In a study published in the April 2007 issue of Hormones and Behavior, the results of research examining how men and women look at sexual stimuli is presented. Using eye-tracking measures, a sample of 15 men and 30 women (15 who were on a normal menstrual cycle and 15 who were taking oral contraceptives) were shown sexually-explicit photos at three intervals to measure responding at different points in the menstrual cycle. There was no difference between the three groups in looking at the female body and no difference was over time. All three groups were found to differ significantly in terms of the relative amounts they spent looking at different regions of the sexual pictures. As was expected, men and women were found to differ significantly but significant differences in eye-gaze patterns were also found between normally menstruating and contraceptive-taking women. These results present an intriguing look at the role of sex hormones in influencing how we respond to sexual stimuli.
Click here for the study abstract. The full-length study is also available to subscribers.
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