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Child Sexuality refers to sexual feelings, behavior and development in children. Theories of sexual development may be broadly divided into two types: those which tend to emphasize innate biology (which may be encouraged or disturbed during childhood) and those which tend to emphasize sexuality as a social construct (with child sexuality strongly influenced by the larger society). EARLY CHILDHOOD (AGES 0-5)
Masturbation and orgasm According to Alfred Kinsey 's examinations in the 1950s , children are capable of experiencing Orgasm from the age of five months. Kinsey observed that among three-year-olds girls more often masturbated than boys, probably because of their faster developed motor function. Lubrication of the vagina was also observed on sexually aroused girls - similar to that of adult women. Until boys start producing semen (around puberty), they can only experience Dry Orgasm s. So far a difference in quality of the orgasms of children and adults could not be found. With respect to quantity, children and adolescents seem to be more potent than adults. Boys are normally capable of repeated orgasms. Children are not necessarily restricted to direct manipulation of their genitals to reach orgasm, but can actually achieve it via rhythmic movements or compression of the thighs. Some researchers have suggested that child masturbation may be considered nonsexual if the child has not learned to associate it with sexual intercourse. Peer groups As soon as social interaction between children has matured, activity for sexual satisfaction expands to members of the peer group (same age). Sexual activity among children is often observed in nurseries. The motivation is mainly sexual satisfaction and to a lesser extent interest in the bodies of others. Children often temporarily lose interest in further exploration after initial satisfaction, and explorations continue over a longer period. Additionally about half of the observed sexual activities involve a partner of the same sex. MIDDLE CHILDHOOD (AGES 6-11) At the ages five to seven years observations of sexual interactions become more infrequent. This is often ascribed to sexual latency. However, it is unclear, whether the observation is caused by feelings of shame that develop during the same age interval, or whether the activities continue in secrecy. Sexual activities Sexual activities widely vary. They include Sexually Motivated Hug s and Kissing as well as Genital Play and one-sided or Mutual Masturbation up to attempted or performed intercourse. The most common activity for boys and girls is masturbation of themselves. For mutual activity, it is mutual masturbation. Attempted and performed intercourse is more infrequent among children. Most of the observed sexual activities were Promiscuous : an available and willing partner is picked without prior intimacy as a precondition. One adult retrospectively reported: "All I really noticed about having erections when I was seven or eight years old was that they occurred when I thought about a young girl I felt romantically inclined toward. Also, they made it very difficult to roll over in bed. I never knew the purpose of the arousal, but I was aroused." There is consent that sexual preferences and the associated sexual fantasies show up early and stabilise during further development. Isolated reports of Homosexuals and Pedophiles about their childhood say that they were aware of their affection to the same sex or to a certain age group and had corresponding fantasies. A fact about homosexual boys is that they much more commonly initiated sexual contact with men than did heterosexual girls. Ages 6 through 9
Age 10 to Puberty ''Research in this age group appears mostly confined to the United States.'' This age range is often called Prepubescence .
THROUGHOUT CHILDHOOD (AGES 0-11) Sex play among siblings Researcher Floyd Martinson writes that because of the constant, close interaction of siblings, sex play may occur between them. A 1980 study of college students found 10% to 15% had had a childhood sexual experience with a brother or sister. 40% had been under the age of 8 at the time. The most common activities were touching and fondling of the genitals. 30% reported positive reactions and 30% reported negative reactions, but most did not have strong feelings about these experiences. Some type of coercion had been used in one quarter of the experiences; negative reactions tend to be associated with coercion. Martinson also writes that in the process of growing up, it is common for children to have encounters involving exposing or sexual touching in which the other child is either too young or too old to be regarded as a peer. Some encounters are pleasant to the child, others are not. Some are clearly abusive. Negative reactions tend to be more common as the difference in ages increases. LEGAL ASPECTS In some societies (for example, in some American states) all sexual relationships between children, even consensual, are prohibited by Statutory Rape laws. The age at which a minor may legally consent to sexual relations with a person of any age is referred to as the Age Of Consent . In other Jurisdiction s (for example, some Australia n states) there is no prohibition against similarly aged children engaging in consensual sex acts from as young as 10. ASEXUALITY Children who will grow up to be Asexual often do not experience most of the feelings and do not show the behaviors that were described above. Some may feel aroused, but usually not while specifically thinking of a peer or any other person. Some may feel ashamed, not aware of their situation, and try to force themselves into imitating their peers, yet mostly they will just try to avoid sexual activity altogether. CULTURAL ISSUES Childhood sexual development and expression is dependent partly on innate human nature and partly on the child's larger culture, in a mix that may vary between and indeed within cultures. The extent of children's sexual activity depends on the way they have been brought up and how knowledgeable they are. In different communities and socioeconomic groups, stages of sexual development occur at different times and last longer or shorter depending on the attitude of adult cuture and interactions with peers. Children in cultures which permit or encourage early sexual expression display a developmental pattern that is not apparent in more sexually restrained societies, e.g.:
In addition, sexual attitudes in western society have changed over time. Sexual exploitation of children was freely indulged in until the latter half of the 18th Century , when it was repudiated. Then parents began to discipline children for their sexual curiosity and activity. During the Victorian Era , the cultural belief that childhood was free of sexual knowledge, interest, and behavior coexisted with constant adult surveillance of children's sexuality. This produced a pervasive negative preoccupation with sexuality and a category of emotional disorders labeled "psychosexual." The United States today There is little agreement in US society about what is age-appropriate sexual behavior for children, except that it must not be abusive. Researcher Loretta Haroian writes that the Mental Health community has a poorly defined concept of sexual health. It attempts to serve those who experience sexual pathology, but the definition of sexual Pathology often fails to consider the broad range of human sexual activity and its developmental aspects. Most parents seem to agree that the socialization of young children should inhibit sexual impulses toward family members and peers. Parents control information (using closed bedroom doors, separate sleeping arrangements for each child, separate bathing, and early modesty training) to keep dormant the young child's curiosity and to limit sexual activity. Haroian writes that children are subject to the values of their parents and advises parents to be clear about their rules without burdening the child with fear and guilt. In addition, children may need protection from the liability of sexual contracts. She writes that this does not suggest that there is inherent harm in sexual expression in childhood; in fact, there is considerable evidence to the contrary. That is, she makes a distinction between social appropriateness or morality on the one hand, and harmfulness on the other. Sexualization of children Some cultural critics have postulated that over recent decades children have evidenced a level of sexual knowledge or sexual behaviour inappropriate for their age group. This is often compared and contrasted with popular notions of childhood innocence. A number of different causes are cited, including media portrayals of sex and related issues, especially in media aimed at children; marketing of products with sexual connotations to children; ;lack of parental overwatch and discipline;[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/2943874.stm ; access to adult culture via the world wide web; and school Sex Education programs. Conclusions Due to the socially defined nature of human behavior it is difficult to scientifically define what normal child sexuality would be. Behavior varies drastically among different groups of people due to their values, and among different youth due to differences in the strength of their sexual feelings and variation in their development. What is considered Morally Acceptable in a particular society may bear no relationship to common behaviors, and at times sexual morality is specifically condemnatory towards behaviors that are relatively common in those societies. An example of this is the difference in moral attitudes towards Bestiality which Kinsey found to be both more common and more condemned in rural areas. Child sexuality is a complex topic that raises much controversy and a pragmatic way of viewing it in any society is to refer to the legal situation as being a consensus view of public attitudes. RESEARCH Early Research The two most famous figures in child sexualty research are probably Sigmund Freud (1856–1939) and Alfred Kinsey (1894-1956). Freud's 1905 work '' followed by a period of sexual latency (6 years to puberty) and the ''genital'', or adult, stage. Freud's basic thesis was that children's early sexuality is polymorphous and that strong incestual drives develop, and the child must harness or sublimate these to develop a healthy adult sexuality. Freud's theories were developed about a century ago in an environment differing from the modern, and his research was largely confined to his own observations and readings. Some of Freud's theories (such as Penis Envy ) have been largely superseded, and many modern experts consider his work obsolete, but the core body of his work has never been entirely either accepted or rejected by the scientific and medical communities. Alfred Kinsey, whose two seminal works are the Kinsey Reports (1948 and 1953), marshalled the resources to make the first large-scale surveys of sexual behavior. Kinsey's work focuses on adults, but he also studied children and developed the first statistical reports of childhood masturbation. Substantial data regarding what is age-appropriate and normal have not been compiled in the half-century since Kinsey's reports appeared. Modern research Empirical knowledge about child sexual behaviour is not gathered by direct interviews of children, but almost exclusively by observations of third persons and by retrospective narrations.. Additionally, research about child sexuality nearly stopped during the 1980s and 1990s . Thus study and interpretation of child sexuality depends especially on the observer and it is likely that cultural biases affect that interpretation. Layers of indirection and bias in study leave conclusions to be as inexact as the method of observation. Further difficulty in this field of study is that child sexuality often is not recognized or is reinterpreted as infant play or just physical Exploration . It is also unknown what child sexual behaviour is consistent with a statistical norm. However even a statistical norm would not be significant, because the variety of human sexual behaviour does not fit into a single norm. Researchers also note that studies giving frequencies of various childhood sexual behaviors are unreliable since behavior varies among different groups of people, and among different youth due to variation in the strength of their sexual feelings and variation in their Development . Also, studies often rely on adults who try to recall events that occurred long ago. Therefore, the data only give us an idea of the types of behavior that children engage in, not an accurate idea of its frequency. SEE ALSO
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