Dr Hannah Frith
Academic and research departments
School of Psychology, Clinical Intervention and Practice Research Group, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Social justice and inequalities in mental health.麻豆视频
Biography
I am a critical social psychologist and chartered psychologist, who draws on interdisciplinary theory and research to examine the intersections of sexuality, gender and embodiment using creative qualitative research methods.
ResearchResearch interests
My research interests cohere around two overlapping strandsThe first strand focuses on critical explorations of sex and sexuality and forms a key part of a growing body of work known as Critical Sexuality Studies. This research originated in my PhD research (Loughborough University) which examined the discursive construction of sexual consent in young women鈥檚 accounts of their experiences and perceptions of heterosexual sex 鈥 including non-consensual sex. This resulted in a series of publications exploring how sexual consent was constructed in young women鈥檚 talk about sex and relationships, and foregrounded the value of discourse analysis for feminist research.
More recently my work has explored the ways in which sexual difficulties are pathologized in medical, scientific and media discourse, and how they are constructed in ordinary talk. Using talk about orgasm as a focal point, I have examined how gendered discourses construct orgasm as an imperative for individuals to work at, and aspire to, and how this impact the construction of both gender and sex in the heterosexual matrix.
The second strand examines the ways in which appearance and body image are made meaningful in relation to sociocultural discourses about gender and identity. This research explores the ways in which an altered appearance (through illness, disease and its treatment) is managed and negotiated by patients, families/carers and the professionals who work with them. Understanding the ways in which appearance changes can positively and negatively influence a person鈥檚 sense of themselves is important for helping people to manage what is often a difficult transition in their life history. My research has also explored more mundane appearance transitions, looking at the ways in which people using clothing to present themselves and their bodies to others.
My most recent research brings these two interests together in the exploration of embodied sexuality 鈥 examining how the meanings of bodies and sex are mutually constituted. As such, my research brings psychology into dialogue with sociology, social policy, gender studies, critical sexuality studies, and health sciences.
Research projects
Research collaborations
Sara da Silva Ramos, Senior Research Fellow, The Disabilities Trust
Tina Sikka, Reader in Technoscience and Intersectional Justice, Newcastle University
Freddie Byrne, Principal Clinical Psychologist, Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
Thula U Koops, University Medical Center Hamburg - Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
Anna Carline, Professor of Law, University of Liverpool
Nikki Godden-Rasul, Senior Lecturer in Law, Newcastle University
Glen Jankowski, Senior Lecturer in Critical and Social Psychology, Leeds Beckett University
Research interests
My research interests cohere around two overlapping strandsThe first strand focuses on critical explorations of sex and sexuality and forms a key part of a growing body of work known as Critical Sexuality Studies. This research originated in my PhD research (Loughborough University) which examined the discursive construction of sexual consent in young women鈥檚 accounts of their experiences and perceptions of heterosexual sex 鈥 including non-consensual sex. This resulted in a series of publications exploring how sexual consent was constructed in young women鈥檚 talk about sex and relationships, and foregrounded the value of discourse analysis for feminist research.
More recently my work has explored the ways in which sexual difficulties are pathologized in medical, scientific and media discourse, and how they are constructed in ordinary talk. Using talk about orgasm as a focal point, I have examined how gendered discourses construct orgasm as an imperative for individuals to work at, and aspire to, and how this impact the construction of both gender and sex in the heterosexual matrix.
The second strand examines the ways in which appearance and body image are made meaningful in relation to sociocultural discourses about gender and identity. This research explores the ways in which an altered appearance (through illness, disease and its treatment) is managed and negotiated by patients, families/carers and the professionals who work with them. Understanding the ways in which appearance changes can positively and negatively influence a person鈥檚 sense of themselves is important for helping people to manage what is often a difficult transition in their life history. My research has also explored more mundane appearance transitions, looking at the ways in which people using clothing to present themselves and their bodies to others.
My most recent research brings these two interests together in the exploration of embodied sexuality 鈥 examining how the meanings of bodies and sex are mutually constituted. As such, my research brings psychology into dialogue with sociology, social policy, gender studies, critical sexuality studies, and health sciences.
Research projects
Research collaborations
Sara da Silva Ramos, Senior Research Fellow, The Disabilities Trust
Tina Sikka, Reader in Technoscience and Intersectional Justice, Newcastle University
Freddie Byrne, Principal Clinical Psychologist, Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
Thula U Koops, University Medical Center Hamburg - Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
Anna Carline, Professor of Law, University of Liverpool
Nikki Godden-Rasul, Senior Lecturer in Law, Newcastle University
Glen Jankowski, Senior Lecturer in Critical and Social Psychology, Leeds Beckett University
Supervision
Postgraduate research supervision
I welcome applications for PhD research on all aspects of sex and sexuality, including (but not limited to):
- Sexuality and mental health
- Sexual embodiment
- Sexuality and the senses
- Medicalisation and sexuopharmaceuticals
- The experience and pathologisation of sexual difficulties
- Sexualities and sexual minorities
- Teaching and training in relation to sex
- Representations of sex/sexualities in image and text
- Asexualities
- Sexual advice
- Digital sexualities and mediated intimacies.
I will also welcome projects with innovative methodological approaches and creative methods.
I currently supervise PhD students and Doctorates in Clinical Psychology.
Lawrence, Rachel (current) 鈥楽ocial prescribing during and after COVID-19: Mapping changes, impact and opportunities for working with older adults鈥 (麻豆视频).
Figueiredo, Rodrigo (current) 鈥楳inority Stress Among Transgender Youth: The Pivotal Role of Parental Relationships as a Mediator Between Psychosocial Regulation and Transgender-Specific Minority Stressors鈥 (麻豆视频).
Oputa, Emily (current) Intersectionality between Lifelong Disability & Ethnicity: Understanding the influence of ethnicity on Ageing Well with a Lifelong Disability among Black British Older Adults and their Carers (麻豆视频).
Walker, C. Sexual relationships and sexual risk-taking in the context of living with, and recovering from, BPD: service user priorities for care (麻豆视频).
Completed postgraduate research projects I have supervised
Completed PhD supervisions:
Howitt, H. (2023). . (University of Brighton).
Barras, Abby (2021). . (University of Brighton).
Davis, Stephanie (2017). . (University of Brighton).
Russell, Daniel (2009). . (University of the West of England).
Morey, Yvette (2006). (University of the West of England).
Completed Doctorate in Clinical Psychology supervisions:
Clifton, Cathy (2023). . (麻豆视频)
Foster, Molly (2023). (麻豆视频).
Hughes, Jessica (2023). . (麻豆视频).
Jones, Georgina (2023). . (麻豆视频).
Lumsdale, Gemma (2023). . (麻豆视频).
Rodwell, Devon (2023). . (麻豆视频).
Routledge, Bryony (2023). . (麻豆视频).
Ryan, Mathew (2023). . (麻豆视频).
Butcher, Hollie (2022). . (麻豆视频).
Culley, Siobhan (2022).鈥We鈥檙e all Closer鈥: Narratives of Family Identity after Acquired Brain Injury. (麻豆视频).
Daley, Jessica (2022). (麻豆视频).
Olafson, Lucy (2022). (麻豆视频).
Yorath, Beth (2022). (麻豆视频).
Bartlett, Laura (2021). Unpublished Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, 麻豆视频.
Beadle, Peter (2021) Unpublished Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, 麻豆视频.
Kennedy, Alice (2021). . Unpublished Doctorate in Clinical Psychology, 麻豆视频.
Completed Practitioner Doctorate in Counselling Psychology/ Psychotherapy supervisions:
Young, Steve (2021).. Practitioner Doctorate in Psychotherapeutic and Counselling Psychology, (麻豆视频).
Seal, Klara (2014). . Practitioner Doctorate in Counselling and Psychotherapy (University of Brighton).
Teaching
I currently supervise PhD and DClinPsy trainees and teach research methods.
Sustainable development goals
My research interests are related to the following:
Publications
THE PROJECT We conducted semi-structured interviews to identify the obstacles for underrepresented researchers while preparing their application and emphasise the good practices that support them. These interviews were part of a UKRI/BA EDI Caucus-funded project titled Breaking Barriers in Research Funding Applications: Evaluating Narrative CVs and Co-Designing Solutions for Application Processes. PARTICIPANTS Twenty underrepresented researchers鈥攕cholars who are minorities in academia due to factors such as gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, disability, age, religion, socioeconomic background, migration status, language background, or intersecting characteristics. CONCEPT MAP & GLOSSARY The data informed the development of a concept map illustrating the barriers and facilitators to adopting Narrative CVs among underrepresented researchers, along with a glossary explaining each of these factors.
THE PROJECT We conducted semi-structured interviews to identify the obstacles for underrepresented researchers while preparing their application and emphasise the good practices that support them. These interviews were part of a UKRI/BA EDI Caucus-funded project titled Breaking Barriers in Research Funding Applications: Evaluating Narrative CVs and Co-Designing Solutions for Application Processes. PARTICIPANTS Twenty underrepresented researchers鈥攕cholars who are minorities in academia due to factors such as gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, disability, age, religion, socioeconomic background, migration status, language background, or intersecting characteristics. CONCEPT MAP & GLOSSARY The data informed the development of a concept map illustrating the barriers and facilitators when preparing grant applications among underrepresented researchers, along with a glossary explaining each of these factors. Although distinct, self-related and external barriers interacted to exacerbate the difficulties faced by researchers from marginalised groups.
Therapeutic relationships play a central role in maintaining a positive social climate in forensic settings. The interpersonal difficulties characteristic of Borderline Personality Disorder, alongside the secure environment of forensic wards, can make developing positive therapeutic relationships with this patient group challenging. Qualitative interviews aimed to explore how ward staff understand and experience the interaction of interpersonal relationships and social climate when caring for patients with Borderline Personality Disorder on forensic wards. Interviews with 11 staff members working across UK forensic inpatient settings were analysed using Ref lexive Thematic Analysis and reported following COREQ guidelines. Six interrelated themes were generated; three describe relational cycles that occur between ward staff and patients with Borderline Personality Disorder and three describe systemic factors that inf luence the context in which ward staff operate. From these themes, an integrative model was developed to summarise how factors in the wider forensic system and the interpersonal relationships between staff and patients with Borderline Personality Disorder in forensic wards inf luence one another, affecting staff experiences of the social climate of forensic settings. The model illustrates how complex cycles within the therapeutic relationships with staff and patients with Borderline Personality Disorder can interact with systemic inf luences in the wider forensic context to inf luence staff experiences of forensic settings. Clinical implications of the model are discussed, offering recommendations for improving therapeutic relationships and the social climate on forensic wards caring for patients with Borderline Personality Disorder, to better support staff and patient wellbeing.
Participating in sport and physical exercise (SPE) can be challenging for transgender and non-binary people. Previous research has identified some of the barriers trans people face in schools, leisure spaces and competitive sports (e.g. gender segregation, gendered language, sports clothing, and transphobia), and the resultant poor rates of participating in everyday SPE compared to the cisgender population. Yet, despite the ways in which sport, the experience of being trans, and being trans in sport are often framed as intensely focused on the body, less attention has been paid to the embodied experience of trans people as they engage in SPE. This paper draws on selected data examples from a qualitative study examining trans adults鈥 experiences of engaging in everyday SPE and looks towards Wellard鈥檚 [(2012). Body-reflexive pleasures: Exploring bodily experiences within the context of sport and physical activity. Sport, Education and Society, 17(1), 21鈥33. https://doi.org/10.1080/13573322.2011.607910] concept of circuits of body-reflexive pleasure, to explore how participants鈥 make sense of their embodied selves. Sitting at the intersection of social, physiological and psychological experiences of sport, we explore how circuits of body-reflexive pleasure (and displeasures) in SPE can induce feelings of gender dysphoria as well as feelings of pleasure and gender euphoria.
Abstract Tensions between therapeutic and security needs on forensic wards can create a social climate which is challenging for both mental health nurses and patients. Social climate refers to the physical, social and emotional conditions of a forensic ward which influence how these environments are experienced. For patients with borderline personality disorder (BPD), previous trauma means that the social climate of forensic settings may be experienced as retraumatising, negatively impacting the outcomes and wellbeing of both patients and mental health nurses. Trauma鈥恑nformed care (TIC) has been offered as a contemporary framework for mental health nursing in inpatient units which aims to create a therapeutic social climate. In this critical review, we drew widely on literatures examining the social climate in forensic settings, the relationships between patients with BPD and staff (including mental health nurses), and the experiences of patients with BPD in forensic and inpatient settings to draw out the implications of scrutinising these literatures through the lens of TIC. Attending to the physical, social and emotional conditions of social climate in secure settings highlights how forensic wards can mirror trauma experiences for patients with BPD. Implementing TIC in these contexts has the potential to evoke positive shifts in the social climate, thus reducing the risk of retraumatisation and leading to improved outcomes for patients and staff.
AbstractBackgroundYoung people are sharing their experiences of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in the United Kingdom on TikTok. Little is known about the content of these videos and their influence on young people's attitudes towards seeking professional mental health support.MethodsThis study explored how CAMHS is represented in a sample of 100 #camhs TikTok videos using participatory inductive framework thematic analysis.ResultsFour themes were developed alongside young people as co-researchers: (a) CAMHS can be frustrating and unhelpful, but sometimes life-saving, (b) Young people can feel their distress is invalidated by CAMHS, (c) CAMHS makes young people feel responsible for their distress, and (d) Young people may not feel CAMHS professionals are trustworthy. Video content described dismissive responses to expressions of suicidal ideation, professional knowledge being privileged over lived experience, and breaches of confidentiality. Some shared positive experiences of CAMHS helping to keep them safe.ConclusionsTogether, the themes reflect a representation of CAMHS as a service where adults are powerful and young people occupy a subjugated position. This may influence young people's professional help-seeking behaviour. Recommendations for clinical practice and future research are presented.
础产蝉迟谤补肠迟翱产箩别肠迟颈惫别蝉础辫辫别补谤补苍肠别&苍产蝉辫;补苍虫颈别迟测&苍产蝉辫;(础础)&苍产蝉辫;颈蝉&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;辫谤辞产补产濒别&苍产蝉辫;谤颈蝉办&苍产蝉辫;蹿补肠迟辞谤&苍产蝉辫;蹿辞谤&苍产蝉辫;产辞诲测&苍产蝉辫;诲测蝉尘辞谤辫丑颈肠&苍产蝉辫;诲颈蝉辞谤诲别谤&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;辫谤别惫补濒别苍迟&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;诲别产颈濒颈迟补迟颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;肠辞苍肠别谤苍.&苍产蝉辫;贰虫迟补苍迟&苍产蝉辫;濒颈迟别谤补迟耻谤别&苍产蝉辫;蝉耻驳驳别蝉迟蝉&苍产蝉辫;迟丑补迟&苍产蝉辫;谤辞尘补苍迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;辫补谤迟苍别谤蝉鈥&苍产蝉辫;肠辞尘尘别苍迟补谤测&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;补肠肠辞尘尘辞诲补迟颈辞苍&苍产蝉辫;产别丑补惫颈辞耻谤&苍产蝉辫;尘补测&苍产蝉辫;肠辞苍迟谤颈产耻迟别&苍产蝉辫;迟辞&苍产蝉辫;飞辞尘别苍'蝉&苍产蝉辫;补辫辫别补谤补苍肠别&苍产蝉辫;肠辞苍肠别谤苍蝉.&苍产蝉辫;罢丑别&苍产蝉辫;补颈尘&苍产蝉辫;辞蹿&苍产蝉辫;迟丑颈蝉&苍产蝉辫;蝉迟耻诲测&苍产蝉辫;颈蝉&苍产蝉辫;迟辞&苍产蝉辫;别虫辫濒辞谤别&苍产蝉辫;丑辞飞&苍产蝉辫;飞辞尘别苍&苍产蝉辫;别虫辫别谤颈别苍肠别&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;尘补办别&苍产蝉辫;蝉别苍蝉别&苍产蝉辫;辞蹿&苍产蝉辫;谤辞尘补苍迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;辫补谤迟苍别谤&苍产蝉辫;蹿别别诲产补肠办&苍产蝉辫;补产辞耻迟&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别颈谤&苍产蝉辫;补辫辫别补谤补苍肠别.顿别蝉颈驳苍蚕耻补濒颈迟补迟颈惫别&苍产蝉辫;蝉别尘颈-蝉迟谤耻肠迟耻谤别诲&苍产蝉辫;颈苍迟别谤惫颈别飞&苍产蝉辫;蝉迟耻诲测.惭别迟丑辞诲蝉厂别尘颈-蝉迟谤耻肠迟耻谤别诲&苍产蝉辫;颈苍迟别谤惫颈别飞蝉&苍产蝉辫;飞颈迟丑&苍产蝉辫;13&苍产蝉辫;肠颈蝉-驳别苍诲别谤&苍产蝉辫;飞辞尘别苍&苍产蝉辫;别虫辫濒辞谤别诲&苍产蝉辫;丑辞飞&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别测&苍产蝉辫;尘补办别&苍产蝉辫;蝉别苍蝉别&苍产蝉辫;辞蹿&苍产蝉辫;补辫辫别补谤补苍肠别&苍产蝉辫;补苍虫颈别迟测&苍产蝉辫;颈苍&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别&苍产蝉辫;肠辞苍迟别虫迟&苍产蝉辫;辞蹿&苍产蝉辫;谤辞尘补苍迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;谤别濒补迟颈辞苍蝉丑颈辫蝉.&苍产蝉辫;搁别蹿濒别虫颈惫别&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别尘补迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;补苍补濒测蝉颈蝉&苍产蝉辫;飞颈迟丑&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;丑测产谤颈诲&苍产蝉辫;颈苍诲耻肠迟颈惫别-诲别诲耻肠迟颈惫别&苍产蝉辫;肠辞诲颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;补辫辫谤辞补肠丑&苍产蝉辫;飞补蝉&苍产蝉辫;耻迟颈濒颈蝉别诲,&苍产蝉辫;诲谤补飞颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;辞苍&苍产蝉辫;肠辞驳苍颈迟颈惫别&苍产蝉辫;产别丑补惫颈辞耻谤补濒&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别辞谤测&苍产蝉辫;(颁叠罢)&苍产蝉辫;补蝉&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别辞谤别迟颈肠补濒&苍产蝉辫;濒别苍蝉&苍产蝉辫;迟辞&苍产蝉辫;颈苍迟别谤辫谤别迟&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别&苍产蝉辫;诲补迟补.搁别蝉耻濒迟蝉贵辞耻谤&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别尘别蝉&苍产蝉辫;飞别谤别&苍产蝉辫;肠谤别补迟别诲&苍产蝉辫;蹿谤辞尘&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别&苍产蝉辫;诲补迟补:&苍产蝉辫;(1)&苍产蝉辫;鈥楾丑别苍&苍产蝉辫;丑别&苍产蝉辫;蝉补颈诲&苍产蝉辫;迟辞&苍产蝉辫;尘别&苍产蝉辫;鈥&苍产蝉辫;测辞耻&苍产蝉辫;肠辞耻濒诲&苍产蝉辫;辫谤辞产补产濒测&苍产蝉辫;迟辞苍别&苍产蝉辫;耻辫&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;产颈迟鈥:&苍产蝉辫;惭补颈苍迟补颈苍颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;肠测肠濒别蝉;&苍产蝉辫;(2)&苍产蝉辫;鈥业&苍产蝉辫;迟丑颈苍办&苍产蝉辫;迟丑辞蝉别&苍产蝉辫;肠辞尘尘别苍迟蝉&苍产蝉辫;诲辞飞苍&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别&苍产蝉辫;濒颈苍别&苍产蝉辫;诲辞&苍产蝉辫;别惫别苍迟耻补濒濒测&苍产蝉辫;丑别濒辫鈥:&苍产蝉辫;产谤别补办颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;辞耻迟&苍产蝉辫;辞蹿&苍产蝉辫;尘补颈苍迟别苍补苍肠别&苍产蝉辫;肠测肠濒别蝉,&苍产蝉辫;(3)&苍产蝉辫;鈥业迟'蝉&苍产蝉辫;濒颈办别&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别测'谤别&苍产蝉辫;迟补濒办颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;颈苍&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;蹿辞谤别颈驳苍&苍产蝉辫;濒补苍驳耻补驳别鈥;&苍产蝉辫;产别濒颈别蹿蝉&苍产蝉辫;补蝉&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;蹿颈濒迟别谤&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;(4)&苍产蝉辫;鈥楥丑别别谤颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;尘别&苍产蝉辫;辞苍&苍产蝉辫;蹿谤辞尘&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别&苍产蝉辫;蝉颈诲别-濒颈苍别蝉鈥;&苍产蝉辫;谤辞尘补苍迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;辫补谤迟苍别谤&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;蝉耻辫辫辞谤迟颈惫别&苍产蝉辫;肠辞补肠丑.&苍产蝉辫;罢丑别蝉别&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别尘别蝉&苍产蝉辫;丑颈驳丑濒颈驳丑迟&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别&苍产蝉辫;辫别谤肠别颈惫别诲&苍产蝉辫;耻苍丑别濒辫蹿耻濒&苍产蝉辫;(别.驳.&苍产蝉辫;补肠肠辞尘尘辞诲补迟颈辞苍&苍产蝉辫;辞蹿&苍产蝉辫;产别丑补惫颈辞耻谤蝉)&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;丑别濒辫蹿耻濒&苍产蝉辫;(别.驳.&苍产蝉辫;补蹿蹿别肠迟颈辞苍)&苍产蝉辫;颈尘辫补肠迟&苍产蝉辫;辞蹿&苍产蝉辫;谤辞尘补苍迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;辫补谤迟苍别谤蝉'&苍产蝉辫;产别丑补惫颈辞耻谤蝉&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;肠辞尘尘别苍迟补谤测&苍产蝉辫;辞苍&苍产蝉辫;辫补谤迟颈肠颈辫补苍迟蝉鈥&苍产蝉辫;础础.颁辞苍肠濒耻蝉颈辞苍蝉搁辞尘补苍迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;辫补谤迟苍别谤蝉&苍产蝉辫;补谤别&苍产蝉辫;辫别谤肠别颈惫别诲&苍产蝉辫;产测&苍产蝉辫;飞辞尘别苍&苍产蝉辫;迟辞&苍产蝉辫;丑补惫别&苍产蝉辫;补&苍产蝉辫;辫辞迟别苍迟&苍产蝉辫;颈尘辫补肠迟&苍产蝉辫;辞苍&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别颈谤&苍产蝉辫;础础.&苍产蝉辫;颁濒颈苍颈肠补濒&苍产蝉辫;辫谤补肠迟颈肠别&苍产蝉辫;颈尘辫濒颈肠补迟颈辞苍蝉&苍产蝉辫;颈苍肠濒耻诲别&苍产蝉辫;颈苍惫辞濒惫颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;谤辞尘补苍迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;辫补谤迟苍别谤蝉&苍产蝉辫;颈苍&苍产蝉辫;迟谤别补迟尘别苍迟,&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;肠濒颈苍颈肠颈补苍蝉&苍产蝉辫;耻蝉颈苍驳&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别颈谤&苍产蝉辫;蹿辞谤尘耻濒补迟颈辞苍&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;颁叠罢&苍产蝉辫;蝉办颈濒濒蝉&苍产蝉辫;(别.驳.&苍产蝉辫;厂辞肠谤补迟颈肠&苍产蝉辫;辩耻别蝉迟颈辞苍颈苍驳),&苍产蝉辫;迟辞&苍产蝉辫;耻苍诲别谤蝉迟补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;补苍诲&苍产蝉辫;迟补谤驳别迟&苍产蝉辫;迟丑别蝉别&苍产蝉辫;辫辞蝉蝉颈产濒别&苍产蝉辫;尘补颈苍迟别苍补苍肠别&苍产蝉辫;辫谤辞肠别蝉蝉别蝉&苍产蝉辫;飞颈迟丑颈苍&苍产蝉辫;肠辞耻辫濒别蝉.
Pictures of our first day at school, a special birthday, holidays, weddings, friends, and new additions to the family; photograph albums capture particular moments in a life. In providing opportunities for storytelling, generating laughter over outdated fashions or changing hair-styles, and allowing the rehearsal and creation of family histories, photographs are also a site for constructing a sense of the past and creating a bridge between the past, present and future. Photograph albums offer a means for narrating the lives of ourselves and of others (Van House et al., 2004; Brookfield et al., 2008) and for charting biographical continuity. In contrast, an illness, such as cancer, can provoke a sense of 鈥榖iographical disruption鈥 鈥 a critical break between past (before the illness), present and future lives (Bury, 1982). The diagnosis of an illness, and in particular cancer, forces people to experience many changes in their lives, including the reality of an uncertain future, threats to identity and sense of self, and a re-evaluation of the person鈥檚 place in the world (Frank, 1995). As such, the stories that cancer patients tell about themselves as they negotiate their way through diagnoses, treatment regimens, changed bodies, and disrupted identities are not just a way of making sense of an illness, but also a life (Mathieson and Stam, 1995). Narratives and storytelling are a medium through which people can make sense of, organise and draw together fragments of their lives into a cohesive whole, and are characterised by a temporal ordering of events (Hyd茅n, 1997). Narratives are considered an invaluable source of experiential knowledge, a resource for developing empathy and patient-centred care, and an important conduit for aiding coping among patients (Charmez, 1999; Frank, 1995; Greenhalgh and Hurwitz, 1999). Drawing on a photographic study of women鈥檚 experiences of chemotherapy treatment for breast cancer, I consider the ways in which asking women to visually represent their lives engages them in the task of creating memories and doing 鈥榖iographical work鈥 to establish the place of their illness within their identities and life worlds. Asking women to mark out particular moments as significant, invites them to enact a bittersweet experience of creating memories that they might rather forget (a cancer diagnosis can be traumatic, and chemotherapy treatment unpleasant), while documenting a move towards recovery and a re-integration of the self into 鈥榥ormal鈥 activities (Radley and Taylor, 2003a). Re-viewing these images and using them to narrativise their experiences during an interview calls on women to remember past events and to confront images of past selves. Against this backdrop, this chapter explores the work that women do to re-image 鈥榤issing鈥 photographs, and explores the role of absent images in creating boundaries around what selves are available to be remembered. In other words, I examine how the materiality of photographs is implicated in the biographical work done by women undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer as they narrate their experiences. But first, I will briefly describe the study from which the data are drawn.
Facilitating a 鈥榞ood鈥 death is a central goal for hospices and palliative care organisations. The key features of such a death include an acceptance of death, an open awareness of and communication about death, the settling of practical and interpersonal business, the reduction of suffering and pain, and the enhancement of autonomy, choice and control. Yet deaths are inherently neither good nor bad; they require cultural labour to be 鈥榤ade over鈥 as good. Drawing on media accounts of the controversial death of UK reality television star Jade Goody, and building on existing analyses of her death, we examine how cultural discourses actively work to construct deaths as good or bad and to position the dying and those witnessing their death as morally accountable. By constructing Goody as bravely breaking social taboos by openly acknowledging death, by contextualising her dying as occurring at the end of a life well lived and by emphasising biographical continuity and agency, newspaper accounts serve to position themselves as educative rather than exploitative, and readers as information鈥恠eekers rather than ghoulishly voyeuristic. We argue that popular culture offers moral instruction in dying well which resonates with the messages from palliative care.
Vaginismus and dyspareunia are common sexual difficulties; they often take a long time to be appropriately diagnosed, and their origins remain unclear. This paper examines the metaphors used by women to describe bodily experiences associated with vaginismus and dyspareunia, and highlights the contribution this form of analysis can make to the study of sexuality and sexual difficulties. A secondary analysis was conducted on primary data from biographic interviews exploring women's experiences of sexual pain and difficulties with sexual intercourse. Metaphor analysis was used to analyse a data subset of 28 interviews translated from German into English. Metaphorical concepts lying at the basis of the metaphors used were identified and grouped into three themes: characterisation of sexual difficulties; split body and 'self'; and sexual agency and objectification. Results are discussed with in the context of literature regarding the function of metaphors and the utility of metaphor analysis for research, and healthcare research and interventions more generally.
The adverse psychosocial impact of androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is often framed as an essential motivation for developing efficacious treatments to halt hair loss or promote regrowth, especially since AGA is common among men but does not result in physically harmful or life-limiting consequences. Yet, empirical evidence documenting the impact of AGA on men鈥檚 psychological wellbeing and quality of life is patchy and has not previously been subject to systematic review. This systemic review and meta-analyses aim to integrate and evaluate evidence regarding the psychosocial impact of AGA on men. A database and manual reference search identified English-language articles which reported: 1) empirical research; of ii) psychosocial distress (mental health, depression, anxiety, self-esteem, or quality of life); and iii) data separately for male AGA participants. Screening of 607 articles resulted in 37 (6%) for inclusion. PRISMA guidelines, the (modified) AXIS quality assessment tool, and independent extraction were deployed. Heterogeneity in measures and study aims, moderate study quality (M鈥=鈥7.37, SD鈥=鈥1.31), probable conflicts of interest (78%) and biased samples (68%) suggest that results should be treated cautiously. Meta-analyses revealed no impact on depression (pooled M鈥=鈥8.8, 95% CI鈥=鈥6.8鈥10.8) and moderate impact on quality of life (pooled m鈥=鈥9.12, 95% CI鈥=鈥6.14鈥12.10). Men with AGA were found to have average or better mental health compared to those without AGA. Overall, there was limited evidence of a severe impact on mental health and quality of life for men experiencing hair loss, with most studies evidencing (at best) a moderate impact. Good dermatological care includes accurately educating about the psychosocial impact of AGA on men, taking care not to overstate levels of distress, and screening for distress using validated measures which have clear clinical thresholds.
Abstract South Africa experiences high levels of violence and trauma in a context where formal mental healthcare is not widely accessible. Lay (non鈥恜rofessional) trauma counselling services, staffed by volunteers, often fill this gap in provision. Extant research highlights the risk of secondary traumatic stress and burnout for volunteers, and although volunteering is often a collective activity, research typically focuses on the individual volunteer's characteristics, motivations and attitudes. Drawing on a case study with one organisation, this study explores lay counsellors' experiences of providing voluntary emotional support in a context of high trauma and low resources. Semi鈥恠tructured interviews with volunteers ( n = 12) explored the nature of the work, reasons for volunteering and perceptions of the organisation. Thematic analysis generated two overarching themes, each with three subthemes: 鈥榃e serve our community鈥 (sub鈥恡hemes: 鈥楪iving back to our community鈥, 鈥楴eed outstrips resources鈥 and 鈥楤eing there is powerful鈥) and 鈥榃e are family鈥 (sub鈥恡hemes: 鈥楤eing there for each other鈥, 鈥榃orking through the work鈥 and 鈥楤eing put in a safety net鈥). Findings illustrate how organisations with few resources can mitigate the psychological risks of trauma鈥恌ocused work by fostering strong bonds, collective identity and an ethos of care.
Sexuality is a complex and multifaceted domain 鈥 encompassing bodily, contextual and subjective experiences that resist ready categorisation. To claim the sexual as a viable research object therefore raises a number of important methodological questions: what is it possible to know about experiences, practices and perceptions of sex and sexualities? What approaches might help or hinder our efforts to probe such experiences? This collection explores the creative, personal and contextual parameters involved in researching sexuality, cutting across disciplinary boundaries and drawing on case studies from a variety of countries and contexts. Combining a wide range of expertise, its contributors address such key areas as pornography, sex work, intersectionality and LGBT perspectives. The contributors also share their own experiences of researching sexuality within contrasting disciplines, as well as interrogating how the sexual identities of researchers themselves can relate to, and inform, their work. The result is a unique and diverse collection that combines practical insights on field work with novel theoretical reflections.
This qualitative research extends current theorizing on behavioural strategies for managing body distress by exploring how women manage body image through clothing practices. Eighty two women reported their subjective understanding of how body evaluation and clothing practices are interconnected in response to open-ended questionnaires. Thematic analysis of responses revealed that clothing practices are a mundane and agentic part of the adjustive and self-regulatory processes for managing distressing body image (cf. Cash, 2002b). Clothing is used strategically to manage bodily appearance and anxiety by hiding 鈥榩roblem areas鈥, accentuating 鈥榓ssets,鈥 and flattering the figure. Body image is actively negotiated and managed through everyday behaviours which fluctuate on 鈥榝at鈥 days and 鈥榯hin鈥 days. These data illustrate the processes which underpin the active negotiation of body image and capture the fluidity of body evaluations and strategies for managing the appearance of the body. These findings raise a number of challenges for theorizing and research including the need to adopt methods which capture the dynamic interplay of body image processes, and the need to address body appreciation as well as distress.
Most academic work exploring the makeover genre has argued that TV 鈥渆xperts鈥 draw on a narrative of humiliation to push the participant to adopt more appropriate forms of feminine appearance. However, shows like How to Look Good Naked, while sharing the problematic logics of the makeover, are qualitatively different in tone and style from more aggressive shows. We extend emerging analyses which argue that makeover shows can be read as reflecting struggles for recognition by demonstrating that TV 鈥渆xperts鈥 can also interrupt processes of mis-recognition by offering alternative symbolic systems of interpretation of the body by which the body can be recognised, visible and valued. We argue that humiliation is not the only point of affective engagement for audiences of these shows, while wanting to avoid the seductive illusion that this makes the shows more empowering or less malevolent. We conclude that in failing to embrace the wide variety of affective mechanisms by which we might be able to appreciate the popular appeal of reality TV, we do a disservice to female audiences and women participants, as well as limiting our own theoretical insights.
Digital technologies are deeply embedded in everyday life with opportunities for information access and perpetual social contact now mediating most of our activities and relationships. This book expands the lens of Cyberpsychology to consider how digital experiences play out across the various stages of people鈥檚 lives. Most psychological research has focused on whether human-technology interactions are a 鈥榞ood鈥 or a 鈥榖ad鈥 thing for humanity. This book offers a distinctive approach to the emergent area of Cyberpsychology, moving beyond these binary dilemmas and considering how popular technologies have come to frame human experience and relationships. In particular the authors explore the role of significant life stages in defining the evolving purpose of digital technologies. They discuss how people鈥檚 symbiotic relationship with digital technologies has started to redefine our childhoods, how we experience ourselves, how we make friends, our experience of being alone, how we have sex and form romantic relationships, our capacity for being antisocial as well as the experience of growing older and dying. This interdisciplinary book will be of great interest to scholars and practitioners across psychology, digital technology and media studies as well as anyone interested in how technology influences our behaviour.
This article explores a number of examples of how appearance and the reading about it operate to produce class-based divisions and the different emotional registers which are used to do so. First it examines how the brief description of a woman called Teresa Bystram's appearance in Britain's largest circulation daily tabloid newspaper, The Sun positions her as a 鈥榗hav鈥 鈥 a figure which circulates through popular cultural representations and has become a pervasive term of abuse for the white poor, evoking mockery and disgust. Second, it examines how mockery, disgust, and humiliation are the emotional registers through which makeover television shows engage in symbolic violence against the working classes, before moving on to consider the implications of makeover shows which adopt a different emotional register.
In the context of a purported shift from humiliation to the benign exemplified by the marked contrast between How to Look Good Naked and What Not to Wear, this article examines the cultural work performed by the 鈥榮pace of the benign鈥. We identify three main mechanisms 鈥 body appreciation, synthetic friendship and suspended sexuality 鈥 which manipulate existing constructions of female friendship and homosexuality to produce the host as the 鈥榞ay best friend鈥. As such, the host sidesteps the heterosexual scopic economy while seeking to re-place women within it, and avoids the censure frequently directed at female presenters. At the same time, by coaxing women towards an acceptance of their body as is, How to Look Good Naked provides a 鈥榝eel-good鈥 sense of empowerment while preserving individualistic framings of body problems and solutions. We conclude that the show rehabilitates women within the heteronormative scopic economy, and reinscribes them as neo-liberal consumers.
Virginia Braun, Victoria Clarke, Hannah Frith, Nikki Hayfield, Helen Malson, Naomi Moller, and Iduna Shah-Beckley came together at the University of the West of England (UWE) in July 2017 to discuss and share their enthusiasm for the story completion method. Virginia nominally 鈥渓ed鈥 the discussion to keep us on track. This is a transcript of the discussion, edited by the Special Issue editors, principally Hannah Frith, which we have all read and commented on. The discussion begins with the contributors introducing themselves and their experience of the story completion method. It then identifies a series of 鈥渒notty issues鈥 about story completion which we explored: 1) what can stories tell us?; 2) research practicalities, comparative design, and sample size; 3) what happens when story completion doesn鈥檛 go to plan?; and 4) getting published. The conversation ends by considering 鈥渇uture possibilities for story completion research.鈥 Our aim was not to reach consensus of definitive 鈥渁nswers鈥 but to debate and gain perspective on an open issue. Hence, we reach no 鈥渃onclusion鈥 for any of these issues.
Previous research on shame has indicated that it is an important phenomenon that can benefit or hinder the therapeutic process, depending on how it is understood and managed by therapists. However, therapists鈥 conceptualisations of shame have not been explored adequately. This study utilised a novel method of data collection called story-completion to examine how therapists talk about shame, and the impact this can have on how they manage it. Forty-five therapists were asked to complete a story-stem describing a therapist working with a client鈥檚 shame via an online survey platform. Foucauldian discourse analysis (FDA) was used to critically analyse participants鈥 stories. Shame was constructed as a rather problematic emotion that hinders the therapeutic progress by preventing the clients from revealing their 鈥渢rue鈥 self. In these narratives, the therapist鈥檚 task was to uncover what is hidden behind shame. Some participants constructed the therapist as an expert, holding the appropriate knowledge to manage it. A counter position was the therapist conceptualised as humane, where they were de-skilled and vulnerable in relation to shame. We invite practitioners to be mindful of the ways that their understanding of emotions, and their role in relation to them, can impact the direction of therapy.
Visual representations of orgasm 鈥 whether in the flesh or mediated through a screen 鈥 are produced in a context of intense uncertainty about whether what is being seen represents an authentically experienced bodily event. Despite detailed scientific scrutiny and close attention to bodily signs, the authenticity of women's orgasm remains a site of cultural anxiety and contested gender politics. This uncertainty is exacerbated by the construction of female orgasm as inherently invisible or un-see-able, and 鈥榝aking鈥 orgasm as a prevalent social practice. Drawing on existing literature from psychology, sociology and porn studies, this theoretical paper explores the problem of visually representing orgasm in the context of these uncertainties, and examines how the distinction between the 鈥榬eal鈥 and the 鈥榝ake鈥 is structured by discourses of authenticity. Pornography and everyday sexual interactions provide ideal contexts for exploring the practices of producing and consuming visual representations of embodied experience because both necessitate a see-able orgasm which consumers/lovers can read as 鈥榬eal鈥. This paper demonstrates that considerable interpretative work is necessary to read the female body as authentically orgasmic in the context of cultural uncertainty, and that distinctions between the 鈥榬eal鈥 and the 鈥榝ake鈥 are continually reworked. Drawing on the contrast between 鈥榮urface鈥 and 鈥榙eep鈥 acting (Hochschild, 1983), I argue that the distinction between the 鈥榬eal鈥 and the 鈥榝ake鈥 cannot be established by recourse to unmediated bodily experience, and instead, researchers should consider how and when this distinction has traction in the world and the implications of this for gendered power relations, subjectivities and practices.
Male baldness is physically benign though it is increasingly described as a 鈥渄isease鈥 based on claims that it is profoundly distressing. The medicalization of baldness was assessed using data extracted from a review of 37 male baldness psychosocial impact studies. Findings revealed most studies likely had commercial influences (78%), represented baldness as a disease (77%), were conducted on biased samples (68%), and advocated for baldness products/services (60%), omitting their limitations (68%). Health psychologists should challenge baldness medicalization so that men can make informed choices about what, if anything, they do with their baldness.
Drawing on insights from conversation analysis, this article explores a discussion about orgasm on an internet forum. Critical of sex education for failing to address young women as sexual subjects with embodied desires, some feminists believe the internet offers alternative spaces for young women to discuss pleasure. I argue that the micro-political work done by offering 鈥榗ongratulations鈥 on one such site serves to mark young women鈥檚 orgasms as both 鈥榥ewsworthy鈥 and 鈥榞ood news鈥 in ways which simultaneously disrupt the idea that sexuality is inappropriate for young women while paradoxically reaffirming conventional ideas about the centrality of orgasm to sexuality.
Orgasmic Bodies explores how bodily experiences of orgasm are worked up as present/absent, complicated/straightforward, too slow/too fast, fake or real, in the doing of masculinities and femininities. Engaging with both science and popular culture it examines the meanings given to orgasmic bodies in contemporary heterosex.
Class is often overlooked in sociological studies of death, just as studies of class overlook death. The controversial media coverage of the death of Jade Goody provides a useful focus for exploring contemporary class-making. Recent sociological analyses of class representations in popular culture have demonstrated how denigration and humiliation serve as mechanisms which position sections of the white, working class (chavs) as repositories of bad taste. We argue that these are not the only (or even the most prevalent) affective mechanisms for class-making. In this article, we explore how cultural imperatives for 鈥榙ying well鈥 intersect with what could be perceived as more positive or even affectionate representations of Jade to produce 鈥榞ood taste鈥 as naturalised properties of the middle class. As such, we demonstrate that the circulation of inequalities through precarious and dynamic cultural representations involves more complex affective mechanisms in class boundary work than is often recognised.
Positioned as the 鈥榩eak鈥 of sexual experience, orgasm is packed with sociocultural meaning. Exploring the construction of orgasm in Cosmopolitan magazine in the context of the shift towards a postfeminist sexuality and the neoliberal shift towards the rational management of sex as work, this article argues that magazines offer a 鈥榩edagogy of the body鈥 by teaching women to: (1) become aware of how to touch their body; (2) strengthen muscles and master bodily responses; (3) position the body and understand how male and female bodies fit together, and (4) instruct men in how to interact with female bodies. Postfeminist, neoliberal and pedagogical discourses merge to offer explicit instruction in how to develop a 鈥榯echnology of sexiness鈥 by training the body to ensure orgasmic success
"This book provides conceptual and practical insights into temporal aspects of qualitative inquiry. A significant portion of qualitative research, if not its raison d'锚tre, is to better understand human experience and the human condition. However, the explicit and/ or collective challenges of time and temporal considerations in qualitative research, as yet remain relatively undocumented. Suitable for graduate students and researchers interested in qualitative inquiry, and in disciplines such as education, health research, sociology and communication studies"--
Using combined qualitative data from multiple case study interviews and an online survey, this study explored the impact of appearance change on 22 adolescents receiving cancer treatment aged 13 to 18 years and six of their parents. Data were analyzed using template analysis. Appearance changes were a major concern. Adolescents typically struggled to adapt to new experiences and concerns related to this highly sensitive issue. Many felt anxious and self-conscious and were reluctant to reveal appearance changes in public. These feelings were compounded by the negative reactions of others (e.g., staring, teasing, and inappropriate questioning), which sometimes lead to avoidance of social activity and threats of noncompliance. Parents of these children felt ill-prepared to manage appearance-related anxieties. Adolescents wanted support to develop the practical and social skills necessary to maintain a 鈥渘ormal鈥 appearance and manage the negative responses of others. However, some adolescents showed resilience and, with support from friends and family, developed strategies to manage their altered appearance and its social consequences. These strategies are explored, which can inform interventions to support adolescents and parents.
When orgasms are positioned by biomedical discourse as the pinnacle of healthy sexual expression, and when popular culture urges individuals to work on their sexual technique to get bigger, better, and more intense orgasmic pleasure, how do people account for the absence of orgasm? This question was explored in a qualitative study using the story completion method where participants complete the end of a story in which a male or female partner does not have an orgasm during sex. Story completion was originally developed as a projective measure within psychoanalytic traditions, designed to access people鈥檚 inner thoughts, feelings, and motivations. This case study describes the benefits of using the story completion method as a social constructionist approach to examining the sensitive topic of sexuality. Considered in this discussion is the use of ambiguous stimuli; the benefits of writing about others rather than the self; the creative method of responding; and its merits as a relative quick, cheap, and effective method of data collection. The research demonstrates how discursive imperatives including (1) placing orgasm as central to demarcating problematic from unproblematic sex, (2) emphasizing sexual skill and working technique in pleasuring one鈥檚 partner, and (3) making open communication and reciprocity pivotal to successful relationships coalesce in accounts of orgasmic absence to produce different entitlements and obligations for men and women in heterosex.
Orgasms are central to academic and lay debates about sexual 鈥榥ormality鈥 and 鈥榙ysfunction鈥 and are culturally constructed as the peak of heterosexual sex (Potts, 2000). Conversely, sexual interaction without orgasm is positioned as 鈥榦nly foreplay鈥, a failure or dysfunctional. Examining how people account for orgasmic absence during heterosex using a story completion method, this article addresses three key themes: (1) 鈥榬eciprocity, blame and the orgasmic imperative鈥, which places obligations on both men and women to elicit or deliver an orgasm to another; (2) 鈥榮ex work, technique and the orgasmic imperative鈥, which indicates the growth of a 鈥榩erformance imperative鈥 in which both men and women must work to improve their sexual skills and (3) 鈥榟onesty and dishonesty in sexual communication鈥 in which open communication is positioned as difficult but key to solving sexual difficulties. Collectively, these themes demonstrate how gendered discourses of sexuality coalesce to produce an orgasmic imperative that provides different entitlements and obligations for both men and women.
The construction of sexual violence between heterosexual partners as a problem of communication (a misunderstanding in which consent or non-consent is poorly communicated or inaccurately understood) has been at the heart of debates about the nature of sexual negotiation, what 'counts' as rape, and how to eradicate sexual violence. But womens' refusals are often not heard, ignored or overruled, and establishing women's right to refuse sexual activities (of any kind, with any one and under any circumstances) and to have these refusals recognized has been central to campaigns asserting that 'No Means No'. This chapter explores the 'problem' of sexual negotiation and communication鈥攐ften simplistically characterized as saying 'yes' or 'no'鈥攁s represented in both academic and lay discourse. In lay discourse, women often report that they fail to say 'no' clearly or effectively, or that their behavior is misperceived as indicating sexual interest, while men report difficulty understanding women's communications about sex. The 'problem' of communication also underpins two of the most popular explanations for rape (especially acquaintance rape) in academic discourse鈥攕exual script theory and miscommunication theory. Script theory asserts that culturally prescribed 'scripts' for sexual interactions ascribe the role of sexual initiator and pursuer to men and sexual gatekeeper to women. So, women are responsible for limiting and saying 'no' during sexual interactions which follow cultural patterns of activities in a preset order. Miscommunication theory suggests that 'acquaintance rape' results from poor communication between men and women, in which women fail to say no clearly and effectively while men fail to understand or act upon women's refusals. This chapter explores the interplay between lay explanations for difficulties in sexual negotiations and these academic theories. Drawing on discursive psychology and conversation analysis, the chapter highlights some of the limitations of sexual script and sexual miscommunication theories for understanding rape and sexual aggression, but also seeks to account for their prevalence in young heterosexuals' everyday talk about sexual interactions
Women's orgasms have long been subject to vociferous scientific debate, but over the last 10鈥15 years a small but growing body of largely feminist qualitative research has begun to explore how the sociocultural construction of orgasm finds contemporary articulation in popular culture and in lay accounts of heterosex. This work is explicitly concerned with gendered power relations and how these operate. This paper provides a critical review and synthesis of this work by exploring three discursive imperatives: (1) orgasm and the coital imperative (2) efficient orgasms and hard work (3) and the ethic of reciprocity. Drawing on these insights, this paper outlines how a focus on embodiment, on situated meaning-making and on everyday sexual practices would further extend our understanding of the social construction of orgasm. Finally, the paper argues for the importance of locating these processes of meaning-making in relation to socially structured material realities.