather than assuming everyone fits only two categories.
How does sexual orientation differ from gender identity?
Sexual orientation concerns patterns of attraction; gender identity concerns a person's inner sense of their gender.

Quiz questions

  1. What was the central purpose of the Kinsey scale?Answer: To represent sexual orientation as varying along a continuum.
  2. Which sequence gives the four phases in the sexual response cycle described by Masters and Johnson?Answer: Excitement, plateau, orgasm, resolution.
  3. What does aromantic commonly describe?Answer: Little or no romantic attraction.
  4. What does heteronormativity describe?Answer: A social assumption that heterosexuality is the norm.

Based on Psychology 2e by Rose M. Spielman, William J. Jenkins, Marilyn D. Lovett (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.

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