Sexy Feminisms & Sexual Health: Theorizing Heterosex, Pleasure, and Constraint in Public Health Research

Authors

  • Jenny Higgins a research fellow at the HIV Center at Columbia University, New York, combines feminist theory with empirical public health research to study sexual pleasure, unintended pregnancy, and HIV risk and prevention.

Abstract

After outlining the "pleasure deficit" in public health research on family planning, this article applies feminist theorizations of heterosex to study contraceptive use and sexual pleasure. The author considers the limitations and potentials of theorizing heterosex variously as agential, transgressive, and/or constrained for public health research. Résumé Après avoir fait l'esquisse du « déficit du plaisir » dans la recherche de la santé publique sur la planification familiale, cet article applique les théories féministes sur la relations hétérosexuelle pour étudier l'emploi de contraceptifs et le plaisir sexuel. L'auteure considère les limites et le potentiel de faire de diverses théories sur la relation hétérosexuelle comme étant agénital, transgressif ou restreint, pour la recherche sur la santé publique.

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Published

2007-09-09

Issue

Vol. 31 No. 2 (2007): "Sexy Feminisms"

Section

Original Research

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