Why “Sexual Addiction” Is Not A Useful Diagnosis — And Why It Matters. Dr. Marty Klein
If convicted mass murderer Ted Bundy had said that watching Bill Cosby reruns motivated his awful crimes, he would have been dismissed as a deranged sociopath. Instead, Bundy has said his pornography addiction made him do it–which many people treated as the conclusion of a thoughtful social scientist.Why?
There’s a phenomenon emerging in America today that affects everyone, particularly those in the helping professions. Not caring about it, or having no opinion about it, is no longer an option.
I am not interested in trashing 12-step programs. AA performs a great service every year in helping people handle their addiction to alcohol and other drugs. The question that has been put to us is, is the addiction model a good one for diagnosing sexual problems, and is the 12-step model a good one for treating sexual problems?
And if it is, is it as appropriate for treating rapists as it is for people who masturbate more than they think they should?
HOW THE SEXUAL ADDICTION MOVEMENT AFFECTS PROFESSIONALS
People are now self-diagnosing as “sex addicts.”
They’re also diagnosing their partners. Non-sexologist professionals such as ministers and doctors are diagnosing some of their clientele as sex addicts, too. As a result of these trends, many people who should be seeing therapists or sexologists are not. And many who don’t need “treatment” are getting it.
The sexual addiction movement is aggressively training non-sexologists, such as marriage counselors, in the treatment of sexual problems.
Many professionals are now taking these programs instead of those offered by sexologists. Also, some professionals now feel incompetent to treat certain systemic problems without this sexual addiction “training.” It is important to note that the content of this sexual addiction training is sexologically inadequate: there is little or no discussion of systems, physiology, diagnoses, cultural aspects, etc.
The concept of sexual addiction affects the sexual climate of the society in which we work–negatively.
This negativity is reflected in anti-sex education legislation, anti-pornography ordinances, homophobic industry regulations, etc.
Sex addicts now have cachet as sex experts.
Mass murderer Ted Bundy, widely quoted as an expert on the effects of pornography, is only one example. Right-wing crusaders now routinely quote “sex addicts” to justify repressive beliefs and public policy suggestions.
Now read on
http://www.martyklein.com/why-sexual-ad ... t-matters/