The Mediating Effects of Resilience in the Relationship of Sexual Involvement and Romantic Relationship Dissolution

Romantic relationship dissolution (RRD) can be perceived as an upsetting or momentous event and the most stressful and unsettling events that one can encounter in life. The aim of this study to investigate the relationship between sexual involvement in a relationship and romantic relationship resolution and the role of resilience as mediators of this relationship. Two hundred ninety-three emerging young adults (ages 18 to 29) from Klang Valley have participated in this study. The present study used the Resilience Scale (RS), the Core Bereavement Items (CBI), and demographic information items. Obtained results indicated a significant difference in sexual involvement in a relationship on the level of reactions to romantic relationship dissolution. The sexual involvement in the relationship was positively and significantly correlated with romantic relationship dissolution. Specifically, sexual involvement was negatively correlated with resilience, which was, in turn, negatively associated with romantic relationship dissolution. Additionally, results also show that mediation effect for sexual involvement in resilience to romantic relationship resolution was significant. The practical implications for helping professionals were also discussed in this work.

Fatherhood Is Associated with Increased Infidelity and Moderates the Link between Relationship Satisfaction and Infidelity

Background: Relationship satisfaction has been identified as an important factor in terms of extradyadic sexual involvement. However, in men, fatherhood might be associated with infidelity by leading to changes in relationship satisfaction and the social life of parents. To date, no study has focused on the association of fatherhood and infidelity, nor the influence of fatherhood on the association between relationship satisfaction and infidelity. Methods: Using a cross-sectional design, 137 fathers and 116 non-fathers were assessed regarding relationship satisfaction, infidelity, and potential confounds. Results: Significantly more fathers reported having been unfaithful in the current relationship than non-fathers (30.7% vs. 17.2%). Fathers also reported longer relationship duration, higher relationship satisfaction, and lower neuroticism than non-fathers. Furthermore, fatherhood moderated the association between relationship satisfaction and infidelity insofar that only in non-fathers reduced relationship satisfaction was associated with infidelity. Conclusions: The results suggest that fatherhood increases the risk of engaging in extradyadic sexual activities and moderates the link between relationship satisfaction and infidelity. However, results need to be interpreted with caution due to the cross-sectional study design and the lack of information about the specific time point of the infidelity incident(s).

“At Home with Zoe”: Becoming Animal in Charlotte Wood’s The Natural Way of Things

This paper focuses on Charlotte Wood’s 2015 dystopian novel The Natural Way of Things. Set in an unnamed place in the Australian outback, it recounts the story of 10 girls in their late teens and early twenties who are kept prisoners by a mysterious corporate organisation for their sexual involvement with an array of powerful men. The novel’s title invites two main readings: the first, and perhaps more obvious, along gender lines; and the second, which will provide the backbone to my analysis, within the framework of the natural world, the animal kingdom in particular. The Natural Way of Things has been described as a study in contemporary misogyny and the workings of patriarchy. The ingrained sexism of society—the insidious, normalised violence against females, often blamed on them, glossing over male responsibility—is undoubtedly the central topic of Wood’s work. Without losing sight of gender issues, my approach to Wood’s novel is inspired by Rosi Braidotti’s posthuman theories on the continuum nature–culture and the primacy of zoe—“the non-human, vital force of life”—over bios, or life as “the prerogative of Anthropos” (Rosi Braidotti). According to Braidotti, the current challenges to anthropocentrism question the distinction between these two forms of life, highlighting instead the seamless connection between the natural world and culture and favouring a consideration of the subject as embodied, nomadic and relational. My reading of The Natural Way of Things in light of Braidotti’s insights will be supplemented by an analysis of the novel in the context of transmodernity, both a period term and a distinct way of being in the world theorised by critics such as Rosa M. Rodríguez Magda and Marc Luyckx, who emphasise the relational, interdependent nature of contemporary times from a more human-centred perspective. The Natural Way of Things is also a story of female empowerment. This is especially the case with Yolanda Kovacs and Verla Learmont, the two protagonist women, who step out of their roles as victims and stand up to their guards. My analysis of the novel will revolve around these two characters and their different reactions to confinement and degradation. I conclude that although a more zoe-centred conception of the human subject that acknowledges the human–animal continuum should definitely be welcomed, literally “becoming animal”, as Yolanda does, deprives one of meaningful human relationality, embodied in the novel in Verla’s memories of her caring, empathic relationship with her father.

Dyspareunia in men

Dyspareunia in men refers to a difficult or painful sexual intercourse. Symptoms can be classified as psychogenic, organic, or mixed. It generates mental discomfort and sexual involvement absence up to couple issue. DSM V indexes the disease as „Other specific and non-specific disorders”. Somatic examination of individuals with this disorder doesn’t usually prove genital abnormalities. Repeated experience of genital pain during sexual intercourse may result in the avoidance of sexual experience, breaking existing sexual relationships or limiting the development of new sexual intercourses. Worldwide prevalence of dyspareunia in men is 5%. The disorder may emerge from the beginning of the sexual life or begin after a period of relatively normal sexual function. Keywords: dyspareunia in men, s-on, therapy, testing, evaluation, sexual disorders.

A Latent Class Analysis Approach to Extradyadic Involvement

Extradyadic involvement — emotional, romantic, or sexual involvement with another person outside of one's romantic relationship — may have serious personal and relational consequences. The current research examines extradyadic involvement in two samples of individuals in relationships and identifies subgroups of people based on their engagement in different types of extradyadic behaviour. To assess involvement in such behaviour, we created a new behavioural inventory intended to broaden the conceptualisation of types of extradyadic behaviours. Subgroups of individuals who engage in these behaviours were extracted using latent class analysis. Study 1 assessed undergraduate students in relationships (N = 339), and results revealed four classes of individuals: loyal, confiding, deceptive, and unfaithful. Follow-up tests demonstrated that these classes of individuals differed significantly in ways that are consistent with the investment model and attachment theory. Study 2 (N = 202) replicated the four-class solution, as well as the group differences in relationship functioning and attachment orientations. Results suggest theoretically consistent typologies of extradyadic behaviour that may be useful in differentiating deceptive behaviour in close relationships in a more precise way.