Coming to an Asexual Identity: Negotiating Identity, Negotiating Desire

"I am not a Robot, I am Asexual": A Qualitative Critique of Allonormative Discourses of Ace and Aro Folks as Robots, Aliens, Monsters

Despite exploring other queer topics, communication scholars and rhetoricians are lacking in offering academic inquiries involving asexuality. We engaged in a critical thematic analysis of posts and comments posted from asexual and/or aromantic folks on the online communities of Reddit and AVEN, the Asexuality Visibility & Education Network. The analysis focused on three cultural tropes prominently used when describing asexual and aromantic folks, namely robots, aliens, and monsters. Our discussion centers asexual and aromantic voices and invites communication and rhetorical scholars to take steps in combating the allonormativity of our fields by centering the voices and experiences of intersectional aces and/or aros in their own research. We conclude with a call for an asexual and aromantic communication studies.

The Nuances of Intimacy: Asexual Perspectives and Experiences with Dating and Relationships

Asexuality studies are an emerging field in North America and Europe which lack large-scale, qualitative studies. Much existing research focuses on defining and categorizing asexuality, with researchers calling for more focus on the romantic and sexual relationships of asexual people. Drawing from an online survey with 349 participants, this paper describes the perceptions and experiences that asexual people have with dating and relationships. Participants answered 16 open-ended and 9 close-ended questions. After rounds of coding, three themes were selected for examination. These were dating, romantic and/or sexual relationships, and platonic relationships. These results showcase the challenges asexuals face with dating while also demonstrating how asexual people actively dismantle understandings of romantic, sexual, and platonic relationships through their own experiences and perspectives. Overall, this study provides greater legitimacy to the fluidity of asexuality and asexual relationships.

Deepening Sexual Desire and Erotic Fantasies Research in the ACE Spectrum: Comparing the Experiences of Asexual, Demisexual, Gray-Asexual, and Questioning People

Over the past 30 years, an increasing number of people have identified within the asexual (ACE) spectrum recognizing an absence/low/situational sexual attraction to individuals of any gender. The current study aims to deepen the knowledge of sexual desire, erotic fantasies, and related emotions within the ACE spectrum. A total of 1072 Italian volunteers were recruited to take part to the present study via social media. Data were collected from October 2021 to January 2022 using the Sexual Desire and Erotic Fantasies questionnaire and the Sexual Desire Inventory-2. Participants were divided into four groups: asexual, demisexual, gray-asexual, and questioning. Focusing on sexual desire, asexual people reported significantly lower scores than the other groups in all the dimensions except for "negative feelings to sexual desire," while demisexual participants showed the higher scores in all the domains except for "negative feelings to sexual desire." The questioning group reported the highest scores in the "negative feelings toward sexual desire" compared to the asexual and demisexual ones. The asexual group reported significantly lower scores than the other groups in fantasies frequency, fantasies importance, negative emotions, and sharing and experiencing. The demisexual group showed higher frequency of romantic fantasies than the asexual and gray-asexual ones. The results showed some specific patterns of desire and fantasies among the asexual, gray-asexual, demisexual, and questioning groups. These data may provide relevant material to clinicians working with asexual patients who need greater awareness about the diversity and heterogeneity of the sexual experience within the ACE spectrum.

Fluidity in Gender Identity and Sexual Orientation Identity in Transgender and Nonbinary Youth

Changes in sexual orientation identity (SOI) and gender identity (GI) have rarely been studied in transgender and/or nonbinary youth (TNBY), but documenting such changes is important for understanding identity development and gender transition and supporting the needs of TNBY. This study examined the frequency and patterning of changes in GI and SOI across 3 months (T1-T2) and 1.5 years (T1-T4) among 183 TNBY (baseline age 14-17 years; 83.6% White, 16.9% Hispanic/Latinx) who participated in a longitudinal US study. Participants completed online surveys including measures of GI and SOI. The most common gender identity selected at T1 (with or without another gender identity) was nonbinary (56.3%), and more than half (57.4%) of youth identified with a plurisexual identity (e.g., bisexual, pansexual). GI fluidity from T1-T2 was 13.2% and from T1-T4 was 28.9%. It was equally common to move toward a nonbinary gender identity as toward a binary gender identity. SOI fluidity was more common (30.6% from T1-T2; 55.8% from T1-T4) than GI fluidity. Shifts toward plurisexual identities were more common than shifts toward monosexual identities (e.g., straight, gay). Findings highlight the need to assess changes in GI and SOI in research and clinical practice to address the unique needs of TNBY accurately and effectively.

Understanding Attraction, Behavior, and Identity in the Asexual Community

Models of sexuality have evolved substantially in the past several decades through the inclusion of new aspects which were previously overlooked. Components such as romantic attraction and behavior have also traditionally been included in models of sexuality. However, romantic and sexual orientations do not coincide for all individuals. A population for which this is true and one that has developed a robust language for discussing romantic orientation is the asexual community. The current study aimed to explore romantic and sexual orientation through patterns found within the factors of attraction, behavior, and identity in the asexual community. The current sample composed of individuals who identified as asexual (N = 306, M_age = 27.1) was 61% female, 13% non-binary, and 10% self-described or used multiple labels. Within this sample, aspects of sexual and romantic orientations and experiences were measured, including fluidity, the quantity and type of self-identified labels, desire for romance or sex, and the role of contextual influences on these experiences. These aspects were used as the primary characteristics to construct participant profiles, both complete profiles and factor specific (attraction, behavior, identity). t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (tSNE) was used to find patterns of similarity between individual participant profiles. Overall, it appeared that attraction was the factor most closely associated with overall experiences; however, substantial variability existed between participants. These findings provide a mechanism for better understanding of some nuances of romantic and sexual orientation and may be a useful first step toward future inquiry and hypothesis generation.

Examining Visual Attention Patterns among Asexual and Heterosexual Individuals

Asexuality has garnered much attention, and empirical data support its classification as a sexual orientation. Asexuality is defined as a lack of sexual attraction to others, with approximately 1% of the population falling in this category. As theoretical models situate attention as a central component of sexual response, the current study examined attentional processing of erotic stimuli in asexuals and heterosexuals. We hypothesized that heterosexual participants would have initial and controlled visual attention patterns favoring erotic images over non-erotic images. We predicted that asexual participants would have significantly smaller or non-existent differences in attention to erotic versus non-erotic images. Ninety-five adults completed an eye-tracking task viewing erotic and non-erotic images. Eye-tracking data showed no group differences in initial attention to erotic images. For controlled attention, there was a large effect size in the hypothesized direction. Heterosexual participants exhibited more and longer fixations on erotic images, whereas asexuals exhibited a more even distribution of attention across image types. Exploratory analysis of group differences in the association between visual attention and ratings of sexual attractiveness revealed a complex pattern of differences, with some indication of a stronger association between total fixation and sexual attraction for heterosexual participants. These findings suggest that differences in attention to sexual stimuli may represent key underlying differences between asexual and allosexual orientation. Findings also contribute to the larger literature on visual attention and attraction.

Asexuality, Graysexuality, and Demisexuality: Distinctions in Desire, Behavior, and Identity

As identities within the ace spectrum gain greater visibility in describing those who experience limited or no sexual attraction, it is vital to understand points of commonality and distinction among individuals who identify as asexual, graysexual, and demisexual. Among respondents to the Ace Community Survey, a large international sample of individuals who identify on the ace spectrum, we found that those who identified as asexual (n = 9,476, M_age = 22.3, 61.0% female, 12.5% male), graysexual (n = 1,698, M_age = 24.2, 58.8% female, 16.5% male), or demisexual (n = 1,442, M_age = 24.2, 62.8% female, 12.6% male) varied in indicators related to sexual desire, behavior, and identity. Asexual individuals were the least likely to be in a relationship, experience romantic attraction, or identify with orientation labels signifying genders of attraction such as straight, bisexual, heteroromantic, and biromantic. Asexual individuals were the most likely to identify as aromantic, graysexual individuals the most likely to identify as grayromantic, and demisexual individuals the most likely to identify as demiromantic. Asexual individuals also scored the lowest on measures of sex drive, personal disposition toward engaging in sex, and masturbation frequency, with graysexual individuals scoring lower than demisexual individuals on the first two.

Gender Inequities in Household Labor Predict Lower Sexual Desire in Women Partnered with Men

Low sexual desire in women is usually studied as a problem, one that is located within women. However, other possibilities exist, including known gender inequities related to heteronormative gender roles. In this study, we provide the first test of the theory that heteronormativity is related to low sexual desire in women partnered with men, focusing specifically on inequities in the division of household labor. In two studies with women who were partnered with men and had children (Study 1, N = 677; Study 2, N = 396), performing a large proportion of household labor was associated with significantly lower sexual desire for a partner. Together, the results suggest that this association was mediated by both perceiving the partner as a dependent and perceiving the division of labor as unfair. These results support the heteronormativity theory of low sexual desire in women partnered with men, and show that gender inequities are important, though understudied, contributors to low desire in women partnered with men.

Are Autism Spectrum Disorder and Asexuality Connected?

Asexuality is a lack of sexual attraction to any gender. There is some evidence to suggest that many self-identified asexuals have a formal diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder which is characterized by deficits in social interaction and communication, as well as by restricted and repetitive interests and behaviors. Additionally, the literature shows that asexuality and lack of sexual attraction or low sexual interest is overrepresented in people with autism spectrum disorder compared with neurotypical samples. Nevertheless, no studies have been conducted to investigate the relationship between autism and asexuality in depth. We conducted a systematic review of the literature to examine whether asexuality and autism spectrum disorder are connected. We conclude that asexuality and autism share various aspects, such as a possible role of prenatal factors, reference to romantic dimensions of sexual attraction and sexual orientation, and non-partner-oriented sexual desire, but future research should explore and clarify this link.

Sexuality, Sexual Behavior, and Relationships of Asexual Individuals: Differences Between Aromantic and Romantic Orientation

Asexuality is a complex construct with a considerable lack of research until recently. Building upon available findings, we examined the extent to which romantic orientation shapes individual and relationship experiences, and expectations of asexual individuals. Specifically, our research focused on the distinction between romantic asexual individuals, who experience romantic attraction, and aromantic asexual individuals, who do not experience romantic attraction. A cross-sectional study with members of different asexual online communities (N = 447, 55.02% women; M_age = 24.77 years, SD = 7.21) aimed at examining how both groups differ in their identification with the asexuality construct as measured by the Asexuality Identification Scale (Yule et al., 2017), individual perspectives on sexuality, sexual behavior and relationships, concerns about commitment and sexual performance in a relationship, and attachment style. Results showed that aromantic asexual individuals identified more with asexuality, reported a more avoidant attachment style, and were more concerned with relationship commitment. In contrast, romantic asexual individuals reported less sex aversion, more sexual experiences (both past and current), and more sexual partners in the past. These individuals also engaged in romantic relationships more frequently in the past, had a stronger desire to engage in a romantic relationship in future (either with or without sexual intimacy), and were more concerned with sexual performance. Overall, our findings contribute to the literature by highlighting the need to consider romantic orientation when examining asexuality and its interpersonal outcomes.

Concordance Between Romantic Orientations and Sexual Attitudes: Comparing Allosexual and Asexual Adults

Sexual and romantic orientations are often considered one and the same, and attitudes about engaging in sexual behavior are assumed to be predominantly positive. The current study explored the concordance between sexual and romantic orientations among allosexual and asexual adults as well as the frequency with which they identify as having a sex-positive, sex-neutral, or sex-averse attitude. As expected, allosexual adults were largely sex-positive (82%) and almost all (89%) had a romantic orientation that matched their sexual orientation. In contrast, we found that only 37% of asexual adults had concordant sexual and romantic orientations and that most asexual adults self-identify as either sex-neutral (41%) or sex-averse (54%). Further, we used a semantic differential task to assess sexual intimacy attitudes and how they varied for adults based on sexual attitude. Asexual adults, regardless of sexual attitude, had less positive attitudes overall than allosexual adults. Interestingly, aromantic asexual adults did not have more negative attitudes about sexual intimacy than romantic asexual participants. Although asexual adults held less positive attitudes about sex than allosexual adults, there was considerable heterogeneity within our asexual sample. The current study provides further insight into the concordance between romantic and sexual orientation, and the associations among sexual and intimacy attitudes for both allosexual and asexual adults. These findings will have implications for future research on how asexual adults navigate romantic relationships.

A Scoping Review of Empirical Asexuality Research in Social Science Literature

Research on asexuality as a part of the experience of human sexuality has increased over the last two decades. However, there has not yet been a systematic review of the extant literature on asexuality. This paper aims to provide a systematic scoping review of literature on asexuality with articles published in 2004 through August 2021. After a systematic search procedure, 48 studies were included. A codebook was developed to extract broad information about the literature on asexuality, including sampling techniques, research participant sociodemographics, and conceptualization of asexuality. Results of the review indicate that the research is currently split between qualitative and quantitative methods. The literature primarily relied on convenience sampling within asexual online communities. The primary online community was Asexual Visibility and Education Network (AVEN), which may have contributed to the majority of participants being White, presumptively cisgender, women between the ages of 20-30. Analysis of the overall literature scope demonstrates no support for asexuality as a medical condition (i.e., a disorder requiring treatment) and instead supports the need to recognize asexuality as a complex identity and sexual orientation. Implications for research are discussed, such as the need for additional research on the topic of human sexuality that includes asexuality as a sexual orientation as well as the need for more intersectional research within the literature.

The Impact of Psychological Distress on the Occupational Well-Being of Sexual and Gender Minorities

Background: Discrimination against sexual and gender minorities in occupational settings has been an important topic of research. However, little is known about this impact in Portuguese-speaking people. Methods: 305 Portuguese and Brazilian participants who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, asexual, and other sexual and gender identities (LGBTQIA+) completed an online survey comprising sociodemographic questions, a set of scales to assess psychological distress, and a set of scales to assess occupational well-being. Results: Participants had higher levels of burnout, depressive symptoms, and anxiety and lower levels of work-related quality of life, engagement, and self-efficacy at work compared to the defined cut-off points for normative populations, with asexual and bisexual people appearing to be the most affected. Significant correlations were found for all variables, and psychological distress was a significant predictor of lower occupational well-being. Conclusions: These findings are useful for understanding the occupational health of LGBTQIA+ people and suggest efforts to improve the climate in the workplace for this population.

Beyond the Label: Asexual Identity Among Individuals on the High-Functioning Autism Spectrum

Researchers have suggested that asexuality, which has been conceptualized traditionally as a persistent lack of sexual attraction to others, may be more common among individuals with autism spectrum disorder than in the neurotypical population. However, no studies to date have considered how these individuals understand and conceptualize their sexual identity. The aim of this study was to provide a more nuanced understanding of asexuality among individuals with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (HF-ASD) than has been done in the past. Individuals with ASD, 21-72 years old (M = 34.04 years, SD = 10.53), were recruited from online communities that serve adults with ASD and Amazon's Mechanical Turk to complete an online survey of sexual and gender identity. Overall, 17 (5.1%) participants who met study criteria (N = 332) self-identified as asexual. However, 9 of the 17 people identifying as asexual expressed at least some sexual attraction to others. In addition, based on open-ended responses, some participants linked their asexual identity more with a lack of desire or perceived skill to engage in interpersonal relations than a lack of sexual attraction. Results suggest that researchers should be cautious in attributing higher rates of asexuality among individuals with ASD than in the general population to a narrow explanation and that both researchers and professionals working with individuals with ASD should consider multiple questions or approaches to accurately assess sexual identity.

Is Being Queer Gay? Sexual Attraction Patterns, Minority Stressors, and Psychological Distress in Non-Traditional Categories of Sexual Orientation

This study examined characteristics of cisgender people who use non-traditional sexual orientation labels and investigated minority stress in these groups. Pansexual (n = 160), queer (n = 80), and asexual (n = 98) participants were compared with heterosexual (n = 1,021), bisexual (n = 1,518), and lesbian/gay (n = 2,730) individuals recruited from a cross-sectional survey. Participants were compared on sexual attraction, age, gender and childhood gender nonconformity. Hierarchical regression models with psychological distress as the dependent variable and outness, prejudice events, expectations of rejection, self-stigma, and rumination as independent variables were then tested in pansexual, queer, and asexual individuals. Sexual attraction, age, gender and recalled childhood gender nonconformity were significant predictors of group identity. Pansexual individuals were not significantly distinct from bisexual individuals in sexual attraction. Queer individuals fell between bisexual and lesbian/gay individuals in sexual attraction scores. Prejudice events and rumination were significantly associated with distress in all three non-traditional groups. Rumination scores attenuated the relationship between prejudice events and distress in all groups. These findings help characterize pansexual, asexual and queer individuals and suggest indirect effects of prejudice events on distress via rumination represent a worthy avenue for future minority stress research in these groups.

Patterns of sexual behavior and psychological processes in asexual persons: a systematic review

Asexuality is commonly regarded as lack of sexual attraction. Research in asexuality grew progressively in the past two decades. However, asexuals' patterns of sexual behavior and psychological processes were not yet systematized. This review searched for articles that could potentially help establishing these patterns. Articles published in English until December 31st 2019 were retrieved from Medline, Embase, Cochrane, EBSCO, PubMed, Scopus, and PsycARTICLES. A systematic search was conducted using an exhaustive list of key terms regarding asexuality and sexual behavior following PRISMA guidelines. Of the 195 initially retrieved, only 23 were considered for this review. Of the 23 articles, 16 were quantitative studies, 5 were qualitative studies, and 2 comprised quantitative and qualitative studies. Overall, current findings suggest that asexuals present great heterogeneity of sexual behaviors and psychological processes regarding sexuality, including different aspects and types of interpersonal and romantic relationships, sexual attitudes or fantasies. Conversely, data did not find support for the claim that asexuals present impaired sexual functioning. The little geographic and cultural diversity of the samples is a major limitation in these studies, preventing the properly representation of asexuals. Furthermore, asexuals may benefit from evidence on the biopsychosocial factors shaping sexual, emotional, and relationship well-being, as far as such evidence is built upon asexuals' lenses, rather than on heteronormativity criteria.

Sexual Desire and Fantasies in the LGBT+ Community: a Focus on Bisexuals, Transgender, and Other Shades of the Rainbow

Purpose of Review

The purpose of this review is to summarize the current knowledge on sexual desire expressions, sexual orientation, and identity in understudied groups inside the LGBT+ community.

Recent Findings

Sexual desire and related problems have unique expressions in LGBT+ people which influence their sexual health. Emerging sex-positive approaches might be powerful and prominent tools to provide support and education on behalf of safer sex practices and marginalized sexualities. The importance of deepening LGBT+ sexualities and relationships, not only in lesbian women and gay men but also in all the other shades of the rainbow (bisexual, transgender, asexual, fluid, and non-binary/genderqueer identities), is strongly highlighted.

Summary

A lack of literature regarding sexual desire in LGBT+ people is reported. Results are controversial and research is still limited on this topic, with little information available about sexual and health needs of sexual minorities beyond gay and lesbian people.

Ace and Aro: Understanding Differences in Romantic Attractions Among Persons Identifying as Asexual

First characterized by Kinsey in 1948, asexuality can be broadly defined as an absence of sexual attraction, with approximately 1% of the population identifying as asexual. While asexuality research has flourished recently, very few papers have investigated the unique mechanism of romantic attraction in asexual people, notably that some experience romantic attraction (romantic asexual) while others do not (aromantic asexual). This study compared romantic and aromantic asexual individuals through secondary data analysis on demographic, behavioral, psychological, and physiological measures as the primary objective and compared asexual people to allosexual people on some measures as a secondary aim. After combining data from seven previous asexuality studies (n = 4032 total), we found that 74.0% of asexual people reported experiencing romantic attraction. No significant difference was found in distribution of men and women between the aromantic and romantic asexual groups, though the asexual group showed higher proportions of women and non-binary genders compared to the allosexual comparison group. Romantic asexual participants reported a diverse range of romantic orientations, with only 36.0% reporting a heteroromantic orientation, compared to 76.2% of allosexual participants. As predicted, romantic asexual individuals were more likely to have been in a relationship when completing the survey, reported more past romantic and sexual partners and more frequent kissing than aromantic asexual people, and experienced more partner-oriented sexual desire than the aromantic asexual group. There were also differences in personality as romantic asexual people were less cold, more nurturant, and more intrusive than the aromantic asexual group. No difference was seen between romantic and aromantic asexual individuals in demographic characteristics, likelihood of having children, solitary sexual desire, physiological sexual functioning, frequencies of masturbation and sexual fantasy, or depression. These similarities and differences between romantic and aromantic asexual people highlight the diversity within the asexual community.

Asexual and Non-Asexual Respondents from a U.S. Population-Based Study of Sexual Minorities

Using a U.S. population-based sample of lesbian, gay, bisexual (LGB) and other sexual minority (e.g., queer-identified) people, we compared those who identified as asexual (n = 19; 1.66%) and those who were non-asexual (n = 1504; 98.34%). Compared to non-asexual respondents, asexual respondents were more likely to be women or gender non-binary and belong to a younger (ages 18-27) cohort. Asexual individuals were also less likely to have had sex in the past 5 years, compared to non-asexual men, women, and gender non-binary participants, and also reported lower levels of sexual attraction to cisgender men and women than non-asexual women and men, respectively. However, asexual participants did not differ from non-asexual participants in being in an intimate relationship. Asexual respondents felt more stigma than non-asexual men and women, and asexuals reported more everyday discrimination than did non-asexual men. Asexual and non-asexual respondents did not differ in their sense of connectedness to the LGB community. Asexual and non-asexual respondents were as likely to be out to all family, all friends, and all co-workers, but fewer asexual participants were out to all healthcare providers than non-asexual men. The two groups were similar in general well-being, life satisfaction, and social support. In conclusion, asexual identity is an infrequent but unique identity, and one that has the potential to expand the concept of queer identity as well as to destabilize the foregrounding of sexual behavior.

Motivational Drive in Non-copulating and Socially Monogamous Mammals

Motivational drives guide behaviors in animals of different species, including humans. Some of these motivations, like looking for food and water, are crucial for the survival of the individual and hence for the preservation of the species. But there is at least another motivation that is also important for the survival of the species but not for the survival of the individual. Undoubtedly, sexual motivation is important for individuals to find a mate and reproduce, thus ensuring the survival of the species. In species with sexual reproduction, when males find a female in the appropriate hormonal conditions, they will display sexual behavior. However, some healthy males do not mate when they have access to a sexually receptive female, even though they are repeatedly tested. These non-copulating (NC) individuals have been reported in murine, cricetid and ungulates. In humans this sexual orientation is denominated asexuality. Asexual individuals are physically and emotionally healthy men and women without desire for sexual intercourse. Different species have developed a variety of strategies to find a mate and reproduce. Most species of mammals are polygamous; they mate with one or several partners at the same time, as occur in rats, or they can reproduce with different conspecifics throughout their life span. There are also monogamous species that only mate with one partner. One of the most studied socially monogamous species is the Prairie vole. In this species mating or cohabitation for long periods induces the formation of a long-lasting pair bond. Both males and females share the nest, show a preference for their sexual partner, display aggression to other males and females and display parental behavior towards their pups. This broad spectrum of reproductive strategies demonstrates the biological variability of sexual motivation and points out the importance of understanding the neurobiological basis of sexual motivational drives in different species.

Sexual and Gender Diversity Among Sexual and Gender/Sex Majorities: Insights via Sexual Configurations Theory

Recent research on gender and sexual majority individuals suggests that their attractions, identities, and experiences may not be as homogenous or easily generalizable as is often assumed. Sexual configurations theory (SCT; van Anders, 2015) is a framework for conceptualizing individuals' partnered sexualities and gender/sexes with a focus on gender/sex and sexual diversity. SCT has been successfully used in recent empirical work with gender and sexual minority individuals (Schudson, Manley, Diamond, & van Anders, 2018), but it has not yet been tested with heterosexual, cisgender individuals. In the present study, we tested the use of SCT in qualitative interviews with 26 gender and sexual majority participants to address the following research questions: What are the strengths and weaknesses of SCT for representing heterosexual, cisgender individuals' gender/sexes and partnered sexualities? How do gender and sexual majority individuals use SCT to express their gender/sexes and partnered sexualities? And, what insights about sexual and gender diversity can be gained from using SCT with a gender and sexual majority sample? Using thematic analysis, we evaluated how participants interacted with SCT and the SCT diagrams. Results showed that our participants used components of SCT to convey comprehensive and nuanced interests, which included gender/sex and sexual diversity outside of what is typically expected in research on heterosexual, cisgender individuals. We discuss findings and challenges specific to working with majority participants and offer implications for future work on gender/sex and sexual majorities and on gender/sex and sexual diversity in general.

Queer Intimacies: A New Paradigm for the Study of Relationship Diversity

Recognition of sexual and gender diversity in the 21st century challenges normative assumptions of intimacy that privilege heterosexual monogamy and the biological family unit, presume binary cisgender identities, essentialize binary sexual identities, and view sexual or romantic desire as necessary. We propose a queer paradigm to study relationship diversity grounded in seven axioms: intimacy may occur (1) within relationships featuring any combination of cisgender, transgender, or nonbinary identities; (2) with people of multiple gender identities across the life course; (3) in multiple relationships simultaneously with consent; (4) within relationships characterized by consensual asymmetry, power exchange, or role-play; (5) in the absence or limited experience of sexual or romantic desire; (6) in the context of a chosen rather than biological family; and (7) in other possible forms yet unknown. We review research on queer relational forms, including same-sex relationships; relationships in which one or more partners identify as transgender, gender nonbinary, bisexual, pansexual, sexually fluid, "mostly" straight, asexual, or aromantic; polyamory and other forms of consensual nonmonogamy; kink/fetish relationships; and chosen families. We argue that a queer paradigm shifts the dominant scientific conception of relationships away from the confines of normativity toward an embrace of diversity, fluidity, and possibility.

Accounting for Men's Refusal of Heterosex: A Story-Completion Study With Young Adults

In the present study we bring together theory regarding the construction of heterosexuality and masculinities to understand the shifting and changing terrain of heterosexual sex (heterosex). We use inductive qualitative content analysis of story completion data to discover the different ways that heterosex is constructed by the male and female respondents in scenarios where women initiate sex and men, at first, refuse. The stories represented a spectrum of responses that reify and subvert dominant understandings of heterosex. Five major themes were generated from the current data (1) men should initiate sex, (2) he wants to take it slowly, (3) it is natural for men to want sex, (4) it is men's job to look after women, and (5) coercion. We discuss in detail the dominant narratives described by women and men and how they may be shifting. The study thus provides a rich, experience-based representation of heterosexual sexual activity and suggests subtle shifts in how masculinity is managed within heterosexual relationships.

Tobacco Use Among Adults by Sexual Orientation: Findings from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health Study

PURPOSE

The aim of this study was to characterize lifetime tobacco use across two measures of sexual orientation and six types of tobacco products.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (Wave 1, 2013-2014, USA) to estimate the prevalence of tobacco use (cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars, pipes, hookah, and smokeless) stratified by gender (men/women), age (< 25/≥ 25 years old), and sexual orientation. Sexual orientation was operationalized as sexual identity and sexual attraction.

RESULTS

Younger lesbian/gay and bisexual women had higher relative odds of experimental use of all six tobacco products compared to heterosexual women, whereas lesbian/gay and bisexual women in both age groups had higher odds of regular use of cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars, and hookah than heterosexual women. Younger gay men (but not older gay men) had higher relative odds of experimental and regular use of cigarettes compared to heterosexual men. Older gay men had higher odds of experimental e-cigarette and hookah use, but lower odds of regular cigar and experimental/regular smokeless tobacco use. Measures of sexual orientation identity and sexual attraction resulted in similar estimates of tobacco use with noted differences in those who identified as "something else," as well as among those who indicated asexual attraction.

CONCLUSION

Our findings reflect a complex relationship between sexual orientation and tobacco use. Gender-based and product-specific approaches to tobacco prevention and control efforts are needed to address the high use of tobacco among sexual minority women.

Acknowledgement and support matter: A brief report on gender identity and sexual orientation at a large, urban university

OBJECTIVE

To examine reporting trends of students identifying as LGBTQIA+ following changes made to the ACHA-NCHA-II survey about gender identity and sexual orientation.

METHODS

Data were analyzed from two sources for the purpose of triangulation: the ACHA-NCHA-II 2016 survey specific to our university and an electronic audience response survey.

PARTICIPANTS

Primary analyses included first-year students from the ACHA-NCHA-II data (N = 158; spring 2016) and the audience response survey (N = 1,452; August 2016).

RESULTS

Five percent of students did not identify as cis-gender and 21% did not identify as straight/heterosexual. The sexual orientation trend was confirmed by the audience response survey.

CONCLUSIONS

The percentage of students identifying as LGBTQIA+ increased nationally between the ACHA-NCHA-II 2014 and 2016 survey samples, a trend which was confirmed using an independent audience response survey. This information has implications for university programming and inclusivity efforts nationwide.

Heterogeneity in Gender/Sex Sexualities: An Exploration of Gendered Physical and Psychological Traits in Attractions to Women and Men

Sexuality research has generally privileged attractions based on partners' sexed physical bodies over attractions based on other features, including gender expression and personality traits. Gender may actually be quite central to sexual attractions. However, its role has received little empirical attention. To explore how gendered and sexed features, among others, are related to sexual attractions, the current study assessed how sexually diverse individuals described their attractions to feminine, masculine, and gender-nonspecific features of women and men. A sample of 280 individuals responded to the open-ended questions: "What do you find attractive in a man?" and "What do you find attractive in a woman?" We coded responses as pertaining to physical and/or psychological features, and as being gendered masculine, feminine, or gender-nonspecific. Our analyses showed that participants named gender-nonspecific features most frequently in responses to both questions, feminine features more than masculine features in attractions to women, and masculine features more than feminine features in attractions to men. Additionally, participants named feminine physical features more than masculine physical features, and masculine psychological features more than feminine psychological features, both in their attractions to women and overall. These results highlight the importance of considering attractions based on gender, rather than sex alone.

Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Sex and Romance in Asexuals

Despite the recent surge of interest in sexuality, asexuality has remained relatively underresearched. Distinct from abstinence or chastity, asexuality refers to a lack of sexual attraction toward others. Past research suggests asexuals have negative attitudes toward sex, though no research has examined implicit attitudes. While preliminary evidence suggests that many asexuals are interested in engaging in romantic relationships, these attitudes have yet to be examined thoroughly, implicitly, or compared with a control group. This study investigated explicit and implicit attitudes toward sex and romance in a group of asexuals (N = 18, age M = 21.11) and a group of controls (N = 27, age M = 21.81), using the Asexuality Identification Scale (AIS), the Triangular Love Scale (TLS), semantic differentials, an Implicit Association Task (IAT), and two Single Category IATs. It was found that asexuals exhibited more negative explicit and implicit attitudes toward sex, as well as more negative explicit attitudes toward romance, relative to controls. There was no significant difference between groups on implicit romantic attitudes. Moreover, aromantic asexuals demonstrated significantly more negative explicit attitudes toward romance than romantic asexuals, though there was no significant difference between groups on implicit measures. Explanations and implications of these findings are discussed.

Exploring the Experiences of Heterosexual and Asexual Transgender People

This article explores two cases at the intersection of emerging studies of transgender experience: heterosexualities and asexualities. Drawing on data from a mixed-methodological survey, we analyze the ways 57 asexual transgender people and 42 heterosexual transgender people occupying varied gender, race, class, age, and religious identities (1) make sense of gender and (2) experience coming out as transgender. Our analyses reveal some ways cisnormativity impacts transgender people across sexual identities, and the theoretical potential of incorporating transgender people into studies focused on asexualities and heterosexualities. In conclusion, we outline implications for understanding (1) transgender experiences with cisnormativity across sexual and other social locations and (2) possibilities for expanding studies of heterosexualities and asexualities beyond cisgender experiences.

Theorizing the lesbian hashtag: Identity, community, and the technological imperative to name the sexual self

This analysis integrates poststructuralist and symbolic interactionist approaches to the self by incorporating the insights of science and technology studies regarding categorization processes. While the advent of the Internet has freed many individuals from geographical constraints on community formation, the architectures of online platforms produce a technological imperative to name aspects of the self with words. Using sexual identity hashtags on Instagram (e.g., #lesbian) thus performs paradoxical functions: the hashtag both enables the construction of a sexual identity within an affirming community and also reinforces the power relations that compel individuals to name and account for their sexual selves. By illustrating one way sexual identities function in the online lives of young women, this research complicates other scholars' findings that the salience of sexual identity categories is decreasing.

A "Different Economy of Bodies and Pleasures"?: Differentiating and Evaluating Sex and Sexual BDSM Experiences

This study examines how BDSM participants understand sexual experiences. Data are drawn from 32 in-depth, semistructured interviews and discussion-board threads from a large BDSM community Web site. The analysis suggests that many BDSM participants perceive sexual BDSM experiences as not only significantly different from but also better than mainstream or "vanilla" sex. Three primary differentiation mechanisms are identified. First, BDSM participants constructed sex as requiring genital contact, while framing sexual BDSM as creating sexual fulfillment not requiring normative indicators of sexual experiences (e.g., orgasm). Second, participants constructed sexual BDSM as centered on emotional and mental experiences, while perceiving sex as being centered on physical experiences. Third, participants perceived sexual BDSM experiences as facilitating deeper interpersonal connections than those available in sex. Importantly, these mechanisms serve not only a differentiating but also an evaluative function. Most participants in this study reported a strong preference for sexual BDSM over sex.

Asexual Identity in a New Zealand National Sample: Demographics, Well-Being, and Health

Academic interest in asexuality has increased in recent years; however, there is yet to be a national probability study exploring the correlates of self-identifying as asexual. Here, we utilized data from the 2014/15 New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study. Past research has typically used attraction-based measures; however, we asked participants to describe their sexual orientation using a self-generated, open-ended item, and 0.4% (n = 44) self-identified as asexual. We then compared self-identified asexual participants with a heterosexual reference group (n = 11,822) across a large number of demographic, psychological, and health variables. Relative to heterosexuals, self-identified asexual participants were (1) more likely to be women, and (2) substantially less likely to be cisgender, (3) in a serious romantic relationship, or (4) a parent. No deleterious mental or physical health effects were associated with asexuality when compared to heterosexuality. This study provides the first attempt at measuring self-identification as asexual in a national sample and highlights core similarities and differences between those who identify as asexual and heterosexual.

Psychological Features and Sexual Beliefs Characterizing Self-Labeled Asexual Individuals

The present study was aimed at exploring and describing potential psychological and cognitive features characterizing asexual individuals. A web survey targeting a community of single and highly educated asexual individuals (68 women and 19 men) and matching controls (58 women and 19 men) was carried out in volunteers over 18 years old. Participants responded to a set of questions assessing personality traits, state psychopathological dimensions, and sexual beliefs. Findings on asexual women revealed that they reported higher levels of neuroticism, depression, phobic anxiety, personal sensitivity, as well as lower extraversion and conscientiousness than nonasexual women; also, asexual women reported more sexually conservative beliefs (including regarding sexual desire as a sin), beliefs related to the negative impact of age in sexuality, and the primacy of affection in sexual intercourse. Findings on asexual men showed that they reported more neuroticism, openness, psychoticism, and less extraversion. Findings on sexual beliefs showed that asexual men reported more sexually conservative beliefs, more beliefs related to the propensity for believing that women may use sex as a means to subjugate men, and beliefs related to the idea that erectile performance is central to female satisfaction. Findings further suggested that some of these features may have tapped into asexual individuals' religious status.

Understanding asexual identity as a means to facilitate culturally competent care: A systematic literature review

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

To provide a contemporary overview of asexuality and the implications this has for healthcare practice.

BACKGROUND

Individuals belonging to sexual minority groups face many barriers in accessing appropriate health care. The term "sexual minority group" is usually used to refer to lesbian women, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals. Anecdotal and research evidence suggests that those who identify as asexual have similar poor experiences.

DESIGN

Systematic review and qualitative analysis.

METHODS

This work uses a systematic review and qualitative analysis of the existing interview data from self-identified asexuals, to construct features of the asexual identity. The findings will help practitioners and health professionals develop an understanding of this poorly understood construct. Ultimately this work is aimed at facilitating culturally competent care in the context of asexuality.

RESULTS

Qualitative analysis produced three themes, which can be used, not only to frame asexuality in a positive and normalising way, but also to provide greater understanding of asexuality, "romantic differences coupled with sexual indifference," "validation through engagement with asexual communities" and "a diversity of subasexual identities."

CONCLUSIONS

Having some understanding of what it means to identify as asexual, and respecting the choices made by asexuals can markedly improve the experiences of those who embrace an asexual identity when engaging with health care.

RELEVANCE TO CLINICAL PRACTICE

Anecdotal evidence, taken from one of the largest asexual online forums, suggests that a number of self-identified asexuals choose not to disclose their identity to healthcare professionals through fear of their asexual status being pathologised, problematised or judged. Given that asexuality is a poorly understood concept, this may be due to lack of understanding on behalf of healthcare providers. The review provides health professionals and practitioners working in clinical settings with some insights of the features of an asexual identity to facilitate culturally competent care.

Asexuality: Sexual Orientation, Paraphilia, Sexual Dysfunction, or None of the Above?

Although lack of sexual attraction was first quantified by Kinsey, large-scale and systematic research on the prevalence and correlates of asexuality has only emerged over the past decade. Several theories have been posited to account for the nature of asexuality. The goal of this review was to consider the evidence for whether asexuality is best classified as a psychiatric syndrome (or a symptom of one), a sexual dysfunction, or a paraphilia. Based on the available science, we believe there is not sufficient evidence to support the categorization of asexuality as a psychiatric condition (or symptom of one) or as a disorder of sexual desire. There is some evidence that a subset of self-identified asexuals have a paraphilia. We also considered evidence supporting the classification of asexuality as a unique sexual orientation. We conclude that asexuality is a heterogeneous entity that likely meets conditions for a sexual orientation, and that researchers should further explore evidence for such a categorization.

What Does Asexuality Teach Us About Sexual Disinterest? Recommendations for Health Professionals Based on a Qualitative Study With Asexually Identified People

This article draws on qualitative in-depth interviews with 30 asexually identified individuals living in the United States in order to contribute to our understanding of when low sexual desire should be treated as a medical or mental health issue and when it should be treated as a benign sexual variation. The article discusses five findings of relevance to health professionals: (1) the line between a desire disorder and asexuality is not clear-cut; (2) asexually identified individuals may experience distress, so distress alone does not separate a desire disorder from asexuality; (3) asexually identified individuals may face sexual pressure from a partner or may have difficulty negotiating sexual activity with a partner; (4) asexuality does not need to be distressing, rather it can be experienced as a fulfilling form of sexuality; and (5) many asexually identified individuals believe in the usefulness of low sexual desire as a diagnostic category and support medical and mental health professionals in their efforts to develop treatments for sexual desire disorders. Based on these five findings, this article offers four concrete suggestions for health professionals working with clients with low sexual desire, whether or not those clients identify as asexual.

"And Now I'm Just Different, but There's Nothing Actually Wrong With Me": Asexual Marginalization and Resistance

This article explores the relationship between contemporary asexual lives and compulsory sexuality, or the privileging of sexuality and the marginalizing of nonsexuality. Drawing on 30 in-depth interviews, I identify four ways the asexually identified individuals in this study saw themselves as affected by compulsory sexuality: pathologization, isolation, unwanted sex and relationship conflict, and the denial of epistemic authority. I also identify five ways these asexually identified individuals disrupted compulsory sexuality: adopting a language of difference and a capacity to describe asexuality; deemphasizing the importance of sexuality in human life; developing new types of nonsexual relationships; constituting asexuality as a sexual orientation or identity; and engaging in community building and outreach. I argue that some of these practices offer only a limited disruption of compulsory sexuality, but some of these practices pose a radical challenge to sexual norms by calling into question the widespread assumption that sexuality is a necessary part of human flourishing.

A Qualitative Exploration of the "Coming Out" Process for Asexual Individuals

"Coming out" is an important process not only for identity formation in sexual minorities, but also for increasing access to romantic partners of similar identities (Vaughan & Waehler, 2010). It is unclear how asexuality and the variations within the asexual community are revealed and communicated in the coming out process. Some asexual individuals may find no practical value in coming out, as they do not seek romantic partnerships, while others pursue romantic relationships that are devoid of sexual activity. To date, virtually no psychological research has explored the "coming out" experience for those with an asexual identity. The current research analyzed the "coming out" narratives of 169 self-identified asexual individuals recruited from three online asexual communities using a phenomenological approach. Salient themes were extracted from narratives about the experience of developing an asexual identity. Themes included skepticism from family and friends, lack of acceptance and misunderstanding, non-disclosure of the asexual identity, relief upon discovering the asexual community, and the role of the internet in asexual identity discovery and expression. A theoretical model of asexual identity development is proposed based on these findings.

The Temporal Stability of Lack of Sexual Attraction Across Young Adulthood

There is a large and growing literature on the stability of sexual orientation across the lifespan. However, virtually no studies have been conducted on the longitudinal stability of any dimension of asexuality. Here I utilized Kinsey scale-type data from Wave III and Wave IV of the Add Health survey to measure the stability of indicating "not sexually attracted to either males or females" in a forced-choice, Kinsey-type scale and during the time participants were moving through early adulthood (18-26 years in Wave III and 24-32 years in Wave IV). I found that, for the most part, individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave III were not the same individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave IV, with only three out of the 25 in Wave III who indicated no sexual attraction going on to do the same in Wave IV. This inter-wave consistency was lower than it was for other sexual minorities. However, indicating no sexual attraction in one wave was still a statistically significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave, as was refusing to answer or indicating the "don't know" option in the other wave. These findings do not necessarily denote change in sexual attraction across waves; the fact that not answering the question in one wave was a significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave provides quantitative evidence for the ambiguities involved in sexual identities when sexuality is taken for granted in the broader culture. This ambiguity affects the operationalization and quantification of asexuality.

Beyond Sexual Orientation: Integrating Gender/Sex and Diverse Sexualities via Sexual Configurations Theory

Sexual orientation typically describes people's sexual attractions or desires based on their sex relative to that of a target. Despite its utility, it has been critiqued in part because it fails to account for non-biological gender-related factors, partnered sexualities unrelated to gender or sex, or potential divergences between love and lust. In this article, I propose Sexual Configurations Theory (SCT) as a testable, empirically grounded framework for understanding diverse partnered sexualities, separate from solitary sexualities. I focus on and provide models of two parameters of partnered sexuality--gender/sex and partner number. SCT also delineates individual gender/sex. I discuss a sexual diversity lens as a way to study the particularities and generalities of diverse sexualities without privileging either. I also discuss how sexual identities, orientations, and statuses that are typically seen as misaligned or aligned are more meaningfully conceptualized as branched or co-incident. I map out some existing identities using SCT and detail its applied implications for health and counseling work. I highlight its importance for sexuality in terms of measurement and social neuroendocrinology, and the ways it may be useful for self-knowledge and feminist and queer empowerment and alliance building. I also make a case that SCT changes existing understandings and conceptualizations of sexuality in constructive and generative ways informed by both biology and culture, and that it is a potential starting point for sexual diversity studies and research.