Sexual inhibition

A sexual inhibition is a conscious or unconscious constraint or curtailment by a person of behaviour relating to specific sexual matters or practices or of a discussion of sexual matters.

Though a person can be regarded as being sexually inhibited if he or she irrationally fears of or is excessively averse to any sexual practice or discourse, the term is normally not applied to a person who refrains from certain sexual activities on moral and rational grounds or due to a psychological disorder. On the other hand, a person can be regarded as having low sexual inhibitions when he/she unashamedly welcomes a variety of non-conventional erotic practices. Hypersexuality is typically associated with lowered sexual inhibitions, and alcohol and some drugs can affect a person's social and sexual inhibitions. Hypersexuality is at times viewed in terms of sexual addiction.

A particularly uninhibited individual might be branded in contemporary society as being a slut, stud or pervert while someone abnormally inhibited may be considered sexually frigid or prudish. See Asexuality.

Causes of inhibitions

A person's sexual inhibitions are a product of the person's personality, as well as personal experiences. Nevertheless there are a number of sources which have a great influence on the development of actual behaviour. Social conditioning and fashions also has an influence. (See the nature vs nurture debate.)

As a young person matures sexually, he or she will be exposed to myriad mixed signals of what various people regard as the normal behavior in a particular situation. On the other hand, other will hold such behavior to be unacceptable. Sexual inhibitions may result from, for example, repression of sexual behaviour as a child, societal restraints on sexual behaviour, ignorance, sexual myths, and disparity between the partners. For example, many women suffer from the “good girl syndrome” because they were taught that only “bad girls” will do a striptease for their lover, masturbate, give oral, have anal or even initiate sex when they want it. Women are often raised with shame and guilt about their body so they are inhibited about the size or shape of their breasts, the look and smell of their vagina, losing control during orgasm as well as asking for what they want in bed.

Early conditioning by not only parents and guardians, but society, can play a paramount role in the development of sexual inhibitions. When the child is young, they begin to understand the concept of gender identity, and begin to associate themselves as either a boy or a girl. This will also eventually lead to the discovery of the genitalia. Touching/playing/showing of the genitalia is generally considered inappropriate behaviour and the child may be admonished. The child learns the taboo of the genitalia and generally accepts them. If the child witnesses any sort of sexual behaviours between persons he is familiar with, after all of this anti sexual conditioning, the child may become confused and thus it may lead to sexual inhibition as the child grows^{[citation needed]}. However this depends on the response of the child. Many times, if the child witnesses their parent(s) engaging in sexual acts, the child may see them acting frantically, and thus the child would interpret it in a negative manner, again leading to sexual inhibitions^{[citation needed]}. But if the parent(s) or another party are abusing the child, he/she may grow to engage in more atypical sexual behaviour.^{[citation needed]}

Society has a profound effect on a person's perception of sex. For example, parents may pass on their anti-sex ideas onto their children at a young age, but the media imposes conflicting ideas on the youths as they grow older^{[citation needed]}.

See also

• Erotophobia
• Social inhibition
• Hypersexuality
• Hypoactive sexual desire disorder
• Religion and sexuality

References

• "Sexual Behaviour, Human". Encyclopædia Britannica (Deluxe CD ed.). 2003.