Psychology of sex - Total No. of Records in System :: 2032

PSYCHOLOGY OF SEXIt may be interestingin this connection to considerthe answers given by over a thousand women to the questionin Dr. Katharine Davis's questionnaire: Do you believesex intercourse necessary for complete physical andmental health? It must of course be borne in mind thatthe replies to this question cannot be always, even if generally,based strictly on physiological and psychologicalconsiderations. We have inevitably to recognize the influenceof moral, social, and conventional ideas. Still it isto know how educated American women,interestingbrought up in the early twentieth century, privately regardthis matter. It was found that 38.7 per cent (394in number) answered in the affirmative, a few emphatically,a large number with specific qualification,and someof them only dubiously. There remained a majority of61.2 (622 in number) who replied in the negative, someemphatically and a few dubiously. Some of the womenanswering affirmatively qualified their reply by saying"especially for men," or "for mental health," or "for acomplete life," or "for some types."Of those who answerednegatively, many qualified by saying "not necessarybut normal/' or "but desirable," or "not for completemental health," or "no, but difficult," or "no, but peoplewho do not have it seem harsh and shrivelled up." It isfrom whom I heard several times (who happened, without knowing it,to be well known to a friend of my own) is fairly typical: middle-aged,robust, well-developed and handsome, highly intelligent, has independentmeans and often lives abroad; has never had any sexual relationships.Though enjoying good health on the whole, some slight disturbances(notably a mental shock at sixteen which diminished menstruation)have stimulated sexual activity to an abnormal degree. There is constantsexual desire and all the physical and mental methods of dealing withit which she can adopt are fruitless to relax this perpetual tension. Hercharacter and traditions render any irregular gratification impossible,and prevent her even referring to her condition, while the occasionalmasturbation which she has been compelled to resort to at the monthlyperiods brings no relief but only remorse.[260]