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The Desire Disorder in Research on Sexual Orientation in Women: Contributions of Dynamical Systems Theory

Abstract  

Over the past decade, numerous studies have documented fundamental differences between the phenomenology of male and female
sexual orientation, largely centering on women’s capacity for fluidity in their sexual attractions. The past decade has also
witnessed fundamental changes in clinical perspectives on “normal” versus “dysfunctional” patterns of female sexual desire,
largely centering on women’s greater capacity for responsive and context-dependent sexual desires. In both cases, traditional
male-based models of sexuality have been found inadequate to describe women’s experiences. I argue that this inadequacy stems
from a failure of traditional models to appropriately account for the phenomenon of variability over time, which may constitute a fundamental feature of female sexual phenomenology. I maintain that dynamical systems theory provides
a useful and generative approach for reconceptualizing female sexual orientation, because dynamical systems models focus specifically
on describing and explaining complex patterns of change over time. I review the key properties of dynamical systems models
and provide an illustrative model of how this approach might yield new perspectives on female sexual orientation.

  • Content Type Journal Article
  • Category Original Paper
  • Pages 1-11
  • DOI 10.1007/s10508-012-9909-7
  • Authors
    • Lisa M. Diamond, Department of Psychology, University of Utah, 380 South 1530 East, Room 502, Salt Lake City, UT 84112-0251, USA
    • Journal Archives of Sexual Behavior
    • Online ISSN 1573-2800
    • Print ISSN 0004-0002
Posted in: Journal Article Abstracts on 03/06/2012 | Link to this post on IFP |
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