Understanding Psychology (10th Ed)

 heterosexuality, 
sexual attraction 
and behavior directed to the other sex, consists of far more than male-female inter-
course. Kissing, petting, caressing, massaging, and other forms of sex play are all 
components of heterosexual behavior. Still, sex researchers’ focus has been on the act 
of intercourse, especially in terms of its fi rst occurrence and its frequency.
PREMARITAL SEX 
Until fairly recently, premarital sexual intercourse, at least for women, was con-
sidered one of the major taboos in our society. Traditionally, women have been 
warned by society that “nice girls don’t do it”; men have been told that premari-
tal sex is okay for them, but they should marry virgins. This view that premarital 
sex is permissible for males but not for females is called the
 double standard 
(Liang, 2007).
heterosexuality
Sexual attraction and 
behavior directed to the other sex.
double standard
The view that pre-
marital sex is permissible for males but 
not for females.
The age of first masturbation is
earlier for most males than it is
for most females.
P
er
centage of sample
5–8
9–12
13–16
17–21
Age at first masturbation
50
40
30
20
10
0
Males
Females
FIGURE 1
The age at which a sample of 
college students fi rst masturbated. The 
percentages are based on only those 
people who had experience with 
masturbation. 
(Source: Arafat & Cotton, 
1974.)
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