Deck 1: Sexuality: Pathways to Understanding

Question 1

Which of these illustrates an example of the meaning of the word "sex" (as opposed to "sexuality")?

A) The presence of facial hair in men
B) The sexual attraction between two people
C) Engaging in behaviors such as kissing and coitus
D) Becoming a parent, in or out of marriage
E) Determining one's personal sexual identity

Answer 1

C

Question 2

The study of sexuality

A) includes all matters involved in human relationships except the act of sex.
B) focuses on the physical distinction between male and female bodies.
C) focuses on the emotions involved in love rather than the act of sex.
D) applies mostly to our sexual preferences and how they influence the partners we choose.
E) encompasses the entire realm of human experience connected with sex.

Answer 2

E

Question 3

Which statement best captures the difference between the terms "sex" and "sexuality?"

A) Sex refers to the biological distinctions between males and females, as well as sexual behavior; sexuality is a broader term that includes attraction and relationships.
B) Sex involves engaging in sexual behaviors; sexuality refers to a person's identity as a woman or a man.
C) Sex refers to the biological distinctions between males and females; sexuality refers to a person's sexual orientation.
D) Sex refers to engaging in sexual behaviors; sexuality refers to the social structures concerned with sex.
E) Sex refers to the physical act of intercourse; sexuality refers to whether or not a person is currently sexually active.

Answer 3

A

Question 4

The evolutionary perspective on sexuality suggests that

A) there was less competition for mates historically.
B) there is a great deal of sexual diversity among closely related species.
C) only humans have evolved homosexual behavior.
D) only humans engage in non-reproductive sexual activity.
E) the sexual habits of humans are unrelated to those of our primate ancestors.

Question 5

Studies of sexual behavior among bonobos have demonstrated that

A) sex is used as a form of conflict resolution and alliance formation.
B) rape-like behavior is common.
C) non-reproductive sexual behavior is rare.
D) sex is almost entirely heterosexual.
E) females do not compete for the attention of males.

Question 6

In some indigenous tribes of lowland South America, people believe that a child can have many biological fathers. Although this is biologically inaccurate, it offers the benefit of

A) ensuring women remain sexually faithful to husbands.
B) guaranteeing that low-status men have more biological offspring.
C) giving women the option of choosing who fathers each of their children.
D) producing more male support and protection for children.
E) dramatically increasing the genetic diversity of the population.

Question 7

In societies that believe in partible paternity,

A) women often have multiple sex partners.
B) men carefully ensure that their wives are sexually faithful.
C) people also believe a child can have multiple mothers.
D) people believe each of a woman's children has a different father.
E) men take no responsibility for parenting because their paternity is not guaranteed.

Question 8

The transition from hunter-gatherer societies to city-states changed sexuality by

A) encouraging females to have more sexual partners.
B) formalizing marriage and discouraging nonmarital sex.
C) making public nudity more acceptable.
D) making homosexuality more common.
E) encouraging laws that increased sexual conflict and aggression.

Question 9

Why is polygamy less common today than it was historically?

A) It is still just as common but is now hidden from the public.
B) More men die in warfare now than in the past.
C) Women are far less likely to be viewed as men's property.
D) Christianity stopped encouraging polygamy about 500 years ago.
E) Most men can no longer afford to keep multiple wives.

Question 10

For most of its history, organized Christianity

A) promoted more liberal views on sexuality than churches of today.
B) encouraged polygamy.
C) refused to take any stance on issues of sexuality.
D) allowed sex only within a marriage.
E) denied the existence of homosexuality, masturbation, and polygamy.

Question 11

In Italy, some young males used to have their testicles removed to preserve a childlike singing voice. This practice is called

A) castration.
B) polygamy.
C) transgenderism.
D) partible paternity.
E) ethnography.

Question 12

Historically, who was most likely to benefit from polygamy?

A) Christian men of all social classes
B) Christian women from wealthy families
C) Eunuchs
D) Young, low-ranking men
E) Powerful, high-ranking men

Question 13

The community likely to have the highest rates of sexually transmitted infections is one that

A) restricts sex outside of the context of marriage.
B) has an isolated population.
C) follows a traditional hunter-gatherer lifestyle.
D) has had a recent influx of people.
E) has a small population.

Question 14

How have television and the internet shaped sexuality?

A) Sexuality is biologically based, so television and the internet have had no effect.
B) Internet access has normalized a wider range of sexual behaviors.
C) Internet access has made attraction to children more acceptable.
D) Television and the internet have made most people feel more sexually isolated.
E) By raising awareness of kinks, internet access has increased sexual stigma.

Question 15

Refer to the figure.
This graph shows births per woman by year for white and African-American women. Data for African-American women are shown with the green (top) line. What conclusion can be drawn from the information in the graph?

A) A decline in births correlates with a decline in sexual activity.
B) Declining births are due to the availability of the birth control pill.
C) Birth rates for both white and African-American women have declined since 1850.
D) Since 1850, births have declined for white women but not for African-American women.
E) Changes in the institution of marriage have caused a decline in the birth rate.

Question 16

Which statement illustrates the concept of a double standard?

A) A woman with many partners is considered a slut; a man with many partners is considered a stud.
B) Once considered shameful, cohabitation is generally accepted in the United States today.
C) Interracial marriage was once illegal.
D) Sex before marriage is now commonly accepted, despite religious prohibitions.
E) Childbirth outside of marriage is no longer considered sinful.

Question 17

According to the textbook, which is a way that marriage changed over the past few centuries?

A) People are now more likely to marry for money than for love.
B) People now have less freedom to choose a desired partner.
C) Couples are now less likely to get divorced.
D) Couples are now more likely to cohabit before marriage.
E) Couples are now less likely to have children outside of marriage.

Question 18

The sexual revolution of the 1960s resulted in

A) churches rapidly becoming more accepting of extramarital sex.
B) many new laws restricting sexual freedoms.
C) greater public acceptance of sex outside marriage.
D) a sharp decrease in divorce rates.
E) a paradoxical decrease in use of birth control.

Question 19

What most likely limited research on sexual behavior before the late 19th century?

A) Biologists and sociologists lacked knowledge about reproductive anatomy.
B) Sex researchers were thought to be perverted, so they were not supported.
C) The available methods of research were not adequate for collecting data.
D) Media resources like the internet were not yet able to disseminate information.
E) Cultural and religious taboos kept researchers from pursuing sex studies.

Question 20

A therapist believes that men develop fetishes for wearing women's clothing due to problems in their early childhood relationship with their mothers. This therapist has most likely been influenced by the ideas of

A) Richard von Krafft-Ebing.
B) Havelock Ellis.
C) Sigmund Freud.
D) Alfred Kinsey.
E) Virginia Johnson.

Question 21

Biologist Alfred Kinsey is best known for

A) discovering the biological causes of homosexuality.
B) theorizing that early childhood events lead to perversions.
C) campaigning for women's right to contraception.
D) describing the sexual practices of Pacific Islanders.
E) publishing one of the first sex surveys.

Question 22

Current theories in neuroscience identify biological causes of sexual orientation. This theory was first advanced in the early 20th century by sex researcher

A) Sigmund Freud.
B) Margaret Sanger.
C) Alfred Kinsey.
D) Margaret Mead.
E) Magnus Hirschfeld.

Question 23

Freud called adult sexual desires directed toward atypical targets

A) perversions.
B) neuroses.
C) aberrations.
D) obsessions.
E) hallucinations.

Question 24

How have scientific advances supported Hirschfeld's views about influences on sexual behavior?

A) Neurologists have identified the three centers in the brain that Hirschfeld theorized were responsible for sexual attraction.
B) Biomedical researchers have shown that homosexual and heterosexual individuals have different sex hormones.
C) Animal researchers have found that prenatal hormone levels influence adult sexual behavior.
D) Geneticists have proven that genes do not influence sexual orientation.
E) Psychotherapists have proven that family problems in childhood are the main influence on sexual behavior.

Question 25

The understanding that pregnancy results from a single act of coitus

A) originally arose in the late 1800s.
B) led to the first use of birth control in the 1950s.
C) has existed in all human cultures since the evolution of our species.
D) kept humans from engaging in sex for pleasure until the modern era.
E) has long been addressed by withdrawal, barriers, and other methods.

Question 26

Which advance is directly related to our knowledge of the human genome?

A) Our ability to treat reproductive cancers
B) Our knowledge of the physical functions of sexual organs
C) Our knowledge of brain composition and function
D) Our ability to diagnose some fetal abnormalities from a sample of the mother's blood
E) Our ability to prevent pregnancy with hormone-based contraception

Question 27

Biomedical research has revealed that

A) studying nonhuman species cannot improve our understanding of human sexuality.
B) human sexual behavior is determined by psychological factors, not biological factors.
C) orgasms are associated with changes in brain activity.
D) sexual orientation is unrelated to genetic or biological factors.
E) only psychological treatments benefit people with low sexual arousal.

Question 28

Which project would most likely be conducted by a biomedical researcher?

A) An exploration of cross-cultural differences in attitudes toward homosexuality
B) A test of a new infertility treatment
C) An assessment of how unconscious mental processes shape sexual behavior
D) An evaluation of how sex education programs in schools influence teen pregnancy
E) An examination of the link between gender and risk-taking behavior

Question 29

Which type of researcher would be most likely to study the hormonal and genetic mechanisms of sexuality?

A) An ethnographer
B) A biomedical researcher
C) A cultural anthropologist
D) A sociologist
E) A cognitive psychologist

Question 30

A researcher exploring how sexually transmitted diseases spread throughout the country wished to know whether long-haul truckers were a causal factor. By working as a health education provider at truck stops, she discovered that paid sex was an accepted part of trucker culture and that condom use was rare. This researcher was most likely trained as a(n)

A) biomedical researcher.
B) evolutionary psychologist.
C) feminist researcher.
D) sociologist.
E) ethnographer.

Question 31

Which statement is most accurate according to research exploring the relationship between media violence and sexual violence in men?

A) Violent pornography has no effect on men's attitudes toward sexual violence.
B) Violent pornography increases most men's awareness about the damage done by sexual violence.
C) Violent men who see sexual violence become more violent, but average men become less accepting of sexual violence.
D) Most men who view sexual violence go on to commit violent acts.
E) Average men who view sexual violence become more accepting of sexual violence.

Question 32

In a 2013 study, Perry and colleagues discovered that gay men had higher levels of empathy than straight men, and lesbian women had lower levels of empathy than straight women. This study suggests that empathy

A) is a purely biological trait.
B) is learned from romantic partners.
C) shares a developmental process with sexual orientation.
D) should be studied primarily by cultural anthropologists.
E) should be studied primarily by evolutionary psychologists.

Question 33

One evolutionary theory is that because females are choosier about mates, males have evolved to engage in competitive and risky displays in order to attract female attention. Which situation is the best example of this attractive behavior?

A) A man determined to beat his roommate's chemistry test score
B) A young man revving his car engine as a group of girls walks by
C) Men buying women gifts, such as jewelry and flowers
D) A woman dating two men at the same time
E) A man going sky diving for his fortieth birthday

Question 34

Pawlowski and colleagues explored the question of whether risk-taking during street crossings reflected sexual displays. The study demonstrated that

A) men do not engage in risky sexual displays while engaged in everyday tasks.
B) men make higher-risk street crossings if women are present.
C) men make higher-risk street crossings if men are present.
D) women make higher-risk street crossings if men are present.
E) women make higher-risk street crossings if women are present.

Question 35

Suppose that researchers discovered that young women rate mountain climbers and race car drivers as more sexually appealing than baseball players. Such a finding would best support

A) Freud's theory of unconscious influences on sexuality.
B) Hirschfield's belief that neural centers determine sexual attraction.
C) Mead's belief that sexual behavior is influenced by culture.
D) Malamuth's belief that the media influences sexual attitudes.
E) Pawlowski's belief that evolution selects for competitive, risk-taking men.

Question 36

A researcher is moving to Africa for six months to study the sexual attitudes and behaviors of a little-known tribe of indigenous people. This is an example of a(n)

A) cognitive psychology study.
B) evolutionary study.
C) feminist study.
D) post-modernist study.
E) cultural anthropology study.

Question 37

Results from the NHSLS, a demographic survey of sexual behavior, published in 1994 revealed that

A) women masturbate more than men.
B) single women masturbate more than married women.
C) divorced women masturbate more than single women.
D) Catholic women masturbate more than Muslim women.
E) women in relationships masturbate more than single women.

Question 38

Sociologists at the University of Chicago have been giving the General Social Survey (GSS) every year or two since 1972. A key benefit of this type of survey is that

A) it does not require a random or representative sample.
B) it allows researchers to identify changes in attitudes over time.
C) it increases honesty by having people give answers directly to interviewers.
D) the questions are always evolving to reflect changing attitudes about sex.
E) the design includes multiple control groups.

Question 39

Which characteristic makes it difficult to collect accurate information about sexual behavior?

A) An excess of minority individuals in most samples
B) Lack of qualified sexuality researchers
C) The tendency of sexual behaviors to change over time
D) Lack of public interest in sexuality
E) People's reluctance to share personal or embarrassing information

Question 40

Which survey method for a study of human sexual behavior is likely to yield the most honest answers?

A) A one-on-one question-and-answer session between a researcher and a participant
B) A group session in which participants take turns answering researchers' questions
C) A phone survey in which a researcher contacts participants privately
D) A paper-and-pencil survey conducted by researchers in a large-group setting
E) An online survey taken anonymously in a private room

Question 41

Many psychology studies use only introductory psychology college students as participants. What is the primary risk of this approach to sexuality research?

A) Very few college students have had any sexual experience.
B) A college student sample is unlikely to accurately represent the broader population.
C) Psychologists lack the expertise to conduct sexuality research.
D) Student lack of interest in sexuality will make recruitment more difficult than with other populations.
E) This type of research is less accurate than magazine-sponsored surveys.

Question 42

Which problem occurred with the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health survey of adolescents?

A) Some survey respondents gave incorrect or frivolous answers
B) Researchers failed to include both males and females
C) Repeating the survey led to nearly identical results
D) Survey respondents were confused by questions
E) Parents were upset with the questions concerning adolescent sexual practices

Question 43

Which situation is an example of script theory?

A) You feel sexual attraction toward a good-looking neighbor.
B) You attend an opera for the first time and are unclear about how to behave.
C) You enter a restaurant and expect a hostess to seat you and a waiter to take your order.
D) Your car breaks down and you do not know what to do.
E) You develop a five-year career plan.

Question 44

A researcher interested in understanding how sexual desires are expressed and controlled on nude beaches spent several months at nude beaches while naked herself. This is an example of

A) feminist research.
B) evolutionary research.
C) ethnographic fieldwork.
D) cognitive psychology research.
E) controlled research.

Question 45

A beautiful young woman dates only older, wealthy men. She does not find them attractive but values the stability a marriage to a wealthy man provides. This best illustrates

A) ethnographic factors in sexuality.
B) economic factors in sexuality.
C) the feminist approach to understanding sexuality.
D) attachment theory.
E) script theory.

Question 46

Barber (2000) compared sex ratios and teen birthrates in 185 countries and found that teen birth rates were

A) highest in countries with an excess of females.
B) highest in countries with an excess of males.
C) highest in countries with similar numbers of females and males.
D) lowest in countries with an excess of women under 20 years of age.
E) not influenced by sex ratios.

Question 47

The best contact for individuals or couples looking for a certified sex therapist would probably be the

A) Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality.
B) International Academy of Sex Research.
C) American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists.
D) World Association for Sexual Health.
E) Guttmacher Institute.

Question 48

Today, sexology

A) is accepted as a valid academic discipline.
B) suffers from lack of collaboration across academic disciplines.
C) is not yet advanced enough to benefit public health.
D) is being replaced by the field known as Genderism.
E) still has no recognized professional organizations.

Question 49

The universal Declaration of Sexual Rights

A) helps people understand the spectrum of adult sexual choices and behaviors.
B) establishes universal rules for marriage and acceptable sexual behaviors across cultures.
C) limits sexual rights to married heterosexuals.
D) identifies basic rights related to sexual safety, justice, and freedom.
E) establishes a location where people can escape persecution based on their sexual orientation.

Question 50

Which item is not listed as a sexual right in the universal Declaration of Sexual Rights?

A) Equality and non-discrimination
B) Protection from sexual violence
C) Access to sexual education
D) The right to choose the sex of one's baby
E) The right to sexual health care

Question 51

What determines whether an aspect of human sexuality is likely to have been influenced by evolution or by cultural forces?

Question 52

Citing examples from the textbook, explain how religion has influenced human sexual behavior.

Question 53

Discuss, with examples, how the institution of marriage has changed over the past 200 years.

Question 54

Contrast the views and contributions of Magnus Hirschfeld and Sigmund Freud. Explain how their work relates to current perspectives on homosexuality.

Question 55

Briefly describe how modern sexual life and sexual behavior would be different without recent medical advances in the field of biomedical research.

Question 56

Three recent studies about human sexuality include: the UCLA study on whether portrayals of sexual violence against women in movies influence male acceptance of this violence; the University of Haifa study on levels of empathy in gay individuals compared to heterosexual individuals; and the Liverpool University study on whether risky behavior in everyday life is sexually motivated. Categorize each study based on the type of psychology it involves, and explain briefly how each study contributes to our understanding of human sexuality.

Question 57

Discuss ways in which the field of psychology has contributed to our understanding of sex and sexuality.

Question 58

Which fields of study are most important to understanding how culture and social forces shape human sexuality? What can be gained from studying sexuality around the world and in minority groups?

Question 59

Suppose a researcher wishes to understand the general sexual habits and attitudes of people of all different social and economic classes in a country, and how those habits and attitudes are changing over time. What research technique would the researcher be most likely to use, and why?

Question 60

What are common problems encountered by sexologists when they are conducting sex research? Explain how scientists address those problems to collect useful data.

Question 61

Name three important sex surveys and discuss their most notable findings.