I appreciate the links, excerpts and references, and don't worry about taking your time. I agree that there are stereotypes holding that women are less sexual, more romantic, and less visually stimulated. However, as I noted before, I know many women who utterly contradict these stereotypes. That is, I know many women who are just as sexual as any men I'm aware of, even to the point of masturbating multiple times a day and enjoying no strings attached sex. I also know many women who get off on porn (including hardcore, raunchy, visual porn), and who prefer simple sex over romance. Indeed, quite a few have expressed views that conventional romance is trite and overrated. I have also read statements by therapists that "fetishes are a male problem," yet I personally know women with fetishes - including some that would probably be a TOS violation to mention here.
Now, one may argue that these women are "exceptions that prove the rule." Yet there is a problem with that objection. Those who argue men are more sexual usually cite higher testosterone as the reason. Yet even women who match or exceed the typical male sex drive typically have far lower testosterone. Does this not suggest that women may react to testosterone differently than men do? This is the view of Discovery Health: "there is no evidence whatsoever to suggest that because women have less testosterone than men do, they have lower sexual interest than their male counterparts. Instead, it seems that women detect and react to much smaller amounts of testosterone in their circulation than men do."
I agree that many, perhaps most scientists promote the stereotype that women are less sexual than men. Scientists are human, and it would be a stretch to argue that any human is 100% rational or objective. Scientists are often strongly influenced by the cultural assumptions of their society and era. Thus in Victorian times many scientists were arguing that women have no sex drive at all, and that masturbation led to blindness. Before World War II, many American scientists argued that immigrants from Eastern Europe would inevitably lower the nation's collective IQ. Even today, you'll find plenty of scientists who argue that blacks are innately less intelligent and more sexual than whites. I suspect the arguments that women are less sexual than men are in a similar vein. However, I'll keep an open mind; maybe I'm wrong. Maybe all my experiences are just exceptions to the rule. But the sneaking suspicions remain. And it should be easy to see why I'm interested in scientists who dissent from the stereotype that women are less sexual. Even if they are a minority, having a minority position does not necessarily make one wrong. It was once a minority position that blacks were just as intellectually capable as whites. And it may be a minority position again someday. Clearly, that does not make it incorrect.
So I have been looking for scientists, studies, references, and so on that dissent from and defy these stereotypes. Here is a collection that I've thusfar assembled:
"If female sexuality is muted compared to that of men, then why must men the world over go to extreme lengths to control and contain it?" - primatologist Barbara Smuts, quoted by Natalie Angier in Men, Women, Sex and Darwin
"In fact, most accounts about women's attitudes on sex should be viewed with skepticism, writes researcher Terri Fisher, PhD, a psychology professor at Ohio State University in Mansfield, Ohio. When the answers were tabulated, it was clear -- social pressures won out. When women thought others might see their answers, they gave answers that were more socially acceptable. Women hooked up to the lie detector gave the most honest answers, reports Fisher. ... "Women appear to feel pressure to adhere to sex role expectations" -- to be more relationship-oriented and not promiscuous, says Fisher. However, only the women's attitudes were different from men's -- not their actual sexual behavior or libido. The pattern was clearest for behaviors considered less acceptable for women than men -- like masturbation and enjoying erotica, she adds." Women's Libido Just as Strong as Men's
Dr. Helen Fisher, Research Professor for the Dept. of Anthropology at Rutgers, remarks that "as more women get an education and enter the job market in cultures around the world men and women will finally come to realise that the female sex drive is just as high as that of males." (from 'Story of Love', interview with AA Mahmood)
In "Recognizing Sexual Myths," Gary L. Hansen, PhD writes, "Myth: Males have stronger sex drives and are more interested in sex than females. Fact: The female's sex drive is just as strong as the male's."
ABC News has taken note of the phenomenon of women wearing out their husbands and boyfriends in bed: Women Struggle to Cope With Spouses' Low Sex Drives
"Half the adult videos in the U.S. are bought or rented by women alone or women in couples." -Feminists for Free Expression
"For instance, in Korea, which has the highest number of visitors to adult sites at 5.44 million, 39.1 percent of visitors are female. And, even in traditionally conservative Singapore, 26.8 percent of the city-state's 243,430 visitors to adult sites were women." CNN: Cyberporn in Asia
A study cited by Wikipedia's page on rape fantasy estimates "that 24% of men and 36% of women have had a rape fantasy." This would seem to contradict the belief that women need "romance" to get off. Obviously, so would all the women who watch hardcore porn, use sex toys, have one night stands, etc.
"Some think men are by nature more sexual or 'hornier' than women. Probably not true (remember, not long ago, the church thought women were over-sexed). Indeed, Masters, Johnson & Kolodny (1985) found the sex response--orgasm--is very similar in men and women. Women can climax as fast as men; they can have more orgasms. College males and females are about equally (75%) active sexually..." Clayton Tucker-Ladd, PhD in Psychological Self-Help, Ch. 10
Patricia Pearson reports that "We have a study, from 1996, in which 42% of a sample of New Jersey female college students reported being sexually aggressive with men." She also quotes Maria Mollett, a counselor who treats female sex offenders. "Mollett gave me some examples of how the women she's treating actually think about sex with, for instance, young boys. 'I saw his c--- ," one woman said in response to a displayed photo, "and I wanted to f--- him.'" Pearson also reports on some sexual fantasies found in a diary: "The fantasies of the criminal were vile: to stalk and kidnap a teenage girl, to rape and torture her, to dispose of her like garbage. From "Unmasking the Female Predator." Doesn't sound very romantic or empathetic, now does it?
By all means, keep the links and references coming. I agree that this topic has many serious dimensions with remarkable repercussions.
