PSYC 210 Study Guide - Final Guide: Vaginal Lubrication, Nipple, Clitoral Hood
30 Mar 2017
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Document Summary
Masters and johnson observed and recorded physiological responses from hundreds of people engaged in sexual activity. They divided the physiological responses during sex into four phases: excitement, plateau, orgasm, and resolution. This pattern of responses is often referred to as the sexual response cycle. Other researchers have organized the responses into fewer or more phases, and this chapter follows the model of sex therapist helen kaplan and includes desire as the first phase. The first physiological response in the excitement phase for both men and women is a vasocongestive response, which results in penile erection in men and vaginal lubrication in women. However, in women, physiological arousal does not correlate well with subjective arousal, which depends more on relationship and intimacy needs. During the plateau phase in women, the tissues of the outer third of the vagina become swollen with blood, causing the vaginal opening to narrow. This response is referred to as the orgasmic platform.
