General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: All men watch porn, scientists find [View all]seabeyond
(110,159 posts)It is considered an almost forgone conclusion across research disciplines, among pop psychologists of all stripes, and in the general population that men are more visual than women when it comes to the way they get turned on. Men, were told, are visually aroused, whereas women just need a good sense of humor, and possibly a strong jaw, and they're on board.
This misguided, but pervasive belief can be linked to a host of other gender stereotypes which are further complicated by sexual politics and differences in social power. So arguments which should be challenged, such as the fact that men leer more than women do, that they objectify womens bodies more than women do mens bodies, and that they just cant stop watching porn, are explained as somehow being related to a mix of genetics, patriarchy, and simple mindedness. Challenging these ideas can be a monumental task. Researcher bias being what it is, science rarely offers support for these "counter-intuitive" ideas. What's worse, when research does start to complicate matters, the media, and even smart bloggers who should know better, distort the findings beyond recognition.
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The study, carried out by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis measured brainwave activity of 264 women as they viewed a series of 55 color slides that contained various scenes from water skiers to snarling dogs to partially-clad couples in sensual poses. The researchers were interested in the speed, strength, and location of brainwave activity of the subjects as they viewed erotic versus non-erotic images.
As they hypothesized, the brainwave activity of participants was markedly different when viewing erotic images versus non-erotic images. But a finding they didnt expect was that female participants response was similar to men. In a prepared statement, lead author Andrey P. Anokhin explained:
http://sexuality.about.com/b/2006/06/19/new-brain-research-challenges-the-myth-that-men-are-more-visual-than-women.htm