title: Visual Sexual Stimuli-Cue or Reward? A Perspective for Interpreting Brain Imaging Findings on Human Sexual Behaviors.
abstract: There is an increasing number of neuroimaging studies using visual sexual stimuli (VSS), especially within the emerging field of research on compulsive sexual behaviors (CSB). A central question in this field is whether behaviors such as excessive pornography consumption share common brain mechanisms with widely studied substance and behavioral addictions. Depending on how VSS are conceptualized, different predictions can be formulated within the frameworks of Reinforcement Learning or Incentive Salience Theory, where a crucial distinction is made between conditioned and unconditioned stimuli (related to reward anticipation vs. reward consumption, respectively). Surveying 40 recent human neuroimaging studies we show existing ambiguity about the conceptualization of VSS. Therefore, we feel that it is important to address the question of whether VSS should be considered as conditioned stimuli (cue) or unconditioned stimuli (reward). Here we present our own perspective, which is that in most laboratory settings VSS play a role of reward, as evidenced by: (1) experience of pleasure while watching VSS, possibly accompanied by genital reaction; (2) reward-related brain activity correlated with these pleasurable feelings in response to VSS; (3) a willingness to exert effort to view VSS similarly as for other rewarding stimuli such as money; and (4) conditioning for cues predictive of VSS. We hope that this perspective article will initiate a scientific discussion on this important and overlooked topic and increase attention for appropriate interpretations of results of human neuroimaging studies using VSS.
authors: Swartz Center for Computational Neuroscience, Institute for Neural Computations, University of California San DiegoSan Diego, CA, USA; Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of SciencesWarsaw, Poland.
authors: Mateusz
authors: M
authors: Gola
authors: Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of SciencesWarsaw, Poland; Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Neurobiology Center, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of Polish Academy of SciencesWarsaw, Poland.
authors: Małgorzata
authors: M
authors: Wordecha
authors: Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Neurobiology Center, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of Polish Academy of Sciences Warsaw, Poland.
authors: Artur
authors: A
authors: Marchewka
authors: Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands.
authors: Guillaume
authors: G
authors: Sescousse
keywords: behavioral addictions; compulsive sexual behaviors; incentive salience; neuroimaging; reinforcement learning; sexual behavior; visual sexual stimuli