An affair is generally a sign things aren’t right with someone’s relationship. It occurs when one person sees an alternative relationship as a better way to meet their needs than their existing one.
Teen sexting has been on the rise over the last decade as smartphones have become more available; meanwhile teen sex has declined.
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Teen sexting is on the rise. Boys and girls are equally likely to share sexually explicit imagery but girls report feeling more pressure to sext and more judgement about how they do it.
We need more clarity around this difficult question: when are sexual acts so extreme that consent is irrelevant?
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This podcast explores the latest sexology research – including the topics that are still too taboo to get funding. We talk to sex robot experts and find out how sex work has moved online.
A couple in bed. Research shows that sex is important to happiness and good health.
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Love may make the world go round, but sex keeps it going. There’s been a lot of discussion in recent months about the horrors of bad sex. But it’s important to remember that good sex is good for us.
According to initial studies with lab rats, research suggests that your first sexual partner may have something to tell you about your choice of spouse or current lover.
While sexual harassment is still all too common, at least we’re having more open conversations about it, and victims are speaking up on their own terms.
Research shows that the Y chromosome may be able to protect itself from extinction in the short term. But what about in a future where we all reproduce artificially?
What movies tell us is important in a parter – a nice smile or money – are exaggerations of fundamental evolutionary needs that actually do matter.
In the recent wave of sexual assault allegations, men tend to only appear as active perpetrators. But the landscape of sex in American culture is more nuanced.
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Even though they weren’t particularly interested in having sex, fear of ridicule and insecurities tugged at many of the young men the author spoke with.
Is a too-strict definition of monogamy undermining your relationship? Research shows that while most people expect exclusivity in a relationship, infidelity is still the leading cause of divorce.
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Seeking monogamy without jealousy? Try ditching the fear of your partner’s intimate connections with others and write your own relationship rules, suggests a relationship researcher.
French engraving of a cuckolded husband.
University of Victoria
‘Cuck’, short for cuckold, is the favoured insult of men’s rights activists today. But the term has a long history: from the 16th to 18th centuries it reflected a deep anxiety about women’s sexual appetites.
War was not always about fighting, and in times of relaxation soldiers were able to indulge many other activities.
State Library of Queensland
Our histories tell us armies make men, but in World War II, conflicted provided a rare and surprisingly open space for men to experiment with their femininity and sexuality.
Titian’s 1583 painting Venus of Urbino: historically, pleasure was not the only, or even the main, expectation from sex for women.
Wikimedia Commons
Australian women were once largely seen as reproducers, rather than lovers: sexual pleasure was suspect. Attitudes have changed, yet our culture is still troubled by female desire.
Professor of Media and Communication and Associate Investigator, ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making + Society, Swinburne University of Technology