LifeSpan Sexual Development

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Life-Span Sexual Development

• Early Infancy (Ages 0-1)
• Early Childhood (Ages 2-6)
• The Initial School-age Years (Ages 7-11)
• Puberty (Ages 7-15)
• Adolescence (Ages 13-17)
• Young Adulthood (Aged 26-36)
• Middle Age (Ages 40-59)
• The Elderly Years (Age 60)

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Early Infancy (Ages 0-1)

• Many physicians and psychologists strongly
  encourage parents to hold their babies
  immediately after birth and to continue to give
  large amounts of hugging and cuddling throughout
  childhood.
• This process is called bonding.

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• As soon as infants gain sufficient control over
  their movements, they begin to touch all parts of
  their bodies. As part of this exploration,
  infants also touch their genitals.
• Infant boys and girls can feel pleasure from
  this and may continue to stimulate themselves.
• However, it is important to remember that
  infants do not comprehend adult sexual behavior.
  

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Early Childhood (Ages 2-6)

• This means that they cannot consider other
  peoples points of view. Egocentric children do
  not play games together, because most play
  requires cooperation, and cooperation in turn
  requires respecting or anticipating someone
  elses point of view. Bodily exploration during
  this time is confined mainly to self-exploration.
  After the age of 2, however, children
  increasingly play together, and their natural
  curiosity now extends not only to their own
  bodies but to those of others.

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• Sexual exploration games will not harm a childs
  development. What may be harmful is parents
  reacting to strongly when they catch their
  children engaging in sex play.
• Punishment or negative messages may lead to a
  poor body image and later sexual problems. It is
  okay to teach your children that it is not
  appropriate to touch their genitals in certain
  situations in public, for example. According to
  one child expert, The attitude of the parent
  should be to socialize for privacy rather than to
  punish or forbid.

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• From the earliest period in life, the childs
  family will reciprocally influence the sexual
  characteristics of the child. The family
  establishes a psychosexual equilibrium that is
  a function of the parents sexual adjustment, the
  childs developing sexuality, and the impact of
  the childs sexual development on parental sexual
  development. The way parents react to the
  sexuality of their children is often an
  indication of the way they feel about their own
  sexuality.

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The Initial School-age Years (Ages 7-11)

• By the time children begin kindergarten or first
  grade, children generally have developed a sense
  of modesty and inhibition about undressing in
  front of others and for the first time may start
  demanding privacy in the bathroom.
• Several recent studies of recollections by adults
  recalled sexual interactions with other children
  prior to puberty. This included exposing oneself
  for others, looking at others, touching,
  fondling, and various sexual games.

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• Children tend to segregate by sex by age 9.
• Contrary to our cultures expectations, there is
  an abundance of evidence that sexuality develops
  steadily throughout childhood.

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Puberty (Ages 7-15)

• Traditionally, the physical and sexual changes
  that occur during puberty have been attributed to
  the maturation of the testicles or ovaries.
  However, puberty is at least a two-part
  maturational process. In the first part, the
  adrenal glands start to mature when children are
  between the ages of 6 and 8. The adrenal glands
  secrete the androgen hormone DHEA which is then
  converted to testosterone and estrogen. Thus,
  the first increase in sex hormones is not due to
  the maturing gonads, but to the maturing
  adrenals. Notice that at this stage girls as
  well as boys experience an increase in androgens.

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• In the second stage, the testicles and ovaries
  mature, usually several years after adrenarche.
  In this stage, the pituitary gland begins to
  secrete FSH in high doses, stimulating the
  production of sperm in seminiferous tubules in
  boys and the maturation of ova in girls.
• In girls, the maturing ovary produces estrogen
  and progesterone, while increased levels of
  luteinizing hormone from a boys pituitary
  stimulates production of testosterone in the
  testes. The increased levels of hormones lead to
  a variety of physiological changes in girls and
  boys.

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• These are often referred to as secondary sex
  characteristics.
• Changes in Girls
• Usually the first sign that puberty is beginning
  in girls is the development of breast buds. Soon
  afterwards, a growth spurt starts.
• Puberty may be a process that takes several
  years.

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• The vagina and uterus begin to enlarge about the
  time that pubic hair appears. The first
  menstrual period occurs at an average age of
  between 12 and 13. There is considerable
  variability, however, and it is normal for the
  cycles to be very irregular during the first
  couple of years after menarche. The rise in
  estrogen levels causes the vaginal wall to become
  thicker and more elastic and also results in
  lubrication during sexual arousal.

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• The reaction of a young woman to her first
  menstrual cycle will be influenced primarily by
  what she has been told. It can be viewed as
  something very positive, a simple fact of
  nature, or a curse and something disgusting.

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• Changes in Boys
• As mentioned earlier, pubertal development in
  boys lags about 2 years behind development in
  girls. The first noticeable change in boys is
  usually growth of the testicles and scrotum, the
  result of increased levels of testosterone.
  Testosterone then stimulates growth of the penis,
  prostate gland, and seminal vesicles. The growth
  of the genitals begins, on average, about the age
  of 11 to 12 and is completed, on average, by
  about the age of 15. Boys generally become
  capable of ejaculation about a year after the
  penis begins to grow.

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• The first experience many boys have with
  ejaculation is a nocturnal emission, or wet
  dream. Some boys have nocturnal emissions
  frequently, while others have only a few
  experiences.
• Nocturnal emissions are not under voluntary
  control, there is no reason for shame. It is
  therefore important to educate children about
  nocturnal emissions before they begin to occur.

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• Gynecomastia usually disappears by the mid-teens,
  but unless boys are told why this is happening
  and that it is a normal, temporary condition,
  they may feel confused, embarrassed, or shamed.

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• Another change that is obvious to others is a
  deepening of the voice, a result of testosterone
  stimulating the growth of the larynx. This
  occurs today at an average age of about 12 to 13,
  but it may have occurred at a later age in past
  centuries. It was not uncommon in Europe at one
  time for boys who sang in the great church choirs
  to be castrated before puberty in order to
  preserve their soprano voices.

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• Precocious and Delayed Puberty
• When sexual development begins before the age of
  8 in girls and 9 in boys, it is called precocious
  puberty. This is often due to premature
  activation of pituitary hormones. The youngest
  girl known to have given birth was only 5 years
  old.

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• Studies have found that childrens first sexual
  attraction occurs at age 10, about the fourth or
  fifth grade. By age 13, the sexual exploration
  games commonly played by young teens have greater
  erotic content than the games of early childhood.

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Adolescence (Ages 13-17)

• Masturbation
• For most people, the first experience with orgasm
  occurs during masturbation.
• Most adults have masturbated and started doing so
  during adolescence. This is truer for men than
  women, but there seems to be a trend indicating
  that more women also are masturbating to orgasm
  during adolescence.

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• Many sex therapists believe that masturbation
  serves important functions in adolescence.
  Because sexual activity among adolescents is not
  condoned in our society, masturbation can serve
  as an outlet for sexual tensions. Masturbation
  also can serve as a way to sexually experiment,
  gain sexual self-confidence, and control sexual
  impulses. Kinsey thought that masturbation to
  orgasm was especially important for girls. He
  felt that familiarity with orgasm during
  masturbation made it easier for them to
  experience orgasm during intercourse as adults.

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• Sexual Intercourse
• About one-fourth of teenage girls who engage in
  their first experience of sexual intercourse say
  that they did not really want to engage in it.
  This was particularly true when first intercourse
  was with a much older partner.
• Parental involvement also plays a role. The
  quality of the communication between parents and
  teenage children is positively related to the
  teenagers values about sexual abstinence.

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• Peer Pressure
• Peer pressure is your peer groups expectations
  of how you are supposed to behave.
• Many groups want to take credit for the drop in
  teenage pregnancy, but the credit truly goes to
  teenagers, said Jacqueline Darroch. The
  reasoning is that when fewer teens engage in
  sexual intercourse, they set examples for close
  friends.

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Emerging Adulthood (Ages 18-25)

• The median age at which people first get married
  today is 25 for women and 27 for men. This is an
  increase of more than 2 years of age since 1980
  and more than 4 years since 1960.
• By the age of 20, approximately 90 of emerging
  adults are sexually experienced and having sex
  regularly, and most emerging adults have had
  multiple serial sexual partners during their
  short lifetimes.

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• Thus, for many emerging adults, their sexual life
  style can be called serial monogamya series of
  relationships in which sex is reserved for just
  on other person.
• The period of emerging adulthood is also a time
  in which most people gradually become less
  influenced by peer pressure and gain a better
  understanding of their own sexual motivations.
• By the end of this stage, individuals have
  generally established cognitive views about
  sexual aspects of themselves.

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Young Adulthood (Aged 26-36)

• Marriage
• Numerous studies have found that adults who get
  and stay married have higher levels of
  psychological well-being than individuals who
  stay single.
• The frequency of sexual intercourse in the first
  year of marriage is usually high, an average of
  about 15 times a month in the first year.

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• The decrease in sexual relations after the first
  year or two of marriage occurs for a variety of
  reasons. Sex has to compete with other time
  demands, such as career advancement. Parenthood
  means less privacy and more demands, and often
  results in exhaustion at the end of the day.
• Living Together
• Nearly half of all American women aged 25 to 39
  years old have cohabited with a man outside of
  marriage at some time in their lives. About
  one-fourth of unmarried women aged 25 to 39 are
  currently cohabitating.

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• Single Parenthood
• About 25 of white children and 65 of black
  children lived with a single parent. Some adults
  become single parents through divorce or
  separation, but nearly 25 of never-married women
  are also mothers.

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• Extramarital SexIn Supposedly Monogamous
  Marriages
• Thats a male definition of adultery. If you
  look at emotional involvement and sexual
  involvement short of intercourse, you add another
  20. Whereas men may have solely sexual
  affairs, womens affairs are almost always
  emotional or a combination of sexual and
  emotional. It is not uncommon for married
  persons to have emotional affairs over the
  telephone or on the Internet.

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• Men are more upset at the idea of their partners
  getting physical with someone else than they are
  about an emotional attachment. Women, on the
  other hand, are more concerned about emotional
  infidelity on the part of their mates and are
  much more likely than men to forgive a partner
  for sexual infidelity.
• Extramarital SexConsensual Arrangements
• One such arrangement is open marriage, where both
  partners agree that it is okay to have sex with
  others.

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Middle Age (Ages 40-59)

• Christian and Victorian views of sex emphasized
  that sex within a marriage was for procreation
  only, and excluded sexual activities for
  pleasure. Thus, Western culture came to view
  older individuals who were no longer able to
  conceive as asexual.
• Many parents may appear to be nonsexual because
  they hesitate to discuss the topic of sexuality
  in any way with their children or because they
  are not inclined to exhibit loving, affectionate
  responses, let alone sexual behavior, in the
  presence of their children.

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• Frequency of Sexual Intercourse
• The baby-boomer generation is now in their 50s
  and, having been raised during the sexual
  revolution, they do not accept the old
  stereotypes of aging and sexuality.
• Although most surveys do show a decline in sexual
  activity for people in their 40s and a further
  decline in the 50s, the drop-off is very gradual.

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• Relationship quality is high when there is
  emotional intimacy, there is some independence
  without too much distance, and stress is under
  control. There must also be a sexual
  equilibrium, a balance of sexual capacities
  between two people and their perceptions of those
  capacities.

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• Loss of a Mate By Divorce or Death
• Over half of all marriages in the United States
  now end in divorce. According to the 2000
  census, 40 of Americans aged 45 or older are
  single. Reentry into the singles world and
  dating are often difficult, particularly if a
  prior relationship had been a long-lasting one.
• Resuming sexual activity is often an important
  part of letting go of the former bonds. However,
  more recent studies have found that three fourths
  of divorced persons have either a single sexual
  partner or no partner in the first year
• By the time people reach their early 40s, there
  are over 200 single women for every 100 single
  men.

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• Female Sexuality Physical Changes With Age
• Four-fifths of women experience menopause between
  44 and 55, with a median age of 50 to 52.
• How a woman and her partner react to these
  changes can affect other aspects of a
  relationship, so it is important for everyone to
  understand their physical basis.
• The Rise and Fall of the Medicalization of
  Menopause. Postmenopausal women have become a
  large segment of society that seeks health care,
  or, depending on your perspective, that is
  targeted by health care professionals.

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• Medicalization refers to the process whereby the
  normal processes of pregnancy, childbirth,
  menstruation and menopause have been claimed and
  redefined by medicine. Opponents of the
  medicalization of menopause claim that the
  negative expectations of deteriorating health are
  the result of culturally determined attitudes,
  promotions by drug companies, and media pressure,
  and point out that older women in our country are
  already healthier than older men and outlive men
  by many years.

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• Let us examine the evidence. There is no
  question that hormone replacement therapy can
  help alleviate the symptoms of menopause such as
  vasomotor symptoms and vaginal atrophy symptoms.
  
• For women who show a drop in sexual desire,
  testosterone replacement therapy helps many.

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• Female Sexual Behavior
• For most women, menopause causes no change in
  interest in sex. Some women actually show an
  increased interest in sex after menopause,
  possible because they no longer have to worry
  about getting pregnant.
• The best predictor of sexual activity for
  middle-aged women is their sexual activity when
  younger. Positive personal attitudes about
  sexuality and past positive experiences regarding
  the importance of sex are important determinants
  of sexual functioning in aging women.

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• Male Sexuality Physical Changes With Age
• Men normally do not experience a sudden loss of
  hormones as experienced by women. Although the
  term male menopause is commonly used, this
  generally refers to the midlife psychological and
  emotional reactions that some men have as a
  response to changing family relationships.
• Men do show a gradual decline in testosterone
  levels that begins in their late teens. By age
  55, 20 to 50 of men have testosterone levels
  that are below the normal range for young adult
  men.

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• If the drop in testosterone is large enough, it
  will also affect a mans interest in sex. The
  production of sperm continues into old age, but
  it, too, declines after age 40. Nevertheless,
  many men in their 70s and 80s have fathered
  children.

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The Elderly Years (Age 60)

• Sex is something enjoyed only by the young and
  healthy MYTH.
• A sexually active man is seen as a dirty old
  man and a sexually active older woman is
  considered preposterous or embarrassing. This
  culturally embedded denial may be rooted in
  peoples difficulty accepting the sexuality of
  their own parents.

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• Among people in their 60s who have partners, over
  70 are having sex regularly. Over 50 of them
  have sexual intercourse at least once a week. In
  their 70s, about one third of men and women with
  partners are having sexual intercourse at least
  once a week. In their 80s, only about one fourth
  of men and women are having sex at least once a
  month.

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• Older women frequently express strong sexual
  desires and interests,engage in sexual activity
  in many instances until extreme old age,and may
  form liaisons with much younger men.
• The older population really has the better deal.
  This is a time when people have the best sex in
  their lives, and it all has to do with maturity.
• Thus, for women, there is a real partner gap.
  Many women may be interested in sex, but there is
  no opportunity.

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• However, many people experience serious medical
  problems and disabilities as they grow older.
  Heart disease, stroke, arthritis, diabetes,
  prostate problems, and problems due to alcohol,
  smoking, and overeating are common.
• The third major factor preventing some elderly
  people from enjoying sexual relations is the
  opportunity for privacy when one is dependent on
  others for care.
• However, opportunities for sexual relations are
  very limited for elderly people with disabilities
  who are dependent on others for their care.

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• Perhaps the biggest problem for elderly people
  interested in physical relations is our cultures
  negative stereotypes of the aged as sexless.