| aphrodisiac | Substance believed to increase sexual responsiveness, pleasure, or capacity. 8
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| applied practitioner | A professional who applies scientific knowledge to assist others (e.g., a sex therapist). 15
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| asceticism | A philosophy advocating extreme self-denial, self-discipline, and often celibacy. 10
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| attitude | A relatively stable positive or negative evaluation of some "object" (person, group, idea, behavior, etc.). 22
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| cause-and-effect relationships | How changes in one variable affect, or cause change in, a second variable (e.g., the effects of sleep deprivation on sexual responsiveness. 18
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| child molestation | Sexual abuse of a child by an adolescent or an adult. 486
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| clinical case study | An in-depth psychological or physical study of an individual patient. 19
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| coitus interruptus | Withdrawal of the penis from the vagina before ejaculation. 7
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| control group | In an experiment, the group that is not exposed to some treatment or variable. 18
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| critical thinking | Awareness and avoidance of biases and presumptions in evaluating information, claims, and arguments. Using facts and logical reasoning to reach conclusions. 21
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| dogma | A principle or doctrine believed by its advocates to be absolutely true. 10
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| empirical data | Information or knowledge derived from scientific observation or experimentation. 3
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| experiment | A research method in which one of two or more equivalent groups is exposed to a treatment to measure its effect on some variable of interest. 18
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| experimental group | The group in an experiment that is exposed to some treatment or variable. 18
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| gender | A societally constructed status to which one is assigned (boy or girl, woman or man). Distinguishable from the biological category of sex (male or female). 22, 288
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| hetaerae | Courtesans. An educated and cultured class of female sexual companions for affluent Greek men in ancient Greece. 9
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| observation | The describing or recording of ongoing, visible behavior. 18
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| pederasty | Sexual contact between adult men and adolescent boys. 8
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| pedophilia | A general erotic preference for children. 447, 486
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| penile strain gauge | Device used to measure penile engorgement during sexual arousal. 18
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| phallus (phallic) | The penis (related to the penis). 6
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| plethysmography | Measurement of the size or state of an organ based on the amount of blood flowing through it (e.g., plethysmograph of the vagina during arousal). 16
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| random assignment | Assigning research participants to groups in such a way that each participant has an equal chance of being in any group. 18
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| replicate | To redo or reproduce a study to determine if the findings are dependable or occurred by chance. 3
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| representative sample | A survey target group that has the important (relevant) characteristics of the whole population. 17
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| research | Scholarly or scientific study designed to increase knowledge. 15
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| response rate | The proportion of those contacted in a survey who actually respond. 16
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| sample | A portion that represents a whole population (in a scientific study). 15
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| sample of convenience | A survey target group that is easily available or from whom it is easy to collect data. 17
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| self-report bias | The tendency to offer a generally favorable description of one's own behavior or attitude. 15
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| sex | A biological status, typically based on the appearance of one's genitals (male or female). Also, genital contact between individuals for the purpose of pleasure and/or reproduction. 22, 288
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| sexual double standard | Belief that certain behaviors (especially sexual) are acceptable for one gender but not for the other. 22
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| sexual harassment | sexual coercion that occurs in situations of unequal power. 475
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| survey | A method of studying a topic by forming specific questions and asking them of a specific group. 16
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| transsexualism | Intense and prolonged psychological discomfort with one's sexual anatomy, often to the degree that one seeks surgery to "correct" the condition. 22, 304
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| transvestism (transvestite) | See cross-dressing.
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| vaginal photoplethysmograph | Device used to measure engorgement of the vaginal walls during arousal. 18
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| variable | Any factor that can vary in level, size, or intensity. 18
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| volunteer bias | Behavioral and attitudinal differences that exist between those who are likely to volunteer and those who are not. 16
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2002 McGraw-Hill Higher Education