Masturbation: Not As Harmless As We Have Been Led To Believe!

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Running head: MASTURBATION

Masturbation: Not As Harmless As We Have Been Led To Believe! (An Exercise In Addressing Issues Through The Eyes Of The Opposition) Travis Sky Ingersoll

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I am not going to try and convince you that masturbation is inherently evil, or that even the rare, isolated indulgence in carnal self-pleasuring will lead to a life of depravity, moral degradation, and damnation. Such is not my aim, for that would be absurd. What I do want to point out is that masturbation is not as innocuous a behavior as people would lead you to believe. Masturbation can, if indulged in too frequently, lead to depression, loneliness, and even addiction. Therefore, it is my well-informed stance that the teaching of masturbation should be left out of educational curriculum and left up to the people most suited to be sexuality educators, the parents. The act of masturbation is not uncommon, but by teaching our children that it is a common, healthy pastime, we may inadvertently be pushing many children towards pathology and unhappiness. We may be doing so by sending the message that masturbation is and should be a part of everyday life. But what if such pro-masturbatory messages create a competitive atmosphere, where our children feel pressured to engage in self-pleasuring to feel “normal,” or to “fit in?” And what if that pressure results in overindulgence, leading to social isolation, depression, and eventually to sexual addiction? These are possibilities that we must take seriously. The scientific study of masturbation’s effects on human physiological and psychological states, have a long and rich history. In the book The Science of Life, published by the Peabody Medical Institute, Dr. Parker (1881) wrote of the debilitating effects of “spermatorrhea” (the excessive loss of seminal fluid). In Parker’s research, excessive loss of semen was found to lead to physical weakness, low sperm count, sperm weakness and even impotence. Although much has changed in our understanding of

Masturbation: Not as harmless 3 human physiology since the year that Dr. Parker wrote his acclaimed scientific inquiry, evidence of masturbation’s negative side effects continue to surface in modern research reports. In an interview with Dr. John White (1984), a spiritual leader, and well-published author and intellectual, the topic of masturbation was discussed. In Dr. White’s words, masturbation’s “great disadvantage is that it doesn’t promote communion and fellowship, but it increases loneliness” (p. 13). Social isolation and depression go hand in hand. Numerous research studies have illuminated positive correlations between frequency of masturbation and levels of depression and social isolation (Cyranowski, Bromberger, Youk, Matthews, Kravitz & Powell, 2004; Davidson, Miller, Turnbull & Sullivan, 1982; Frohlich & Meston, 2002). According to Dr. White (1984), “pursuing pleasure for pleasure’s sake will, in actual fact, lead to the ever-increasing need for stimulation” (p.13). Typically, in the U.S.A., college is the first place that students are allowed to freely discuss topics of sexuality, including masturbation, so it should be no surprise that more and more studies are being published, pointing to negative effects of college-aged masturbatory over-indulgence. In a study by Schwartz (1999), the reported frequency of masturbation described as frequent or very frequent was 71%. In another study on college men, an alarming rate of masturbatory addiction was found. In this study the sexually addicted were characterized by a dependence upon solo-sex behaviors to regulate their emotional states (Kwee, Domininguez & Ferrell, 2007). Depressed college aged women have also been found to engage in excessive masturbatory behavior as a way of self medicating (Frohlich & Meston, 2002). In

Masturbation: Not as harmless 4 addition, correlations have been discovered between frequent masturbation, depression, and lower degrees of sexual and emotional satisfaction with women’s partners, both in college age and middle age samples (Cyranowski, Bromberger, Youk, Matthews, Kravitz & Powell, 2004; Frohlich & Meston, 2002). In the wise words of Dr. White (1984),“masturbation indicates that all is not well. Masturbation could prove a hindrance to normal heterosexual relationships” (p.13). The research thus far cited, indicate that masturbation could prove a hindrance to emotional and psychological well-being as well. If only evidence pointing to links between masturbation and depression existed, that would be reason enough to be wary of teaching masturbation in schools. However, there are studies linking masturbation with a number of undesirable behaviors and outcomes. Frequency of masturbation has been linked to transvestic fetishism (Langstrom & Zucker, 2005), exhibitionistic and voyeuristic behavior (Langstrom & Seto, 2006), kleptomania (Fishbain, 1987), and even the development of carpal tunnel syndrome (2002). Although such correlations could arguably be boiled down to a “what came first, the chicken or the egg” argument, do we really want take risks with our children? Once again, the argument is not whether masturbation is inherently good or bad. The argument is that there is a possibility that endorsing masturbatory behavior within academic curriculum may lead to undesirable outcomes. In an age of war, sexual saturation in the media, and a deterioration of American family values, shouldn’t we do what we can to protect our children’s innocence? Our children need to be taught positive social skills, and how to be good, law-abiding, morally-sound citizens; not to engage in behavior that may lead down a path toward isolation, depression, masturbatory addiction and sexual deviance. When it comes to educational curriculum, what is taught to our

Masturbation: Not as harmless 5 children should never carry with it any unforeseen risks. For the sake of our children, let’s keep the topic of masturbation out of the classroom, and relegate it to where it belongs, in the homes being taught by the best educators of children there are, the parents.

Masturbation: Not as harmless 6 References Cyranowski, J. M., Bromberger, J., Youk, A., Matthews, K., Kravitz, H. M., & Powell, L. H. (2004). Lifetime depression history and sexual function in women at midlife. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 33(6), 539-548. Doup, L. (2002, October 4). Who’s to blame? Sun-Sentinal (Fort Lauderdale, FL), 2-2. Fishbain, D. A. (1987). Kleptomania as risk-taking behavior in response to depression. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 4, 598-603. Frohlich, P., & Meston, C. (2002). Sexual functioning and self-reported depressive symptoms among college women. Journal of Sex Research, 39(4), 321-326. Kwee, A. W., Dominguez, A. W., & Ferrell, D. (2007). Sexual addiction and Christian college men: Conceptual, assessment, and treatment challenges. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 26(1), 3-13. Langstrom, N., & Seto, M. C. (2006). Exhibitionistic and voyeuristic behavior in a Swedish national population survey. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 35, 427-435. Langstrom, N., & Zucker, K. J. (2005). Transvestic fetishism in the general population: Prevalence and correlates. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 31, 87-95. Parker, J. (1881). The science of life: A medical treatise on nervous and physical debility, spermatorrhea, impotence, and sterility. Boston, MA: Peabody Medical Institute. White, J. (1981). Keyhole interview: Dr. John White. The Wittenburg Door, 60, 12-20.