Out of control sexual behaviours (OOCSB), hypersexuality and sexual compulsivity have been viewed, reacted / responded to and treated in enormously varied ways historically and culturally from popular, legal and clinical perspectives.
For example, while sex with young boys was widely accepted in ancient Greece, our reality in New Zealand is that it is a crime for a person to have sex with anybody under the age of 16, even if they consent. On the other hand, numerous young persons under the age of 16 have sex in our country.
Note that the age of consent varies across the world at present from puberty to age 21+, and a number of countries have a higher age of consent for same-sex sexual activity, if it is legalised.
There are also different ages of consent for heterosexual sexual activity, based on the gender of each person. In countries where there are gender-age differentials, the age of consent may be higher for girls.
Edit Horvath is presenting at Cutting Edge Conference, 2016 in Rotorua about possible definitions and signs of Out of Control Sexual Behaviours (OOCSBs) / Sex Addiction
Further, the age of consent for certain sexual activities, for example for anal sex, is officially higher in some places, if not illegal (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_consent).
In some cultures and religions, there are expectations to be a virgin, at the very least for females, to get married and usually at a very young age. Reflect this with the delayed and reduced numbers of marriages, as well as the enormous marketing machine and media, using sex to sell any product, not even remotely related to sexual activities. It seems to have saturated our psyche that sex is, or should be, related to any and all activities in our daily lives.
In this environment, not surprisingly, there is great confusion about what constitutes ‘normal’ or healthy sexual behaviour, and what might be OOCSB, hypersexuality and sexual compulsivity, both in popular and in clinical arenas. The following essay will attempt to define OOCSB, describe and contrast two models working with and treating OOCSB, and evaluate their practicality and effectiveness when it comes down to working with clients presenting with OOCSB.
Click here to download the full paper.