What is sexual pleasure?

Sexual pleasure is defined as the physical and/or psychological satisfaction and enjoyment derived from shared or solitary erotic experiences, including thoughts, emotions, dreams, fantasies and feelings. Sexual health is usually monitored by looking at contraceptive use, abortions, teenage pregnancies, sexual transmitted infections and sexual violence, but recently sexual pleasure is also starting to be seen as important for sexual health.

Summary of: Caruso, S., Agnello, C., Malandrino, C., Lo Presti, L., Cicero, C., & Cianci, S.  (2014). Do hormones influence women’s sex? Sexual activity over the  menstrual cycle. 

Summary of: Vanwesenbeeck, I. (2009). Doing gender in sex and sex research.

What is SOGIP?

SOGIP is an abbreviation for Sexual Orientation- and Gender Identity Prejudice. It is defined as a negative attitude towards certain behaviors, individuals or groups based on - or related to - their (perceived) sexual orientation, (perceived) gender identity, gender role or gender expression.

What is sexting?

Sexting refers to making and sending sexually explicit messages, especially images, via the Internet. Sexting can contribute to different dimensions of young people's sexual development and can be considered normal sexual behavior that is an expression of sexual agency, exploration and expression. However, there is also the risk of other people distributing the message without the maker´s consent. This non-consensual sharing is a form of sexual violence or abuse.

Media coverage regarding sexual assault among college students puts pressure on universities to improve their sexual consent policies. The headlines express the controversy that surrounds sexual assault in college. American and Canadian universities are pressured to investigate and address the complaints of students. Both the accused and complaining student usually acknowledge the occurrence of sexual contact, but disagree about it being consensual. While most awareness and educational campaigns emphasize how important getting sexual consent is, they do not clarify what is considered consent.

What is the definition of sexual assault?

The terms rape, sexual assault and battery have no globally accepted definitions. Legal definitions and that of researchers vary. In general, they refer to sexual acts that are obtained by (the threat of) force or without consent. Rape: sexual penetration that is obtained by (the threat of) force or the victim being incapacitated. Sexual battery is usually defined as unwanted sexual touching. Sexual assault includes unwanted sexual touching and sexual penetration. In this article, sexual assault refers to sexual touching or penetration without consent.