Overview of Course

Sexuality is a part of everyone's life, but how we express that sexuality is based on a number of biopsychosocial factors. Discussions about sexual identity, sexual orientation, sexual behavior and gender have become increasingly common and help shape the way we think about our own sexuality today. Historically, sexuality has been an important diversity issue and the basis for discrimination, a legacy of isolation, history of violence and exclusionary practices around the globe. This course provides an examination of the major variables affecting human sexuality including the physiological, psychological, and sociocultural variables associated with the development and manifestation of sexual identity, sexual behavior, and sexual disorders. As we travel the globe, we will examine how cultural factors dictate perceptions of beauty, gender, sexuality and what is considered sexy. We will also examine the historical and societal factors that have led to inequities for those who do not represent the power hierarchy of being male and heterosexual around the world.