Supplement GS.1: Deep Dive - VIDEO: Meg Hickling - Is it time to modernize sex ed? [New Tab]<\/a><\/div>\nMy volunteer work at Planned Parenthood was the perfect outlet for sharing my passion for biology and my desire to be of service to others. Surprisingly, I loved teaching about sexual health, reproduction, and contraception so much that I volunteered for weekly shifts and stayed for five years, and later, after earning my Ph.D., continued teaching the Psychology of Gender for 20 more years.\n\nWhat made teaching at this clinic so special? The clients were seeking a safe place to learn evidence-based information in plain language, free from judgement or shame. Initially, some clients were shy or embarrassed. But soon, they relaxed and felt comfortable asking very private questions about sexual anatomy, sexual activity, and how to choose the most suitable contraceptive method for them.\n\nHere are my takeaways from those sex education days. Everyone I met in those settings:\n
- \n \t
- Had a human body with human needs and vulnerabilities.<\/li>\n \t
- Had a right to know all about their bodies, including how to experience sensual\/sexual pleasure and how to stay safe and healthy.<\/li>\n \t
- Had questions they were too shy to ask about and often showed relief, and sometimes even laughter, when they received the much-needed information.<\/li>\n \t
- Felt empowered by the sex education and health information, and sometimes even taught what they learned to others.<\/li>\n \t
- Sought validation, respect, close physical contact \u2014 and love.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nWriting this chapter about gender and sexuality has revived many fond memories of my time at Planned Parenthood. For this chapter, I have drawn upon those same essential skills I learned in my sex education training.\n\nDuring my time at Planned Parenthood, I learned the importance of accurate information and consent in sexual health education. It's crucial to both provide correct information and respect each person's right to make informed decisions about their body and relationships. This highlights two key principles in discussions about gender and sexuality: being informed and understanding consent.\n
Informed<\/h2>\nStaying informed about gender and sexuality is not simple. These topics are constantly evolving with new research and changing societal perspectives. In this chapter, we explore gender and sexuality in order to provide a foundational understanding of these complex subjects. The science and social realities surrounding gender and sexuality change rapidly, necessitating frequent updates. Each year, outdated language needs to be replaced with new terminology to remain relevant and respectful to all. Of all the topics I have taught in my career, the subjects of gender and sexuality require the most reading, research, and fact-checking to stay current. For example, while other psychology courses might need updating every 3-5 years, the content on gender and sexuality requires significant updates every year. This chapter, therefore, is designed to equip you with the knowledge to understand the current evidence-based science and psychological theories about gender and sexuality, and to encourage you to continue updating your knowledge going forward.\n
Consent<\/h2>\nBefore we learn the science and theories about gender or sexuality, let\u2019s begin with a discussion about consent, as it is the foundation of all respectful and healthy interactions. In short, discussing consent first establishes a responsible and respectful context for the rest of the chapter.\n\nUnderstanding consent is a fundamental aspect of not only psychology, but all relationships and interactions. Consent<\/strong> is an agreement to participate in an activity. It's about saying a clear, enthusiastic 'yes' to being involved in something, especially in intimate contexts. Remember, consent isn't just a one-time question; it's an ongoing conversation, flexible and subject to change at any point. It is vital to recognize situations where consent cannot be given. This includes when a person is underage, uncommunicative (cannot speak or is not capable of understanding the question), unconscious, or under the influence of substances.\n
Consent: more than just \u201cno\u201d means \u201cno\u201d<\/h3>\nConsent goes beyond a simple \u201cyes\u201d or \u201cno.\u201d It is about the dynamics of human behaviour and communication. When consent is obtained through pressure or coercion, it's not considered genuine. We need to remember that power dynamics within relationships play a large role in our ability to obtain consent. The concept of agency<\/strong>, referring to each person's ability to make independent choices about their body and actions, is also intertwined with consent. Agency is an individual\u2019s legal and practical capacity to make independent decisions free from coercion. Consent is more than a legal requirement; it is an everyday practice rooted in respect and empathy.\n
Consent needs time and patience<\/h3>\nUnderstanding consent also involves recognising that our responses to sexual advances may not always be immediately knowable. Sometimes, it takes a moment to truly understand what we want. This is where the concept of interoception comes into play. Interoception<\/strong> is our ability to sense and interpret the signals our body is sending us. It's about tuning into our inner feelings to determine whether we're feeling a definite \u201cyes\u201d, an uncertain \u201cmaybe\u201d, or a clear \u201cno\u201d. You may recall that interoception relies on sending messages about internal organs through unmyelinated nerves. These nerves, without myelin wrapping, are deeply interconnected with other nerves. Signals from unmyelinated nerves take a slower pathway, requiring more time to reach consciousness than signals from myelin-wrapped nerves. This process requires time and space to connect with our own physical and emotional responses, therefore\u00a0 it's essential to allow adequate time for consent. Consent\u00a0 must also be seen as reversible; if upon deeper reflection we realise that we feel a \u201cno\u201d after an initial \u201cyes\u201d, this change of heart must be respected. More than that, in the context of enjoyable and loving sex, consent should be a continuous negotiation. We must stay aware of our body's moment-to-moment messages, allowing space in our relationships to request changes or stop sexual activity as desired. Consent is not just a momentary agreement but an ongoing, responsive physical and emotional conversation with ourselves and others.\n
Supplement GS.2: Deep Dive - What is the biology behind why consent takes time? [New Tab]<\/a><\/div>\n\n The psychology of consent<\/h3>\n<\/header>\n
\n\nHow do we decide if we should say \u201cyes\u201d or \u201cno\u201d to something someone offers us? There are several skills involved with the psychology of consent, that you should know and practice before you make your decision:\n- \n \t
- Knowing yourself \u2014 What you're okay with, what you're not, and what matters to you.<\/li>\n \t
- Being informed \u2014 Do you have science-based or other reliable information you need to make your decision?<\/li>\n \t
- Feeling no pressure \u2014 Are you feeling pressured to make this decision?<\/li>\n \t
- Making an educated guess about your reaction \u2014 What is your best prediction of how you will respond or react?<\/li>\n \t
- Knowing the extent to which you can back out \u2014 Can you change your mind if you start to have a negative experience?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nTable GS.1 (below) can help us practice applying these skills. Let\u2019s start by imagining two different hypothetical examples:\n
- \n \t
- Example #1 Peanut Butter - Someone offers you a spoonful of peanut butter to taste, which carries a small risk of an allergic reaction. You can stop tasting it at any time.<\/li>\n \t
- Example #2 Hellevator ride - Someone invites you to ride the \"Hellevator\", a scream-worthy, sheer drop amusement park ride in Vancouver. It has no known allergy risks. Some people find it terrifying, and some, thrilling. The ride cannot be stopped once it starts (except in case of emergency).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nNote: for these two hypothetical examples let\u2019s pretend that you have never tried peanut butter or ridden the Hellevator ride, so you cannot rely on any past experiences to inform your decisions in these examples.\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/psychologymtdi\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/470\/2024\/02\/pexels-polina-tankilevitch-4443494-scaled-1.jpg\" "\\"A")
Figure GS.1. Juice bar.\u00a0<\/strong>[\/caption]\n\nNow imagine the juice bar chef is thinking of expanding the menu. A psychologist has been hired to conduct a survey of the customers\u2019 fruit preferences. Her job is to survey all the regular customers in the line-up and ask them to rate their preferences for fruit. Our job will be to judge the effectiveness of each of the survey designs. We need to see which survey best captures the complete story of the fruit preferences for these thirsty customers. Are you ready? Let\u2019s begin.\n\nThe first survey the psychologist designs is simple. There are two checkboxes. Each customer will check one of the boxes.\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/psychologymtdi\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/470\/2024\/08\/Screenshot-2024-07-31-100130.png\")
\n\nBy allowing customers to show their preference for a blend of apple and orange juices, this continuum improves upon her previous, more limited forced-choice\/binary survey. While you observe customers filling out this new continuum-style survey, you notice they struggle because they really like both apples and oranges. Unfortunately, the psychologist's apple\/orange continuum forces them to choose whether they like apple juice more than orange juice or orange juice more than apple juice. In addition, the middle of the apple to orange continuum is a neutral zone \u2014 neither apple nor orange. These customers have no way to rate their passion for both apple and orange juices -- indicating they like both equally or to say they dislike both apples and oranges. As a result, you ask the psychologist to rewrite the survey.\n\nResponding to earlier concerns, the psychologist's new continuum-based survey initially seemed more accommodating, allowing customers to express a more specific preference for apple or orange juice. However, as they interacted with this model, a new issue emerged. While the continuum allowed for a more graduated expression of preference, it still compelled customers to lean towards one fruit over the other. This constraint was particularly problematic for those who cherished the unique blend of both apple and orange flavors equally.\n![\"Four](\"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/psychologymtdi\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/470\/2024\/08\/Screenshot-2024-07-31-100528.png\" "\\"The")
\n\nAfter carefully considering the feedback on the previous surveys, the psychologist evolved her approach to better capture the precise preferences of the juice bar's customers. Moving away from the restrictive binary and continuum models, she introduced a new survey form featuring several sliding scales \u2014 one for each fruit. This innovative method allowed customers to express their individual preferences for apples, oranges, berries and tropical fruits without compromising or restricting their response.\n\n[caption id=\"attachment_459\" align=\"aligncenter\" width=\"200\"]![\"Several](\"https:\/\/opentextbc.ca\/psychologymtdi\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/470\/2024\/08\/pexels-cottonbro-studio-9811521-scaled-1.jpg\")
Figure GS.2. Fruit stand.\u00a0<\/strong>[\/caption]\n\nThe metaphor of the fruit juice bar and its various survey methods offers us a way to understand the limitations of binary and continuum models in capturing complex other human values and attitudes such as those related to gender identity and sexual orientation. Let's extend this maths metaphor to understand these concepts better.\n