Facing the Complexities of Women's Sexual Desire

ISBN-13: 9781489987082 / Angielski / Miękka / 2014 / 228 str.

Vera S Maass

Opis

This book represents a broad-based approach to a narrow but complex issue. The issue causes distress for many and has been instrumental in family disruption and divorce. Women s sexual desire whether it is too little or too much has become an issue of growing concern and vague promises for solution. In the meantime, the women are looking for answers, consulting professionals in the field of human sexuality, physicians or therapists, media advice and self-help books. The material discussed in this book is not part of any structured research. The women encountered in the pages of this book have not been selected on a random basis. Some have been clients, some are volunteers from the general population and another group is made up of undergraduate college students. The college s- dents came from a varied ethnic and cultural background while the clients mainly were of white and African American background. The volunteers were predo- nantly from a white middle-class population. There is no claim that the women are representative of all women in the general population."

Recenzje

From the reviews:

"Something of riveting interest in almost every chapter.... vignettes well done and often poignant.... analysis clear and immediately accessible.... a lovely offering."

Edward Shorter, Hannah Professor of the History of Medicine, Professor of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Canada

"I need to know more about the biology of sex, especially in women, and it was that part of Facing the Complexities of Women's Sexual Desire that I found most useful. ... The essence of the book is many brief descriptions of important issues, along with some longer discussions as well. The brief descriptions make this a very readable book ... . Overall, this is a terrific book that is sure to tell the reader new things about women's sexuality." (Russell Eisenman, PsycCRITIQUES, Vol. 52 (39), 2007)

Spis treści

Background and Explanations.- Influences on Women's Sexual Experiences.- Desire-Phase Problems and the Search for Explanations.- Bio-Ethological and Social-Psychological Explanations.- The Women in Context.- Searching for Sexual Identity.- Symptom Manifestation Within Relationships.- Women's Relationships to Power.- Intra-Personal Considerations Relevant to Sex Therapy.- Toward Resolution.- Developments in Sexology and Sex Therapy.- Cognitive Behavioral Factors Relevant to Treatment.- A Practical Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment Approach.- Learning From the Past—Thoughts for the Future.

O autorze

Vera Sonja Maass is a psychologist in private practice as well as a consulting psychologist to the Grey Clinic, Indianapolis, Indiana. She received her Ph.D. in Counseling at University of Missouri-Kansas City and is certified in marriage and family therapy and mental health counseling.

Blurb

Whether they involve excess, a decrease, or complete absence, problems of sexual desire drive women to consult sex therapists, couples counselors, and other practitioners (to say nothing of self-help books and talk-show hosts). Facing the Complexities of Women’s Sexual Desire, by veteran sex therapist Vera Sonja Maass, is one of the few books to address these intimate phenomena in practical clinical detail.

-Background chapters outline the often-conflicting factors influencing women’s sexuality and sexual response, both biological (e.g., hormones, pregnancy) and sociocultural (e.g., media images, double standards)

-"The Woman in Context" section explores individual characteristics and symptoms as manifested in relationships, particularly as terms of interpersonal styles and power dynamics

-Case histories and vignettes, from a wide range of women, illustrate different aspects of desire, desire disorders, and treatment options

-Current theories and therapies relevant to problems of desire are covered in depth

-An effective cognitive-behavioral model is applied in solo, couples, group, and single-sided relationship therapy settings

Its specialized focus makes Facing the Complexities of Women’s Sexual Desire an important addition to the bookshelf of sex and marriage therapists, clinical and women’s health psychologists, and students planning to enter these areas. And Maass has kept the book free of jargon so the non-professional reader, too, can make the most of her advice.