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Accessibly written, this interdisciplinary book reviews theory and research on the characteristics of sexual desire, the individual physical and mental factors that influence the experience of sexual desire (hormones, age, gender, beliefs, mood), the various partner characteristics that incite sexual desire (attractiveness) and the association between sexual desire and interpersonal, relational events and experiences (romantic love). The book concludes with an examination of the personal, interpersonal and societal implications of sexual desire. Throughout, the authors draw on findings from their own body of research on sexual and romantic attraction, as well as on an extensive review of the relevant social, behavioural and medical science
List of contents
Sexual Desire
Historical Perspectives
Sexual Desire
The Phenomenon
Sexual Desire
The Body (Part One)
Sexual Desire
The Body (Part Two)
Sexual Desire
The Mind
Sexual Desire
The Partner and the Relationship
Sexual Desire and Romantic Love
Sexual Desire
Future Directions
About the author
Pamela Regan is Professor of Psychology at California State University, Los Angeles. She received her Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Minnesota and her undergraduate degree in English from Williams College. Her research interests are in the areas of close relationships and human sexuality, with an emphasis on passionate love, sexual desire, and mate preference. She has published more than 100 journal articles, book chapters, and reviews (and has given over 75 professional presentations) on the dynamics of sex, love, and human mating, and she is the author of Close Relationships (Routledge, 2011), the co-author (with Ellen Berscheid) of The Psychology of Interpersonal Relationships (Pearson, 2005) and Lust: What We Know About Human Sexual Desire (Sage, 1999), and the co-author (with Bruce King) of Human Sexuality Today (Pearson, 2014). In 2007, she was honored with the Outstanding Professor Award by her university for excellence in instruction and professional achievement.
Summary
The authors draw on findings from their own research on sexual and romantic attraction, as well as on an extensive review of the relevant social, behavioural and medical literature.
