Sexual Self-schema Research Articles

The role of sexual self-schema in a diathesis—stress model of sexual dysfunction

Sexual self-schemas are cognitive generalizations regarding sexual aspects of the self that represent a core component of one's sexuality. We contend that individual differences in the sexual self-view represent an important cognitive diathesis for predicting sexual difficulty or dysfunction. We illustrate the role of sexual self-schemas on sexual behavior and responsiveness in healthy female and male samples. Next, we describe how diathesis—stress models of psychopathology have been applied to the sexual arena, and discuss the critical features of clinically useful diathesis variables. Drawing from these criteria, we examine the diathetic properties of sexual self-schemas. Finally, we discuss an empirical test of the proposed diathesis—stress interaction, reviewing the role of women's sexual self-views on sexual morbidity following diagnosis and treatment for gynecologic cancer.

Men's sexual self-schema.

Men's sexual self-schema.

Schemas, sexuality, and romantic attachment.

One's self-views are powerful regulators of both cognitive processing and behavioral responding. Sexual self-schemas are cognitive generalizations about sexual aspects of the self. The bivariate sexual self-schema model, which posits independent effects of positive and negative components of women's sexual self-views, was tested. Three hundred eighteen female undergraduates completed anonymous questionnaires, including the Sexual Self-Schema Scale and assessments of sexual responses and romantic attachment patterns. Results extended knowledge of positive-negative schema group contrasts and distinguished the response patterns of the aschematic and co-schematic groups. As predicted, aschematics reported low levels of sexual desire, arousal, and anxiety, and weak romantic attachments, whereas co-schematics endorsed conflicting positive and negative responses to sexual-romantic cues. In addition, path analyses supported the bivariate model. Finally, findings are related to theories of attachment representations within the cognitive hierarchy of the self.

Physical Attractiveness, Body Image, and Women's Sexual Self-Schema

Recently, Andersen and Cyranowski (1994) presented a self-report measure of women's sexual self-schema, or cognitive view of the self regarding sexuality. In the current study, we investigated potential relationships between women's sexual self-schema and physical attractiveness, body size and shape, and body image. Young adult women ( N = 199) completed questionnaires and were weighed, measured, and rated for facial attractiveness. Results revealed that sexual self-schema was unrelated to body size or shape, general body dissatisfaction, history of teasing about weight, and degree of investment in personal appearance. Sexual self-schema scores significantly correlated with experimenter-rated facial attractiveness, self-rated facial and bodily attractiveness, and degree of social avoidance due to concerns over personal appearance, however. In a multiple regression analysis, only self-rated facial attractiveness and social avoidance were unique predictors. Results are discussed with regard to implications for the development of women's sexual self-schema and directions for future research.

Sexual self-schema and sexual morbidity among gynecologic cancer survivors.

Longitudinal research indicates that approximately 50% of women treated for gynecologic cancer have sexual dysfunctions as they recover and become cancer survivors. This outcome occurs in the context of satisfactory quality of life in other domains. This study, comparing gynecologic cancer survivors (n = 61) and gynecologically healthy women (n = 74), documents the reliability of the latter observations with measures of quality of life (general, depressive symptoms, social contacts, and stress), sexual functioning, and health. Of added importance are analyses focused on variables that may predict risk for sexual morbidity. Specifically, sexual self-schema is tested as an important, sexually relevant individual difference. In regression analyses that controlled for estimates of precancer sexual behavior (intercourse frequency), extent of disease-treatment, and menopausal symptoms, sexual self-schema accounted for significant variance in predicting current sexual behavior and responsiveness.

Sexual self-schema and sexual morbidity among gynecologic cancer survivors.

Sexual self-schema and sexual morbidity among gynecologic cancer survivors.

Women's sexual self-schema.

Women's sexual self-schema.

Surviving cancer.

Research trends on quality of life outcomes for cancer survivors are discussed. Epidemiologic data indicate that female cancer survivors, coming primarily from patient groups with gynecologic, breast, and colorectal cancers, will outnumber male survivors 3 to 1. Male survivors will come from the ranks of patient groups with colorectal and other digestive tumors (such as stomach cancer), prostate, and bladder cancers. With the exception of breast cancer, there have been few well controlled descriptive, longitudinal studies of cancer survivors, with data on men being notably absent. A strategy for identifying differential levels of risk for psychologic morbidity for cancer survivors is proposed. Other important psychologic individual difference variables were identified: control, optimism, and stable coping strategies may be useful in the prediction of mental health outcomes; conscientiousness in the prediction of health behaviors; and sexual self-schema in the prediction of sexual outcomes. Finally, data suggest that psychologic and behavioral outcomes can be improved with psychologic interventions, but it is likely that even greater gains could be achieved if health behavior components were added. New directions for research include study of individual differences, examination of active components of multifaceted interventions, and study of the health consequences of interventions. In the latter regard, a biobehavioral model of stress and cancer is offered to integrate psychologic, behavioral, biologic, and disease factors into testable new research directions.

Women's sexual self-schema.

Women's sexual self-schema.