Routledge International Handbook of Sexual Addiction / Edition 1

by Thaddeus Birchard, Joanna Benfield

Overview

The concept of sexual addiction has gained increasing recognition in the academic and healthcare communities since the 1990s. It has also captured the attention of the media, where there has been much debate over whether it can truly be described as an addiction. What is certain is that many people struggle with out of control sexual behaviour, which takes over their lives and has harmful consequences for their relationships, careers and finances.

The Routledge International Handbook of Sexual Addiction brings together a comprehensive range of perspectives on sexual addiction from a worldwide selection of scholars and therapists. It sets out to define sexual addiction and to study its causes from a range of different psychological perspectives. A series of presentations of sexual addiction are outlined, including internet sexual addiction and the relationship between paraphilias and sex addiction. The handbook considers both individual and group treatment strategies, drawing on a wide range of approaches, including cognitive behavioural therapy, mindfulness and 12-step programmes. The book studies sex addiction in specific populations including women, adolescents and men who have sex with men. Finally, it considers some of the alternative discourses surrounding the concept of sexual addiction.

This is the first comprehensive reference book to bring together global viewpoints on advances in research, theory and practice in one volume. This handbook provides an essential guide for academics and students of psychotherapy, counselling, nursing, addiction, sexualities, social work and health and social care, as well as professionals in practice and in training working with sexual addiction and related issues.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781138193208
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/13/2017
Series:	Routledge International Handbooks
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	496
Product dimensions:	6.88(w) x 9.69(h) x (d)

About the Author

Thaddeus Birchard is the founder of the Marylebone Centre. He has an MSc in psychosexual therapy and a doctorate in the treatment of hypersexual disorders. He is accredited by the British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies and is the founder of the Association for the Treatment of Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity. He is the author of CBT for Compulsive Sexual Behaviour: A Guide for Professionals and Overcoming Sexual Addiction: A Self-Help Guide (both Routledge).

Joanna Benfield (MPhil) is a psychosexual therapist in private practice in London and France. She has a Diploma in Psychosexual and Relationship Therapy, and is a member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists (BACP) and the College of Sexual and Relationship Therapists (COSRT).

Table of Contents

About the Editors xi

List of Contributors xii

Foreword Dr Stefanie Carnes Dr Patrick Carnes xxv

Section 1 An introduction to sex addiction 1

1.1 Introduction Joanna Benfield 3

1.2 Whither sexual addiction? An overview Stephen Southern 9

1.3 Sexual addiction: Terminology, definitions and conceptualisation Gerard A. Schaefer Christoph J. Ahlers 21

1.4 A biopsychosocial approach to sex addiction Paula Hall 27

Section 2 Presentations of sex addiction 39

2.1 Overview of presentations of sexual addiction Ralph Earle Rick Isenberg 41

2.2 Sexual addiction in the digital age David L. Delmonico Heather Putney Elizabeth J. Griffin 55

2.3 The relationship between pornography and hypersexual behaviour Philippe Bensimon 73

2.4 Sexual addiction and paraphilias Gerard A. Schaefer Christoph J. Ahlers 83

2.5 The role of sexual fantasies in sexual addiction Richard Newbury 94

Section 3 The aetiology of sex addiction 105

3.1 The aetiology and differential diagnosis of sex addiction: An overview Kenneth M. Adams Todd Love 107

3.2 The neuroscience of sexual addiction Frederick Toates 121

3.3 Written in the scars: Sex addiction as an attachment disorder John Beveridge 133

3.4 The role of shame in sexual addiction: A review of empirical research Manpreet K. Dhuffar Mark D. Griffiths 144

3.5 Existential perspectives on working with sex addiction Alex Smith 154

Section 4 The treatment of sex addiction 165

4.1 Clinical assessment and diagnosis of sexual addiction Joshua B. Grubbs Joshua N. Hook Brandon J. Griffin J. Kim Penberthy Shane W. Kraus 167

4.2 The importance of group psychotherapy for sex and love addiction recovery Eric Griffin-Shelley 181

4.3 Group cognitive behavioural therapy for compulsive sexual behaviour Thaddeus Birchard 190

4.4 Sex addiction, the 12 steps and therapy Timothy D. Stein Patrick Carnes 203

4.5 The process of couples' therapy for sex and porn addiction George Collins 212

4.6 Mentalization-based therapy for sex addiction Michael Berry Austin Lam 224

4.7 Applying positive psychology to sex addiction Jolanta Burke Eoin Stephens 235

4.8 Using creative therapies to facilitate neuroplastic brain changes in sexually compulsive patients Matthew Hedelius 247

4.9 A role for mindfulness meditation in treating sexual addiction Kishore Chandiramani 260

4.10 Creativity and healing: Art therapy with sex addicts Marie Wilson 268

4.11 Incorporating pharmacological treatment strategies Florence Thibaut 282

4.12 When addictions merge: Assessing and treating the relationship between addictions Robert Weiss 292

Section 5 Sex addiction in specific populations 303

5.1 Sexual compulsivity and men who have sex with men (MSM) Michael P. Chaney Carol M. Burns-Wortham 305

5.2 Problematic sexual behaviours and adolescents Maria Waiters Todd Spaulding 317

5.3 The female face of sexual addiction Alexandra Katehakis 327

5.4 Working with female partners: Interventions from ten years of partners' groups in the UK Joy Rosendale 338

5.5 Navigating the minefield of facilitated disclosure: Strategies, techniques and potential pitfalls Stefanie Carnes 353

5.6 Sexual addiction and sex offenders Andrew Smith 362

5.7 Sex addiction and professional sexual misconduct Charles Samenow Jennifer P. Schneider 373

5.8 Compulsive sexual behaviour and religious practice Thaddeus Birchard 387

5.9 Protestant clergy sexual misconduct John Thoburn Jyssica Seebeck Sadie Teal 398

Section 6 Alternative discourses on sex addiction 411

6.1 Out of control sexual behaviour: A sexual health problem Michael A. Vigorito Douglas Braun-Harvey 413

6.2 What's wrong with sex addiction? Helen Keane 427

6.3 Sex addiction: An iatrogenic and moral concept David J. Ley 439

Section 7 Conclusion 445

7.1 Concluding remarks Thaddeus Birchard 447

Index 455

Editorial Reviews

"This handbook is essential reading for anyone working academically or clinically in the field of sexuality. It is heavyweight in terms of its authorship and its scope and approach to the issues of out of control sexual behaviour, covering behavioural, psychological, social, and neurological contributory processes. It presents a balance of the arguments for and against the concept of sexual addiction and discusses varying treatment options. As such, it should also be required reading for all therapeutic students as they formulate their own ways of working with this ubiquitous clinical presentation." - Dr Glyn Hudson Allez, Forensic Psychosexual Therapist, Fellow of CORST, UK

"This handbook is essential reading for anyone working academically or clinically in the field of sexuality. It is heavyweight in terms of its authorship and its scope and approach to the issues of out of control sexual behaviour, covering behavioural, psychological, social, and neurological contributory processes. It presents a balance of the arguments for and against the concept of sexual addiction and discusses varying treatment options. As such, it should also be required reading for all therapeutic students as they formulate their own ways of working with this ubiquitous clinical presentation." - Dr Glyn Hudson Allez, Forensic Psychosexual Therapist, Fellow of COSRT, UK

From the Publisher