Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- List of figures
- Preface
- One What is enigmatic about sexual desire?
- Two Explaining desire: multiple perspectives
- Three Sexual desire in a broad context
- Four An incentive-based model
- Five Sex and levels of organization
- Six Sexual attraction
- Seven Shades of desire from simple to complex
- Eight Details of the brain and desire
- Nine Arousal
- Ten The consequences of sexual behaviour and associated expectations
- Eleven Sexual familiarity and novelty
- Twelve Inhibition, conflict and temptation
- Thirteen How did sexual desire get here?
- Fourteen Setting the trajectory: link to adult sexuality
- Fifteen Sexual desire in interaction
- Sixteen Representations of sex
- Seventeen Sexual addiction
- Eighteen Variations in desire: general principles
- Nineteen Some forms of desire at the fringes
- Twenty The toxic fusion: violence and sexual desire
- Twenty one Sexually associated (serial) murder
- Twenty two Concluding remarks
- Notes
- References
- Index
Nine - Arousal
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 October 2014
- Frontmatter
- Dedication
- Contents
- List of figures
- Preface
- One What is enigmatic about sexual desire?
- Two Explaining desire: multiple perspectives
- Three Sexual desire in a broad context
- Four An incentive-based model
- Five Sex and levels of organization
- Six Sexual attraction
- Seven Shades of desire from simple to complex
- Eight Details of the brain and desire
- Nine Arousal
- Ten The consequences of sexual behaviour and associated expectations
- Eleven Sexual familiarity and novelty
- Twelve Inhibition, conflict and temptation
- Thirteen How did sexual desire get here?
- Fourteen Setting the trajectory: link to adult sexuality
- Fifteen Sexual desire in interaction
- Sixteen Representations of sex
- Seventeen Sexual addiction
- Eighteen Variations in desire: general principles
- Nineteen Some forms of desire at the fringes
- Twenty The toxic fusion: violence and sexual desire
- Twenty one Sexually associated (serial) murder
- Twenty two Concluding remarks
- Notes
- References
- Index
Summary
As everyone knows, ever since Eve forbidden fruit has always been the most delectable.
(Casanova, 1798/1958, p. 90)Evidence suggests that general arousal triggered by a range of non-sexual events can sometimes spill over into sexual arousal. The chapter will address the issue of the relationship between sexual arousal and sexual desire. The chapter will consider first ‘general arousal’ and then more specifically ‘sexual arousal’.
Basic principles
Some environments are said to be arousing, even some colours are given this description, while other colours are described as relaxing (Apter, 2007). When humans seek to increase arousal, to find excitement, they might go to a busy part of town or engage in a challenging and even dangerous activity. By contrast, to decrease arousal, they might lie on a tranquil beach. Such observations lead to the notion of an optimal level of arousal and humans can try to bring their actual level towards this optimum. People differ in their optimal levels; one person will commonly seek sources of high arousal, while another will try to avoid them.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- How Sexual Desire WorksThe Enigmatic Urge, pp. 164 - 177Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2014