Psychology
Predictors of Sexual Esteem
Document Type
Oral Presentation
Start Date
10-4-2015 2:45 PM
End Date
10-4-2015 4:15 PM
Sponsor
George Gaither (Ball State University)
Description
Sexual esteem is defined as "the generalized tendency to engage in nonspecific internal reinforcement toward oneself as the result of one's capacity to relate sexually to another person" (Snell & Papini, 1989). We hypothesize that perfectionist attitude and risky sexual behaviors will each have a significant effect on a person's sexual esteem. This research is important because we recognize that a lot of people seek therapy due to low levels of sexual esteem and by researching what variables may affect it, we can find more effective ways of providing therapy to improve sexual esteem.
Having a perfectionist attitude that is above average may lead to insecurities about how one feels as a sexual partner. If an individual has a low sexual esteem and is high in perfectionism, it could lead to serious relationship problems, which may result in seeing a therapist. The data I find will be able to contribute to the current information in this field and aid in future studies that include perfectionism and/or sexual esteem variables. Past research has shown that perfectionism does affect interpersonal relationships (Habke & Flynn, 2002; Shea, Slaney, & Rice, 2006).
In 2013, it was estimated that 110 million Americans are consciously living with a sexual transmitted infections. What is more frightening is that millions more are unaware, and there are about 20 million new infections each year (Health Day News, 2013). An STI diagnosis can be a traumatic experience and has been shown to have a strong psychological impact on diagnosed individual (Newton &McCabe, 2008). This is likely to include a negative effect one's sense self-esteem and sexual-esteem. One of the primary indicators of STI risk is risky sexual behavior. A few of the risks that will be examined include unprotected sex, anal sex, random hook-ups, and awareness of sexual partners' history. By identifying people who are at high risk can aid in the development of better intervention and prevention programs. Determining what kinds of sexual risk taking are most common can help focus these prevention efforts (Turchik & Garske, 2008).
Predictors of Sexual Esteem
Sexual esteem is defined as "the generalized tendency to engage in nonspecific internal reinforcement toward oneself as the result of one's capacity to relate sexually to another person" (Snell & Papini, 1989). We hypothesize that perfectionist attitude and risky sexual behaviors will each have a significant effect on a person's sexual esteem. This research is important because we recognize that a lot of people seek therapy due to low levels of sexual esteem and by researching what variables may affect it, we can find more effective ways of providing therapy to improve sexual esteem.
Having a perfectionist attitude that is above average may lead to insecurities about how one feels as a sexual partner. If an individual has a low sexual esteem and is high in perfectionism, it could lead to serious relationship problems, which may result in seeing a therapist. The data I find will be able to contribute to the current information in this field and aid in future studies that include perfectionism and/or sexual esteem variables. Past research has shown that perfectionism does affect interpersonal relationships (Habke & Flynn, 2002; Shea, Slaney, & Rice, 2006).
In 2013, it was estimated that 110 million Americans are consciously living with a sexual transmitted infections. What is more frightening is that millions more are unaware, and there are about 20 million new infections each year (Health Day News, 2013). An STI diagnosis can be a traumatic experience and has been shown to have a strong psychological impact on diagnosed individual (Newton &McCabe, 2008). This is likely to include a negative effect one's sense self-esteem and sexual-esteem. One of the primary indicators of STI risk is risky sexual behavior. A few of the risks that will be examined include unprotected sex, anal sex, random hook-ups, and awareness of sexual partners' history. By identifying people who are at high risk can aid in the development of better intervention and prevention programs. Determining what kinds of sexual risk taking are most common can help focus these prevention efforts (Turchik & Garske, 2008).