"HUMAN SEXUAL INADEQUACY" (WILLIAM MASTERS & VIRGINIA JOHNSON).   Term Paper ID:25473 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: Reviews work on sexual dysfunction & types & effectiveness of therapy, based on clinical research.... More...

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Paper Abstract: Reviews work on sexual dysfunction & types & effectiveness of therapy, based on clinical research. Paper Introduction: Masters' and Johnson's Human Sexual Inadequacy is a cumulative descriptive account of the operation of the clinic for the treatment of human sexual dysfunction at the Washington University School of Medicine since 1959 and its continuation at the Reproductive Biology Research Foundation after 1964. The authors report in detail on the development of their therapeutic format and then discuss the evolution of therapeutic approaches to a dozen of the major types of sexual dysfunction presented by patients. Both parts of the book are written in a direct, clinical--but forcefully clear--manner that is free of therapeutic jargon. This makes the volume as much an invaluable handbook as an introductory text. It is also, however, an important historical document since it is a record of the emergence of the original, and the most influential, model for Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Boston: Little, Brown, 197 . Typical of their approach isthe detailed description of techniques used in some cases of orgasmicdysfunction. They describe, for example, how to achieve the position, and what todo when the wife has mounted the husband. They explain the gradual process by which altered positions,especially the female-superior position, can be used to re-orient thepartners to each other's bodies and to gradually work on the problem oferection maintenance and the development of vaginal sensation. That work had also been drivenby the assumption that scientific knowledge was required as a basis fortherapeutic intervention and they expected, therefore, to be able to dealwith sexual dysfunction at every level. Works CitedMasters, William H., and Virginia E. The therapeutic format established by Masters and Johnson became anenduring standard. This makesthe volume as much an invaluable handbook as an introductory text. The processbegins with a gradual approach to deeper intimacy that leads "from simple,sensate focus to effective response in coital connection" (3 7). She is "instructed to holdherself quite still and simply to absorb the awareness of penilecontainment" (3 7). They had studied interactions among partners and beganto establish certain therapeutic principles very early in their work on theanatomy and physiology of sexual response. Careful screening helps eliminate those cases--andthere are a fair number of them--in which no amount of therapy will helpthe couple to achieve goals that are something other than marital andsexual harmony. In the arrangement they devised, one therapist serves as the silentobserver and coach of the team. The problem ofdescriptions/understanding of the physical sensations and the generalexperiences of the partner of the opposite sex are also better met by thepresence of a member of the therapeutic team who, being trained in suchexplanations and interpretation of clients' descriptions can assistcommunication between the partners. These pairshad to be able to function as a team "in what might be termed a single-standard professional environment" (16). Johnson. And, as the authors'point out, the dual-therapist approach eliminates some of the effects ofclinical transference, familiar from other kinds of therapy, that mightinterfere with a therapeutic procedure. This is only a small portion of the procedure, which stretches overthe course of numerous coitions. In the therapeutic setting, Masters and Johnson, on the basis of manyclinical trials, reached the conclusion that conjoint treatment of coupleswas essential and that a pair of therapists was better able to keep anessential balance and objectivity operative during sessions. Masters and Johnson include a section on treatment failures as ademonstration of their continuing interest in identifying possiblemisdirections the therapy has taken. Masters and Johnson also stress the importance of avoiding anysemblance of a goal-oriented approach in sexual dysfunction therapy. Thus two therapists can manage toensure that confusions, lack of information, and numerous problems thatmight sidetrack therapy are not allowed to develop. Masters' and Johnson's Human Sexual Inadequacy is a cumulativedescriptive account of the operation of the clinic for the treatment ofhuman sexual dysfunction at the Washington University School of Medicinesince 1959 and its continuation at the Reproductive Biology ResearchFoundation after 1964. However, the overall impression of Masters' and Johnson'saccount of their revolutionary work is that, given the carefully thought-out therapeutic environment, the scientifically-based understanding ofhuman sexual response, a genuine interest in the welfare of the clients,and an ability to communicate it would be difficult, in most cases, for thetreatment to fail. As Masters and Johnson note,though transference is not discouraged entirely, "every effort is made inthe brief two-week acute phase of the therapy program to avoid thedevelopment of a special affinity between either patient and eithercotherapist" (7). The principalproblem sex therapists face, however, is that "frequently totaldisaffection with mate and revenge motifs are tied together by deliberatedissimulation" (371). Thedescription of the process explains the function of the various steps in aclear manner that would make great sense to clients. The training, character, and teamwork of therapists were of primaryconcern and they stress the difficulty of finding professionals who have"the individual ability necessary to work comfortably and effectively withpeople in the vulnerable area of sexual dysfunction" (16). Both theability to teach (a major component of their approach) and to make a full-time, seven-day-a-week commitment were required. Anyinference a patient makes about the need to achieve a certain stage ofimprovement at any time during the process may simply result in a stress onperformance that undermines the effects of the therapeutic process.Therapists nearly always feel compelled to suggest to a patient that s/hemay now be ready to try some step in the change process, but "rarely isthis suggestion taken as an indication of potential readiness for sexualfunction"--it is usually taken instead as an order to perform (13). Both parts of the book are written in a direct, clinical--butforcefully clear--manner that is free of therapeutic jargon. The second, and larger, portion of the book consists of individualchapters on problems of sexual functioning ranging from distinct physicalproblems to misunderstandings about partners' experience and the use ofspecific techniques to correct dysfunction. Thisproblem is met largely through the consistent emphasis on moving the couple--rather than the dysfunctional individual--through a series of very gradualsteps "toward mutually desirable sexual involvement" (14). It isalso, however, an important historical document since it is a record of theemergence of the original, and the most influential, model for therapeuticapproaches to sexual dysfunction. Human Sexual Inadequacy. But, most importantly,these individuals had to be able to work jointly and equally with a personof the opposite sex because Masters' and Johnson's ideal therapeuticapproach involved the treatment of couples (married, in their earliestefforts) and two therapists, one male and one female, one from thepsychological sciences and one from the biological sciences. And throughouttheir approach to therapy there is a similar relaxed tone that, combinedwith the emphasis on the patients' necessary commitment to the process,produces a very sound therapeutic approach. At any point where a clarification is needed, the pace needs tobe altered, or the specific gender-oriented knowledge of the silenttherapist is needed, the cotherapists change positions and continue with anew 'silent' partner. In the course of experiencing the sensate pleasure thewife's awareness will provide "the opportunity to feel and think sexually"(3 7). In addition,of course, the provision for a therapist of each sex was an essential partof dealing with the common problem of socially-induced timidity aboutdiscussing sexual matters with a therapist of the opposite sex (especiallystrong in male patients dealing with female therapists). Interpersonal problems,psychological problems, physical dysfunction, and inadequacies ofperformance in terms of the mechanisms and emotions of sexual interaction,were all to be included in their treatment goals. The observer looks on and evaluates"levels of patient receptivity to therapeutic concept and to the educativeand directive material presented by the cotherapist," while definingdegrees of understanding and identifying areas of immediate concern for theteam (9). In other casesthe request disguises a desire for revenge--a wish to have an authoritypoint out, for example, that a wife's frigidity or a husband's impotence isblameworthy and the true source of a couple's difficulties. The application for reversal of asexual dysfunction is sometimes an effort to ease the problem ofdisaffected couples who feel compelled to remain together. The authors report in detail on the development oftheir therapeutic format and then discuss the evolution of therapeuticapproaches to a dozen of the major types of sexual dysfunction presented bypatients. But Masters' and Johnson's approach isclearly shown in this combination of precise instructions and the attemptto verbalize the states of sensation the patients may hope to experience.This is total therapy--treatment that reaches the fundamental levels ofsexual connection and pursues the connection between all levels of thecouple's interaction and their mutual sexual expression. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.