Synopses & Reviews
The Psychology of Human Sexuality offers a comprehensive overview of human sexual behavior from a biopsychosocial perspective. The text highlights psychological research and theory on human sexuality whilst also considering the biological, evolutionary, social, and cultural factors that influence our sex lives.
- Features comprehensive coverage of topics including gender and sexual orientation, relationships, sexual behaviors, sexual difficulties and solutions, prostitution, and pornography
- Offers more in-depth treatment of relationships than comparable texts, with separate chapters dealing with attraction and relationship processes
- Written from a sex-positive perspective, and is inclusive and respectful of a diverse audience
- Includes numerous activities to facilitate a dynamic and interactive classroom environment
Review
Lehmiller has written an impressive, up-to-date coverage of human sexuality. Well-researched and beautifully written, it surveys the vast and tangled realm of human sexual behavior with gentle respect and insight. Everyone will learn something new from this book and come away impressed with a new appreciation of this vital domain of human social life.
—
Roy Baumeister, author of The Cultural Animal: Human Nature, Meaning, and Social Life Going both wide and deep, Lehmiller has produced a singular feat of scholarship that will not only get students and teachers talking about sex, but will inspire conversations about human sexuality that are informed, accurate, lively and respectful"
—Ian Kerner, sexuality counselor and NY Times best-selling author of She Comes First
The Psychology of Human Sexuality is a comprehensive, progressive, and in-depth research-based examination of human sexuality, covering both depth and breadth of contemporary issues in human sexuality. It would be an ideal text for a course for psychology students looking to gain a broad understanding of the field of human sexuality.
—Professor Kristen P. Mark, Director of Sexual Health Promotion Lab, University of Kentucky, USA
About the Author
Justin J. Lehmiller is a College Fellow in the Department of Psychology at Harvard University. He has published over 25 articles and book chapters in such publications as the Journal of Sex Research and the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, and he is frequently interviewed by news and media outlets.
Table of Contents
About the Author xi
Foreplay xii
Illustrations xiv
Text Boxes xx
Tables xxii
1 Theoretical Perspectives on Human Sexuality 1
2 Sexology Research: History, Methods, and Ethics 27
3 Human Sexual Anatomy 55
4 Human Sexual Response: Understanding Arousal and Orgasm 87
5 Gender and Gender Identity 115
6 Sexual Orientation 144
7 The Laws of Attraction 171
8 Intimate Relationships: Sex, Love, and Commitment 196
9 Sexual Behaviors 229
10 Sex Education, Contraception, and Pregnancy 255
11 Sexually Transmitted Infections and Safer-Sex Practices 279
12 Sexual Dysfunction and Sex Therapy 302
13 Variations in Sexual Behavior 328
14 Sex Laws, Sexual Victimization, and the Sexual Marketplace 351
Epilogue 378
Glossary 379
Index 391