title: Priming the sexual system: implicit versus explicit activation.
abstract: We investigated implicit versus explicit activation of the sexual system using a priming paradigm in which sexual slides were preceded by either sexual or neutral primes. In the first experiment, primes were made inaccessible to conscious cognitive elaboration. Identification of sexual targets was facilitated by sexual primes, indicating that sexual representations in memory can be activated automatically. In the second experiment, in which primes were presented at a conscious level, identification of sexual targets was decelerated by sexual primes. Primes elicited subjective sexual arousal in Experiment 2 only, demonstrating that the activation of subjective experience requires conscious cognitive elaboration. With the addition of a sexually specific physiological measure, to be constructed to measure initial genital responses, this paradigm may help elucidate activational mechanisms of sexual response.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Roetersstraat 15, 1018 WB Amsterdam, The Netherlands. kp_spiering@macmail.psy.uva.nl.
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spiering
authors.forename: Walter
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Everaerd
authors.forename: Erick
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Janssen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001143:Arousal; D003071:Cognition; D004882:Erotica; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D014481:United States