Nov 14, 2020 05:25 AM
(This post was last modified: Nov 14, 2020 05:29 AM by C C.)
New research expands our scientific understanding of threesomes
https://www.psypost.org/2020/11/new-rese...omes-58526
EXCERPTS: New research indicates that most people are interested in having a threesome. But few people have experienced one. The study, recently published in Archives of Sexual Behavior, provides new insights into attitudes and outcomes related to mixed-gender threesomes. Previous research suggests that threesomes are one of the most popular sexual fantasies, but the topic has not received much scientific attention. The authors behind the new study sought to beginning the process of filling in this hole in the literature.
[...] explained researcher Ashley Thompson ... “Anecdotally, I noticed that men were stigmatized more for engaging in a MGT [Mixed Gender Threesome] with a member of the same sex, whereas women were stigmatized for engaging in a MGT with two members of the other sex. This conversation was the catalyst for what has turned into a long-term research program assessing MGT attitudes, interest, experience, and outcomes. In addition, research suggests that sexual norms and opinions in western cultures are shifting and becoming increasingly permissive..."
[...] Approximately 81% of the participants reported some degree of interest in engaging in a MGT and both samples had neutral-to-positive attitudes toward MGTs. But only 30.07% of participants indicated that they had experienced a threesome. Among those having MGT experience, most said the threesome had “met expectations.” Men tended to report more interest in threesomes than women — heterosexual men were particularly interested in threesomes involving two other women. In addition, older adults were more likely to have had a threesome than younger adults.
The researchers also found that participants were most interested in MGTs involving a casual acquaintance and least interested in MGTs involving a complete stranger. “Overall, the results of our study indicate that MGTs are a common sexual behavior that often result in positive outcomes, especially among sexual minority individuals,” Thompson told PsyPost.
“That said, the number of people reporting interest in MGTs far exceeded the number reporting experience with MGTs. This finding likely indicates that many would be willing to participate but, only in certain contexts [...] we encourage educators and practitioners to promote MGTs as a normative and satisfying behavior. In fact (according to previous research), MGTs may offer the ideal opportunity to explore one’s sexuality and the freedoms of nonmonogamy in a stigma-reduced way.” (MORE - details)
The Dolphin Myth That Refuses to Die: Brazil’s pink river dolphins have long gotten blamed for all sorts of heinous crimes
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/arch...on/617080/
EXCERPT: . . . Botos can grow to about nine feet long, with humps on their backs in place of dorsal fins. ... In the Brazilian Amazon and its surrounding communities, stories about animals are a major part of cultural life ... In Porto Velho, images of cute, smiling botos are ubiquitous on murals and in graffiti.
But the fanciful tales about shape-shifting botos are also used to obscure the realities of life along the river: If a woman becomes pregnant because she was forced into prostitution, or assaulted by a community member, a boto can be conjured up to explain the situation. Mateus and Pinto are members of a group [...] which combats sexual violence in Porto Velho and nearby river communities. Their mission is to reveal the chronic abuse that the boto has long been used to hide. “I don’t think most people know the true reason for the boto story,” Mateus tells me through a translator. “We’re trying to show the dark side behind it. It’s about the things we don’t talk about.”
While the boto legend lingers, the actual animals are dying out. Twenty years ago, the boto was a data-deficient species that scientists thought was relatively stable, but in 2018 it was classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. During our short tour of the Rio Madeira [...] we never do see a pink dolphin...
[...] When Europeans arrived in South America in the 1500s ... Indigenous women were frequently raped, and perpetrators and survivors alike sometimes claimed that the resulting children had been fathered by mythical boto-men. ... Over the centuries that followed ... As jobs came and went, many women had to rely on men with precarious livelihoods or living situations. Sexual violence and prostitution became endemic. The boto myths were used to justify restrictions on women’s movements and behavior; sometimes, women themselves used the stories as a shield.
“When a woman can’t accept a painful reality or wants to avoid being shamed by her community, she unconsciously distorts the facts,” says Gilzete Passos Magalhães, a psychology professor at the Salesian Catholic University in the city of Macaé. “She projects onto this figure, which is thought to be divine.” The myths continue to serve as an alibi for perpetrators... (MORE - details)
https://www.psypost.org/2020/11/new-rese...omes-58526
EXCERPTS: New research indicates that most people are interested in having a threesome. But few people have experienced one. The study, recently published in Archives of Sexual Behavior, provides new insights into attitudes and outcomes related to mixed-gender threesomes. Previous research suggests that threesomes are one of the most popular sexual fantasies, but the topic has not received much scientific attention. The authors behind the new study sought to beginning the process of filling in this hole in the literature.
[...] explained researcher Ashley Thompson ... “Anecdotally, I noticed that men were stigmatized more for engaging in a MGT [Mixed Gender Threesome] with a member of the same sex, whereas women were stigmatized for engaging in a MGT with two members of the other sex. This conversation was the catalyst for what has turned into a long-term research program assessing MGT attitudes, interest, experience, and outcomes. In addition, research suggests that sexual norms and opinions in western cultures are shifting and becoming increasingly permissive..."
[...] Approximately 81% of the participants reported some degree of interest in engaging in a MGT and both samples had neutral-to-positive attitudes toward MGTs. But only 30.07% of participants indicated that they had experienced a threesome. Among those having MGT experience, most said the threesome had “met expectations.” Men tended to report more interest in threesomes than women — heterosexual men were particularly interested in threesomes involving two other women. In addition, older adults were more likely to have had a threesome than younger adults.
The researchers also found that participants were most interested in MGTs involving a casual acquaintance and least interested in MGTs involving a complete stranger. “Overall, the results of our study indicate that MGTs are a common sexual behavior that often result in positive outcomes, especially among sexual minority individuals,” Thompson told PsyPost.
“That said, the number of people reporting interest in MGTs far exceeded the number reporting experience with MGTs. This finding likely indicates that many would be willing to participate but, only in certain contexts [...] we encourage educators and practitioners to promote MGTs as a normative and satisfying behavior. In fact (according to previous research), MGTs may offer the ideal opportunity to explore one’s sexuality and the freedoms of nonmonogamy in a stigma-reduced way.” (MORE - details)
The Dolphin Myth That Refuses to Die: Brazil’s pink river dolphins have long gotten blamed for all sorts of heinous crimes
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/arch...on/617080/
EXCERPT: . . . Botos can grow to about nine feet long, with humps on their backs in place of dorsal fins. ... In the Brazilian Amazon and its surrounding communities, stories about animals are a major part of cultural life ... In Porto Velho, images of cute, smiling botos are ubiquitous on murals and in graffiti.
But the fanciful tales about shape-shifting botos are also used to obscure the realities of life along the river: If a woman becomes pregnant because she was forced into prostitution, or assaulted by a community member, a boto can be conjured up to explain the situation. Mateus and Pinto are members of a group [...] which combats sexual violence in Porto Velho and nearby river communities. Their mission is to reveal the chronic abuse that the boto has long been used to hide. “I don’t think most people know the true reason for the boto story,” Mateus tells me through a translator. “We’re trying to show the dark side behind it. It’s about the things we don’t talk about.”
While the boto legend lingers, the actual animals are dying out. Twenty years ago, the boto was a data-deficient species that scientists thought was relatively stable, but in 2018 it was classified as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. During our short tour of the Rio Madeira [...] we never do see a pink dolphin...
[...] When Europeans arrived in South America in the 1500s ... Indigenous women were frequently raped, and perpetrators and survivors alike sometimes claimed that the resulting children had been fathered by mythical boto-men. ... Over the centuries that followed ... As jobs came and went, many women had to rely on men with precarious livelihoods or living situations. Sexual violence and prostitution became endemic. The boto myths were used to justify restrictions on women’s movements and behavior; sometimes, women themselves used the stories as a shield.
“When a woman can’t accept a painful reality or wants to avoid being shamed by her community, she unconsciously distorts the facts,” says Gilzete Passos Magalhães, a psychology professor at the Salesian Catholic University in the city of Macaé. “She projects onto this figure, which is thought to be divine.” The myths continue to serve as an alibi for perpetrators... (MORE - details)