Choice Of Sexual Partners Research Articles

“How do I put this gently?”: articulating the link between racial selectivity in the sexual market and neighborhood selection in the residential market of a global city

Abstract The global city is acted upon by a myriad of forces—commercial, cultural, diasporic, digital, identitarian, and political to name a few—on local, national, and transnational scales that produce steadily morphing patterns and concentrations of LGBTQ+ residential settlement in and across neighborhoods. Research has sought to unpack the push–pull factors and adhesive elements that exert influence on such residential configurations. This forum piece ventures to articulate empirically one such pattern that has not been approached in the literature, but has, as the title portends, been addressed in anecdote gently (read: cautiously) for some time: the link between an individual’s stated racial preference in sexual-partner choice and that individual’s selection of a neighborhood to live in that has a high percentage of residents of the preferred race.

The link between centrality, gender identity, and sexual pleasure

This manuscript aims to study the effect of having high centrality on the commitment to heterosexual norms and heterosexual scripts. Centrality is the level of importance of one's gender is to an individual's identity which has been traditionally prescribed by stereotypical gender traits. Also, this study will evaluate whether gender identity plays a role in determining an individual's choice of sexual partners’ gender. This study focuses on an individual's gender makeup (on the scale of masculine and feminine) and the participants’ own view of importance for how gender identity plays a role in the way the individual feels about themselves. Previous research has focused on sex roles and gender stereotypes as it pertains to pleasure and intimacy, but these studies have only focused on binary gender identity categories (male/female). The researchers conducted a secondary data analysis using survey data, from the 2020 and 2021 Pleasure Study, on human sexuality that was collected online. There were a total of 1183 respondents in the study of various gender identities. The data shows strong correlations between highly masculine individuals with high centrality choosing sexual partners with high femininity and not individuals with high masculinity. This study showed that cismen with nonbinary partners and ciswomen with nonbinary partners had the lowest average centrality out of all the gender partner combinations.

Partner influences on young women\u2019s risky drug and sexual behavior

BackgroundAdolescent girls with a history of maltreatment are at heightened risk for health-risking behaviors, including unsafe sexual behaviors and drug use. However, few studies have examined the views of this population in regard to sexual partner choice, sexual behaviors, and decisions to use drugs with sexual partners.MethodsWe conducted 15 semistructured, open-ended qualitative interviews with young women ages 18–24 with a history of maltreatment and asked them to reflect on their experiences as adolescents. We used the constant comparison method to group the qualitative coded data into themes.ResultsAnalysis of the interviews suggested that adolescent girls with maltreatment histories often report that they chose partners who are promotive of risky drug and sexual behavior. The interviews also provided insight into why this population is likely to use drugs with their partner and why they might be hesitant to talk about or practice safe sex with their partner.ConclusionThe young women’s feedback highlighted five areas where adolescent girls with maltreatment histories could benefit: (a) provision of information about partner characteristics that are promotive of both risky behavior and those that are linked to healthy relationships, (b) provision of information about how one’s partner can influence one’s own drug use, (c) practice talking about safe sex with partners, (d) provision of information about safe sex practices and the risks associated with unsafe sex, and (e) provision of information about the risks associated with drug use and unsafe sexual behavior to adolescent boys.

Female mate choice and male–male competition in Tonkean macaques: Who decides?

AbstractThe theory of sexual selection predicts that females should be discriminatory in the choice of sexual partners. Females can express their choice in two ways. In direct mate choice, they show preferences for certain partners. In indirect mate choice, they select partners by displaying sexually attractive traits, thus eliciting contest competition between males. We focused on a primate species in which females advertise the timing of their ovulation and studied the balance between these two choice strategies. We tested predictions related to three hypotheses about direct and indirect female choice, namely the best‐male, graded‐signal and weak‐selectivity hypotheses. We investigated the sexual and agonistic interactions occurring during oestrous periods in five captive groups of Tonkean macaques (Macaca tonkeana). The results showed that dominant males used mate guarding to monopolise sexual access to parous females that were in the fertile stage of their reproductive cycle, while lower‐ranking males monitored only nulliparous females. The distribution of sexual presentations indicated that females accepted different types of partners, supporting the weak‐selectivity hypothesis regarding direct mate choice. The analysis of behavioural sequences revealed that mate‐guarding males used mild coercive behaviours to prevent females from mating with other males at conception time. The distribution of mounts showed that females mainly mated with dominant males, which leads us to argue that the best‐male hypothesis provides the most parsimonious explanation regarding indirect mate choice in Tonkean macaques. At the individual level, it may be concluded that male competitive strategies prevented females from exercising direct mate choice. At the evolutionary level, however, female sexual advertising and thus indirect choice promoted competition between males. The outcome is that indirect mate choice appears more important than direct mate choice in female Tonkean macaques.

Plumage coloration, body condition and immunological status in Yellow-billed Cardinals (Paroaria capitata)

Plumage coloration deriving from carotenoid and melanin pigments can be a quality signal in birds, and can be under conspecific inspection in social interactions. For example, parasite load and immune system status can be inferred through plumage color intensity, and can influence the choice of sexual partners. Here, we evaluated two plumage ornaments in the Yellow-billed Cardinal [Paroaria capitata (d’Orbigny & Lafresnaye 1837)]: the carotenoid-based coloration of the cap and the melanin-based coloration of the bib. We evaluated whether these ornaments were related to blood parasite burden, immunological status and body condition, and whether they could reveal individual sex and age. Cardinals were mist-netted in a Brazilian wetland, and 12 individuals were infected with malaria parasites. Both carotenoid and melanin colorations were related to age, but only carotenoids reflected immunological status. Adult cardinals presented redder caps and darker bibs in comparison to juveniles, and redder caps were associated with low values of heterophil to lymphocyte ratio (H/L, indicating lower stress level). Plumage coloration did not indicate individual sex or parasite infection. Taken together, these results demonstrated that both melanin- and carotenoid-based coloration in cardinals can potentially reflect significant information for social interactions, such as individual age and experience, but apparently only carotenoid coloration is condition-dependent and could reliably indicate quality.

Enhancing sexual desire and experience: an investigation of the sexual correlates of gamma-hydroxybutyrate (GHB) use.

Various studies have dealt with gamma-hydroxybutyrate's (GHB) potential role in sexual assaults, while the sexual correlates of intentional recreational GHB use have not well been highlighted. Our study aims to explore GHB's sexual effects, the patterns of choice of sexual partners, the frequency of experienced blackouts, and endured sexual or acquisitory crimes as a result of GHB use. Sixty recreational GHB users filled out a questionnaire on experienced subjective, somatic, and sexual effects of GHB, the frequency of blackouts due to their GHB use, and items on their sexual experiences in relation to GHB use. Of the sample, 25.9% reported increased sexual arousal as well as more intense attraction towards their sexual partners and increased sexual openness when using GHB; 34.8% had sexual intercourse with strangers, or with others, but not with their partners when using GHB; and 8.6% were victims of acquisitory crimes, whereas 3.4% were victims of a sexual assault. Furthermore, 24.6% typically experienced blackouts when using GHB. Gamma-hydroxybutyrate seems to be a potential substitute for both stimulant and depressant substances. Increased sexual desire and disinhibition may lead to a more frequent and potentially more riskful sexual activity. Experienced blackouts need to be considered as risk factors for suffering sexual or acquisitory crimes.

The Sexual Scripts and Identity of Middle-Class Russian Women

The purpose of this article is to provide an analysis of changes in the organization of sexual life among Russian women and to describe a spectrum of sexual scripts that characterize different generations. Based on biographical interviews with urban middle-class women we identify five such scripts of sexual life. On one hand, the analysis shows that representatives of the late Soviet generations are oriented towards the pronatal, romantic and friendship scripts of sexual relationships. Soviet women faced structural barriers in their sexual lives: gender inequality and lack of institutional provision of sexual practices. On the other hand, the analysis shows that the sexual culture of women belonging to the younger, post-Soviet generation differs considerably from that of their (demographic) mothers and grandmothers, the women of the Soviet generations. Among the women belonging to the post-Soviet generation, the hedonistic and instrumental scripts become more articulate. The current rationalization trend in sexual life presumes women’s conscious choice of sexual partners and reproductive strategies. Women are reflexive towards their sexual desire and represent agency, acting intentionally in order to control intimate relationships in which they are involved. However, young women also face numerous barriers caused by the lack of institutional reflexivity on sexuality and gender polarization.

The Problem with Binaries: Coding for Gender and Sexuality

AbstractGender has emerged as the primary social constraint in variation, but the complexities of correlations with a gender binary make it clear that gender must be examined as it interacts with other social constraints (e.g. class). Recent interest in sexuality as a social variable has emerged similarly to that found in studies of gender, with a problematic focus on a binary based on gender choice of sexual partner. This paper examines the problems with the binary treatment of gender and sexuality in variation studies, and considers the consequences and options for the coding and use of large corpora.

How we smell and what it means to us: basic principles of the sense of smell

The origins of the sense of smell lie in the perception of environmental molecules and go back to unicellular organisms such as bacteria. Odors transmit a multitude of information about the chemical composition of our environment. The sense of smell helps people and animals with orientation in space, warns of potential threats, influences the choice of sexual partners, regulates food intake and influences feelings and social behavior in general. The perception of odors begins in sensory neurons residing in the olfactory epithelium that express G protein-coupled receptors, the so-called olfactory receptors. The binding of odor molecules to olfactory receptors initiates a signal transduction cascade that converts olfactory stimuli into electrical signals. These signals are then transmitted to the olfactory bulb, the first relay center in the olfactory pathway, via the axons of the sensory neurons. The olfactory information is processed in the bulb and then transferred to higher olfactory centers via axons of mitral cells, the bulbar projection neurons. This review describes the mechanisms involved in peripheral detection of odorants, outlines the further processing of olfactory information in higher olfactory centers and finally gives an overview of the overall significance of the ability to smell.

Incremental benefits of male HPV vaccination: accounting for inequality in population uptake.

BackgroundVaccines against HPV16/18 are approved for use in females and males but most countries currently have female-only programs. Cultural and geographic factors associated with HPV vaccine uptake might also influence sexual partner choice; this might impact post-vaccination outcomes. Our aims were to examine the population-level impact of adding males to HPV vaccination programs if factors influencing vaccine uptake also influence partner choice, and additionally to quantify how this changes the post-vaccination distribution of disease between subgroups, using incident infections as the outcome measure.MethodsA dynamic model simulated vaccination of pre-adolescents in two scenarios: 1) vaccine uptake was correlated with factors which also affect sexual partner choice (“correlated”); 2) vaccine uptake was unrelated to these factors (“unrelated”). Coverage and degree of heterogeneity in uptake were informed by observed data from Australia and the USA. Population impact was examined via the effect on incident HPV16 infections. The rate ratio for post-vaccination incident HPV16 in the lowest compared to the highest coverage subgroup (RRL) was calculated to quantify between-group differences in outcomes.ResultsThe population-level incremental impact of adding males was lower if vaccine uptake was “correlated”, however the difference in population-level impact was extremely small (<1%) in the Australia and USA scenarios, even under the conservative and extreme assumption that subgroups according to coverage did not mix at all sexually. At the subgroup level, “correlated” female-only vaccination resulted in RRL = 1.9 (Australia) and 1.5 (USA) in females, and RRL = 1.5 and 1.3 in males. “Correlated” both-sex vaccination increased RRL to 4.2 and 2.1 in females and 3.9 and 2.0 in males in the Australia and USA scenarios respectively.ConclusionsThe population-level incremental impact of male vaccination is unlikely to be substantially impacted by feasible levels of heterogeneity in uptake. However, these findings emphasize the continuing importance of prioritizing high coverage across all groups in HPV vaccination programs in terms of achieving equality of outcomes.

Discourse analysis of sex stories in a pornographic site in Iran

Internet pornography As A controversial issue and important problem on Different communities particularly on the value-based community and Muslim countries were introduced. And behavioral science experts with extensive research in this field are looking for emotional - social and psychological impact of this phenomenon and demand to impose legal restrictions on providing pornography product and context. Among these The Erotic stories due to making the condition of same-essence identifying and choice of sexual partners in the reader's mind, by its own discretion create Ability to create deviation and incidence of anomaly among individuals that with its reviewing a scientific understanding of the dominant discourse can be found in it. To conduct this research, critical discourse analysis is used. Discourse analysis is a qualitative method that aims to fill the gap between micro and macro analysis of social phenomena. Hence analysis and critical readout of 75 stories with sexual content as a random sample from a pornographic website has been explained in two levels. Based on Findings of this study what can be seen in the discussion on this story is a purposeful narrative, professional expertise that Start From an obscene and provocative space and addict readers to itself. In these stories, Master narrative do not impinge of the Design Principles of sites operator for stories feature and all are looking to convert human subjects to non-human objects that are Discharged from any human feelings And have no purpose other than sex. What on This relationship can be seen are the narrators and their sexual partner’s unusual sexual immorality and the visualization of people who like professional porn movies stars act.

Sexy faces in a male paper wasp.

Sexually selected signals are common in many animals, though little reported in social insects. We investigated the occurrence of male visual signals mediating the dominance relationships among males and female choice of sexual partner in the paper wasp Polistes simillimus. Males have three conspicuous, variable and sexually dimorphic traits: black pigmentation on the head, a pair of yellow abdominal spots and body size differences. By conducting behavioral assays, we found that none of the three visual traits are associated with male-male dominance relationship. However, males with higher proportion of black facial pigmentation and bigger yellow abdominal spots are more likely chosen as sexual partners. Also, after experimentally manipulating the proportion of black pigment on males' face, we found that females may evaluate male facial coloration during the choice of a sexual partner. Thus, the black pigmentation on P. simillimus male's head appears to play a role as a sexually selected visual signal. We suggest that sexual selection is a common force in Polistes and we highlight the importance of this group as a model for the study of visual communication in insects.

Hepatitis C Virus Serosorting in People Who Inject Drugs: Sorting Out the Details

Hepatitis C Virus Serosorting in People Who Inject Drugs: Sorting Out the Details

Family feuds: social competition and sexual conflict in complex societies.

Darwin was initially puzzled by the processes that led to ornamentation in males-what he termed sexual selection-and those that led to extreme cooperation and altruism in complex animal societies-what was later termed kin selection. Here, I explore the relationships between sexual and kin selection theory by examining how social competition for reproductive opportunities-particularly in females-and sexual conflict over mating partners are inherent and critical parts of complex altruistic societies. I argue that (i) patterns of reproductive sharing within complex societies can drive levels of social competition and reproductive conflict not only in males but also in females living in social groups, and ultimately the evolution of female traits such as ornaments and armaments; (ii) mating conflict over female choice of sexual partners can influence kin structure within groups and drive the evolution of complex societies; and (iii) patterns of reproductive sharing and conflict among females may also drive the evolution of complex societies by influencing kin structure within groups. Ultimately, complex societies exhibiting altruistic behaviour appear to have only arisen in taxa where social competition over reproductive opportunities and sexual conflict over mating partners were low. Once such societies evolved, there were important selective feedbacks on traits used to regulate and mediate intra-sexual competition over reproductive opportunities, particularly in females.

Das periphere olfaktorische System von Vertebraten: Molekulare, strukturelle und funktionelle Grundlagen des Riechens

Zusammenfassung Der Geruchssinn liefert Menschen und Tieren eine Vielzahl von Informationen über die Umgebung, er trägt zur Orientierung und Warnung bei, steuert die Nahrungsaufnahme, die Wahl des Sexualpartners und beeinflusst maßgeblich das innerartliche Sozialverhalten. Die Wahrnehmung von Geruchsstoffen beginnt mit der Bindung der Geruchsmoleküle an spezialisierte Rezeptormoleküle der Plasmamembran, die fast ausnahmslos zu der Superfamilie der G-Protein-gekoppelten Rezeptoren (GPCR) gehören. Insgesamt sind bisher fünf verschiedene Familien von Geruchsrezeptoren identifiziert worden, darunter die mit Abstand größte Genfamilie überhaupt mit über tausend Genen in Nagern. Für diese Familie ist die Signaltransduktionskaskade mittlerweile gut charakterisiert. Drei Arten von Rezeptorneuronen, die ziliierten, mikrovillären und Kryptneurone lassen sich anatomisch und molekular voneinander unterscheiden. Rezeptorneurone beschränken sich in der Regel auf die Expression eines einzigen Geruchsrezeptorgens, und zudem senden Neurone mit übereinstimmend ausgewähltem Rezeptor ihre Axone in eine gemeinsame Zielstruktur, einen Glomerulus, wodurch in der ersten olfaktorischen Gehirnregion, dem Bulbus olfactorius, eine rezeptotope Karte entsteht. Dieser Review gibt zum einen eine allgemeine Übersicht der peripheren Detektion von Geruchsstoffen und fokussiert zum anderen auf die in den letzten Jahren neu gewonnenen Erkenntnisse, unter anderem zur peripheren Modulierung olfaktorischer Signale.

Rejet des discours préventifs et comportements sexuels à risque : enquête qualitative auprès d'homosexuels masculins, au Portugal

Résumé Le discours préventif dominant imposé aux minorités sexuelles est celui qui ordonne l’utilisation du préservatif et d’une hygiène de vie réglée. Les comportements sexuels à risque semblent exprimer, en partie, le rejet de ce discours dominant. L’objectif de cette étude était de mieux comprendre les liens entre les comportements sexuels à risque des gays et le contexte socioculturel menant au rejet des pratiques préventives. Une étude ethnologique a été réalisée au Portugal, auprès de sept hommes gays, âgés de 19 à 64 ans. Des témoignages de trois femmes lesbiennes et bisexuelles ont également été pris en compte. Les résultats montrent que la pression sociale d’un environnement hétéro-normatif peut amener à la dénégation de la prévention, les comportements sexuels à risque reflétant l’aspiration à plus de droits et libertés. Les nouveaux espaces de rencontre gay, notamment l’internet, semblent également ouvrir la voie à une libération sexuelle et un relâchement de la prévention. Les pratiques préventives ne sont cependant pas absentes, la réduction des risques s’exprimant par le choix des partenaires et l’évitement de certaines pratiques sexuelles lorsque le préservatif n’est pas utilisé. Au travers de cette étude, l’importance du groupe des pairs dans l’acceptation et l’intériorisation des discours préventifs est réaffirmée.

Immigration and Sexual Partner Risk Among Latino Adolescents in San Francisco

Sexual partner characteristics increase risk for adverse reproductive health outcomes. Evidence is limited regarding whether choice of sexual partners among Latino adolescents changes with U.S. acculturation/adaptation. We used generalized estimating equations to assess the associations between immigrant generation (recent immigrant, 1.5 [immigrated prior to adolescence], 2nd and 3rd) and sexual partner risk in a prospective cohort study of 411 Latino adolescents aged 14-19. We examined three measures of partner risk and mediating effects of family influence (familism and parental monitoring). The odds of reporting a partner with frequent substance use increased with increasing immigrant generation (odds ratios (OR) [reference = recent immigrants]: 2.3, 3.4, and 5.6) as did having a partner who was in a gang/incarcerated (OR [reference = recent immigrants]: 2.4, 3.6, and 5.7). Though the odds of having high-risk partners decreased with higher parental monitoring, neither family influence measure mediated these relationships. Findings underscore the need for a prevention focus on partner choice with attention to increased risk with increasing U.S. generation.

Relationships between residents in secure psychiatric units: are safety and sensitivity really incompatible?

Since the 1960s, Western society has adopted a more liberal attitude to sexuality. Choice of sexual partners, sexual preferences, attitudes and practices are increasingly a matter of individual choice and freedom. These changes, however, have had little impact on the lives of psychiatric in-patients (Eiguer et al, 1974; Akhtar et al, 1977; Taylor &amp; Swan, 1999). ‘Mental illness,’ it has been suggested, ‘is one of the few disabilities where people run the risk of losing their freedom in order to receive in-patient treatment’ (Cook, 2000). This loss of liberty and rights becomes more pronounced in secure settings where mentally disordered offenders can spend a substantial part of their adult (sexual/reproductive) lives. Prisoners in some US state prisons (of medium and low security) are afforded conjugal visits from their married partners, in view of the rights of the latter. Paradoxically, detention in secure units, which we consider a therapeutic and not a punitive measure, places constraints on the formation of new relationships and the maintenance of previously existing ones. New relationships are, in our experience, viewed with more concern than previously existing ones.

Gender Differences in the Prevalence of Same-Sex Sexual Partnering: 1988-2002

This article proposes that recent normative, economic and legal changes in the United States have made it more likely for American adults, especially women, to select a sex partner of their own sex.Data from the GSS and NHSLS (n = 18,170) were used to examine gender differences in trends in same-sex sexual partnering between 1988 and 2002.The proportion of both men and women who reported having had a same-sex sex partner in the previous year increased over the period, and the increase was greater for women than it was for men.The increase for women was present among both white and black women and was not limited to young adults.Changes in normative climate accounted for the increase in same-sex sexual partnering among men and for a portion of the increase among women. Much attention has been given to estimating the rate of homosexuality among men and women. The commonly cited figure of percent can be traced to Alfred Kinsey and his colleagues, who concluded that in the United States, 10 percent of the (white) males are more or less exclusively homosexual for at least three years between the ages of 16 and 53 (Kinsey et al. 1948:651). Kinsey et al. (1953) estimated that the rate for women was a third to half as large as that for men. A study based on national probability samples of American adults from 1988 to 1993 found that women were about half as likely as men to report having had a same-sex sex partner in the previous year (1.4 percent of women vs. 2.7 percent of men) (Laumann et al. 1994). These estimates of same-sex sexual partnering should not be detached from their cultural context. Although genetic differences among people may explain some of the variation in sexual behavior within a culture, the vast differences in sexual behavior across cultures indicate that sexual behavior, including the gender of one's consensual sexual partners, is partly a consequence of social learning and thus is dependent in part on the cultural norms and structural (e.g., economic and legal) constraints of the time and place. Moreover, cultural and structural constraints on the selection of sexual partners, including the gender of one's sexual partners, differ for men and women and may change at different rates for men and women. To understand why men and women choose the sexual partners they do, one must take into account that sexual interactions between two people take place in the context of a relationship that may have been entered into to meet needs other than sexual. Consensual sexual relations between two people may take place because of the desire for emotional intimacy, the prospect of increased social status by association with a high-status other, financial gain, social acceptance and the desire for a family and children. Moreover, one's choice of sexual partners may be constrained by religious teachings, the opinions of friends and family, and legal factors. Thus, the potential earning power and job security of people in same-sex sexual relationships and the legal right of same-sex couples to raise children may

Women's preference for dominant male odour: effects of menstrual cycle and relationship status.

Body odour may provide significant cues about a potential sexual partner's genetic quality, reproductive status and health. In animals, a key trait in a female's choice of sexual partner is male dominance but, to date, this has not been examined in humans. Here, we show that women in the fertile phase of their cycle prefer body odour of males who score high on a questionnaire-based dominance scale (international personality items pool). In accordance with the theory of mixed mating strategies, this preference varies with relationship status, being much stronger in fertile women in stable relationships than in fertile single women.