A comparison of systematic desensitization and directed masturbation in the treatment of primary orgasmic dysfunction in females

Abstract

Thirty subjects seeking treatment for primary inorgasmia accompanied by sexual anxiety or aversion were assigned to one of three groups: systematic desensitization (SD), directed masturbation (DM), or waiting list control (WL). Following treatment, subjects were retested, and the WL group then received directed masturbation treatment. A third testing constituted a follow-up for the SD and DM groups and a posttreatment testing for the WL. Both treatments were equally effective in improving subjects’ sexual self-acceptance and increasing sexual pleasure. Changes in anxiety were negligible; however, sexual arousal and orgasm for DM and WL subjects increased. The gains of the WL group not only replicated the findings of the DM group but also were of greater magnitude.