Blog Archives

The Allure of Bad Boys

cartoon-bad_boy_navy1-300x289Why do women fall for bad boys?

My students ask that question all the time.

Michael Kimmel, who studies men, asked his women students to choose between the charming rouge, Rhett Butler and dependable Ashley Wilkes.

Do I have to choose?

They groaned.

Are those my only choices?

They pled.

Because the women liked — and disliked — characteristics of both.

Forced to choose Read the rest of this entry

Should You Have Sex If You’re Not That Into It?

7962Saying “yes” to sex when you’re not that into it can be a real problem. Yet unexpected benefits may arise. It depends.

Women should never agree when it repels them or goes against their values and self-respect.

Yet University of Texas, Austin researchers who wrote Why Women Have Sex found there are times when sex can be rewarding, even when initial interest isn’t too strong.

Read the rest of this entry

Saying Yes When You Want To Say No

Saying-Yes-To-Saying-No-194x300Many women agree to sex that they aren’t too interested in. University of Texas, Austin researchers say the reasons vary. Some want to nurture relationship. Some are doing what they think is expected. Others feel pressured. A few want to avoid a fight. It can be a problem. Or, unexpected benefits may arise. Today, let’s look at the downside.

Some women are pleasers and feel uncomfortable saying no. Ironically, one woman’s religion got her saying yes to premarital sex because her church had kept her naïve and encouraged passivity,

Persistence from a partner, emotional games, alcohol, passivity, and difficulty saying no were all important factors. I felt nervous, unsure and confused. I didn’t want to make the other person angry with me. When things didn’t go the way I trusted them to I didn’t know what to do. These experiences all occurred before age 19, after which I got stronger and wiser.

Some fear rejection. As another woman explained,  Read the rest of this entry

Reclaim the Sacred Feminine Via Venus

venus-on-half-shellBy Yo Mama

For too long feminine energy has been ignored, sidelined, or maligned: we have forgotten that this energy, like male energy, is sacred. It is not to be bought or sold, disrespected, abused, or tied up with a pretty bow and left on a shelf to slowly dissolve, like cotton candy or false dreams. It is not to be dressed up or dressed down for the purpose of enhancing male power. It is time for us—men as well as women—to reconnect to this energy, and heal.

While there are many manifestations of the sacred feminine, the one we need so that women may fully own their sexual power is Venus. That’s right, the goddess of beauty and love.  Read the rest of this entry

Frozen Hearts Thaw, Grow Empowered

FrozenHow does the evolution of Disney Princesses reflect evolved notions of women? Let’s take a look at “Frozen” sisters, Anna and Elsa. (Spoiler alert!)

We meet the young girls as joyous, inseparable friends. Until the day Elsa discovers a surprising power. In a state of heightened emotion, she unwittingly zaps little sis, freezing her.

Luckily, a magic troll heals Anna and erases the scary memory.  Read the rest of this entry

Women Slut-Shame More Than Men?

19TIER_SPAN-articleLargeStereotypes and evolutionary psych say men slut-shame because they want to know that their partner’s babies are not some other guy’s.

But women are actually more likely to promote the double-standard. Here’s one study of shaming in action:

McMaster University psychologists told college women that they were studying female friendships. They actually wanted to see how women respond to sexy vs non-sexy women, as pictured above. Read the rest of this entry

Burqas Don’t Stop Harassment, Rush

tell_your_breasts_to_stop_staring_at_my_eyes_tshirt-p235403032527114539qw9y_400Walk up to the woman and say, “Would you please ask your breasts to stop staring at my eyes?”

That’s Rush Limbaugh’s advice after University of Nebraska researchers said it looks like men can control their objectifying behavior as they gain awareness of it. (Btw, objectifying and appreciating that someone is attractive are two different things.)

And that’s a good thing, they say, because objectified women are seen as less friendly, less intelligent and competent, and less moral. That, in turn, leaves women silencing themselves and it undermines their work performance.

Yet Rush insists,

Some of these babes, I’m telling you, like the sexual harassment crowd. They’re out there protesting what they actually wish would happen to them sometimes.

Hmmm. Take a look at a Public Service Ad that puts you in an Egyptian woman’s shoes (where harassment is rampant):

And you know what? Women can’t please Rush whether they look attractive or not. (And most don’t want to please him.)  Read the rest of this entry

Vain, Fashion-Obsessed Women

penelope_cruz2Women are silly creatures who worry their pretty little heads over fashion and vainly adorn themselves in color, lace and ruffles.

But maybe it’s the other way around. Maybe fashion, lace and ruffles are thought trivial because they are associated with women.

In fact, men were once fashionistas, too.

Many of our serious and revered Founding Fathers wore color, lace, ruffles, embroidered vests, and silk stockings with decorative garters. They also donned wigs, curled their hair and hired tutors to instruct them in the elegance of sitting, standing and gesturing.

Thomas Jefferson was particularly fastidious, his fashion sense costing him a pretty penny. Or, as historians Barbara Clark Smith and Kathy Peiss explainRead the rest of this entry

How Sex Gets Better With Age

oldcouplelargeSex often improves with age, say a number of recent studies. But why?


Maturing sex-lovers were typically raised in a pretty sex-negative world — especially if they’re female. But most spent years doing the marital sex thing. And since everyone thinks that’s okay, negative messages fade.

But an increasingly sex-positive society must help. Many chalked up their newfound pleasure to sexual liberation and The Pill.

And while you might think women would grow bored with the same guy all the time, women in long-term relationships are the most sexually satisfied of all. Why?  Read the rest of this entry

Hostility, Objectification Go Hand-In-Hand

Dolce-Gabbana-Ad-Sexist[1]Funny how objectifying women and hostility toward them so often go hand-in-hand. Well, not funny –ha ha.

Phil is a strip club patron who says that f-ing is all men really want from women, and whose philosophy of life includes “The Four Fs”: Find ‘em. Feel ‘em. F-k ‘em. Forget ‘em.

And then there are men who hate pretty women. These guys constantly lust after the ladies – or at least their body parts. But they hate women, too.  As one guy described  it:  Read the rest of this entry