Kinsey Institute Presents: Conversations About Sex Research

The Condom Use Research Team (CURT) has been working together since 2001 on issues associated with the use of condoms. Members of the team come from three countries — Canada, Great Britain, and the United States — and have published over 20 articles in scientific journals on the topic of condom use. Team members speak about how the group started and what drives their research, and share what it's like to work with each other across continents and time zones.

Dr. Debby Herbenick appears in the media as a sex educator and researcher speaking about sexuality and pleasure. She writes regular columns for several newspapers, blogs regularly on PsychologyToday.com and MySexProfessor.com, and has been a repeat guest on The Tyra Banks Show. In this interview, she discusses the relationship of public outreach and scientific sex research, and why it's important we talk about pleasure as well as health when we evaluate sexuality.

KI Director Julia Heiman discusses her tenure as KI director since 2004 and American attitudes towards sex research, and looks ahead to topics of future research at the Institute and global initiatives addressing sex research, sexual health, and the growing issue of sexual violence.

Kinsey Institute scientist Dr. Erick Janssen discusses how the majority of sex research concentrates on the individual, and how shifting the emphasis to sexuality within the context of a relationship is offering different and valuable insights about how we interact sexually.

Kinsey Institute Scientist Dr. Virginia Vitzthum discusses her research on fertility, pregnancy, and environmental stresses in rural Bolivian women, and the repercussions for our understanding of the mechanisms of conception, pregnancy, and pregnancy loss, and how these study results are reflected in the US population.

Dr. Erick Janssen discusses the dual control model of sexual arousal that human sexual behavior is governed by the twin forces of excitation and inhibition, like the gas and brake pedals in a car, and how this can explain various kinds of sexual problems.

Kinsey Institute researcher Dr. Heather Rupp discusses her new research project into the causes of and possible treatments for postpartum depression, a condition that affects 10-15% of new mothers.

Norwegian scientist Dr. Sven-Axel Mansson discusses his research on pornography, and what it reveals about human sexuality.

Dr. Cynthia Graham, a research fellow at The Kinsey Institute, discusses her research with oral contraceptives and their effects on women's sexuality.

Dr. Erick Janssen of The Kinsey Institute discusses his research into how mood affects sexual behavior and sexual decision-making.