Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women and Men

Abstract

The Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women and Men (SESII-W/M) is a psychometric instrument designed to measure an individual’s propensity for Sexual Excitation (SE) and Sexual Inhibition (SI) across a comprehensive range of sexual situations and stimuli. Developed for use with both genders, the SESII-W/M is founded on the Dual Control Model of Sexual Response (Bancroft, 1999), which posits that sexual response is determined by the relative balance between these two separate and independent neurobiological systems.

The scale represents an evolution of prior instruments, including the Sexual Inhibition/Sexual Excitation Scales (SIS/SES) developed for men, and the Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women (SESII-W). The SESII-W/M integrates factors relevant to women’s sexual experience (derived from focus group data) that were found to be equally pertinent to men, such as the importance of relationship context, negative mood, and self-esteem during sexual encounters. The final validated version contains six distinct factors measuring different aspects of SE and SI.

Keywords

Sexual Excitation, Sexual Inhibition, Dual Control Model, Sexual Arousal, Psychometric Scale, Gender Differences, Inhibitory Cognitions, Sexual Functioning.

Authors

Robin R. Milhausen, Cynthia A. Graham, Stephanie A. Sanders

Purpose

The primary purpose of the SESII-W/M is to provide a standardized, cross-gender measure of the propensity for sexual excitation (SE) and sexual inhibition (SI). It was specifically developed to allow researchers to measure these core elements of sexual response identically in men and women, facilitating comparisons and investigations into gender-specific and universal mechanisms of sexual functioning.

The scale is intended for use in research settings to explore how psychological, cognitive, and contextual factors influence an individual’s ability to become sexually aroused or inhibited. Due to its broad applicability, the SESII-W/M is suitable for studies involving individuals of different sexual orientations and varying levels of sexual experience, including those who are not currently involved in a sexual relationship.

Construct

The theoretical foundation of the SESII-W/M is the Dual Control Model of Sexual Response, a neurobiological model originally proposed by Bancroft (1999). This model asserts that sexual arousal is not a simple reflexive process but is instead governed by the simultaneous influence of two separate and independent underlying neurological systems: the Sexual Excitation System (SE) and the Sexual Inhibition System (SI).

The SESII-W/M operationalizes these theoretical constructs into six measurable subscales, reflecting the diverse range of stimuli and contexts that can either activate the SE system (leading to arousal) or the SI system (leading to inhibition). The development process carefully incorporated factors previously identified as critical to women’s sexual response, ensuring the resulting inventory provides a comprehensive assessment of both excitatory and inhibitory tendencies relevant to all adults.

Validity

Validity assessments, conducted using a diverse sample of men and women, demonstrated both convergent and discriminant validity for the SESII-W/M factors. The correlation patterns observed generally aligned with those established for the preceding SESII-W scale (Graham et al., 2006).

Specifically, correlations between the SESII-W/M factors and established measures—including the Behavioral Inhibition/Behavioral Activation Scales (BIS/BAS; Carver & White, 1994), the Sexual Opinion Survey (SOS; Fisher, 1998), and the Sexual Sensation Seeking Scale (SSSS; Kalichman & Rompa, 1995)—were typically low to moderate and occurred in the predicted theoretical directions. Crucially, the SESII-W/M demonstrated strong discriminant validity concerning socially desirable responding, showing no correlation with the Social Desirability Scale (SDSR; Hayes, Hayashi, & Stewart, 1989).

Reliability

The reliability of the SESII-W/M was evaluated using a sample of men and women recruited from Canadian university distance education programs. Internal consistency, measured by Cronbach’s alpha coefficients for the subscales, ranged from 0.66 to 0.76, yielding an acceptable average alpha of 0.73.

Temporal stability was established through test-retest reliability correlations. These correlations ranged from r = 0.66 to r = 0.82, with a mean correlation of 0.76 (Milhausen et al., in press), indicating that the scale provides stable measurements over time.

Factor Analysis

The SESII-W/M was developed through rigorous factor analysis procedures. Initially, Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) was performed on the items derived primarily from the SESII-W, using a large sample of undergraduate and graduate students. EFA initially identified eight factors; however, two factors were removed because they contained only two items each, leading to a subsequent Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) based on a final six-factor solution.

The final six factors that structure the SESII-W/M are:

• Inhibitory Cognitions: Measures the potential for sexual arousal to be disrupted by negative thoughts or worries regarding sexual performance and functioning.
• Relationship Importance: Reflects the necessity of a specific relationship context (e.g., trust or emotional connection) for sexual activity to occur.
• Arousability: Measures the general tendency to become sexually aroused across various situations and stimuli.
• Partner Characteristics and Behaviors: Assesses the degree to which a partner’s personality, intelligence, or behavior enhances arousal.
• Setting (Unusual or Unconcealed): Measures the tendency for arousal to be increased by novelty, or by the potential for being seen or heard while engaging in sexual activity.
• Dyadic Elements of the Sexual Interaction: Measures the tendency for negative dynamics during the sexual encounter (e.g., lack of partner sensitivity or uncertainty about feelings) to promote sexual inhibition.

Twenty of the 30 items included in the final SESII-W/M were retained from the original SESII-W, and five of the six final factors show strong conceptual similarity to those found in the women-only inventory.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report psychometric inventory

Format: The response format utilizes a 4-point, Likert-type rating scale, ranging from Strongly Disagree to Strongly Agree.

Language Available: English (Original development language)

Population Group: Adults (Women and Men)

Age Group: University students and general adult populations (specific age range not restricted, but validated primarily on students).

Population Details: Appropriate for women and men of different sexual orientations and varying levels of sexual experience. Can be completed by individuals who are not currently in a sexual relationship.

Test Methodology: The questionnaire typically takes between 10 and 15 minutes to complete. Items should be scrambled to prevent items belonging to the same subscale from appearing consecutively. Scoring involves assigning values (1=Strongly Disagree; 4=Strongly Agree), with specific items requiring reverse coding (*). Subscale scores are generated by calculating the mean score of the constituent items.

Keywords

Psychology, Sexology, Sexual Response, Sexual Health, Sexual Excitation, Sexual Inhibition, Dyadic Interaction, Sex Differences, Psychometrics.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected] (for Robin R. Milhausen)

Correspondence Address: Robin R. Milhausen, Department of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition, Room 217 MINS Building, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The authors encourage researchers to utilize the SESII-W/M for investigations requiring identical measurement of sexual inhibition and excitation propensity in men and women. The authors request to be informed of results obtained using the measure. The scale validation was reported in a paper published in Archives of Sexual Behavior (Milhausen et al., in press, at the time of the original source content).

Reference’s

Bancroft, J. (1999). Central inhibition of sexual response in the male: A theoretical perspective. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 23, 763–784.

Bancroft, J., Graham, C. A., Janssen, E., & Sanders, S. A. (2009). The dual control model: Current status and future directions. The Journal of Sex Research, 46, 121–142.

Bancroft, J., & Janssen, E. (2000). The dual control model of male sexual response: A theoretical approach to centrally mediated erectile dysfunction. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 24, 571–579.

Carver, C. S., & White, T. L. (1994). Behavioral inhibition, behavioral activation, and affective responses to impending reward and punishment: The BIS/BAS Scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 319–333.

Fisher, W. A. (1998). The Sexual Opinion Survey. In C. M. Davis, W. L. Yarber, R. Bauserman, G. Schreer, & S. L. Davis (Eds.), Handbook of sexuality-related measures (pp. 218–223). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Graham, C. A., Sanders, S. A., & Milhausen, R. R. (2006). The Sexual Excitation and Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women: Psychometric properties. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 35, 397–410.

Graham, C. A., Sanders, S. A., Milhausen, R. R., & McBride, K. R. (2004). Turning on and turning off: A focus group study of the factors that affect women’s sexual arousal. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 33, 527– 538.

Hays, R. D., Hayashi, T., & Stewart, A. L. (1989). A five-item measure of socially desirable response set. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 49, 629–636.

Hyde, J. S. (2005). The gender similarities hypothesis. American Psychologist, 60, 581–592.

Janssen, E., McBride, K. R., Yarber, W., Hill, B. J., & Butler, S. M. (2008). Factors that influence sexual arousal in men: A focus group study. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 37, 252–265.

Janssen, E., Vorst, H., Finn, P., & Bancroft, J. (2002). The Sexual Inhibition (SIS) and Sexual Excitation (SES) Scales: II. Predicting psychophysiological response patterns. The Journal of Sex Research, 39, 127–132.

Kalichman, S. C., & Rompa, D. (1995). Sexual Sensation Seeking and Sexual Compulsivity Scales: Reliability, validity, and predicting HIV risk behavior. Journal of Personality Assessment, 65, 586–601.

Milhausen, R. R., Graham, C. A., Sanders, S. A., Yarber, W. L., & Maitland, S. B. (in press). Validation of the Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women and Men. Archives of Sexual Behavior.

Items of the Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women and Men

The next set of items asks about things that might affect your sexual arousal. Other ways that we refer to sexual arousal are feeling “turned on,” “sexually excited,” and “being in a sexual mood.” Men and women describe their sexual arousal in terms of genital changes (being “hard,” being “wet,” tingling sensations, feelings of warmth, etc.). Men and women also mention non-genital sensations (increased heart rate, temperature changes, skin sensitivity, etc.) or feelings (anticipation, feeling “open,” etc.).

We are interested in what would be the most typical reaction for you now. You might read a statement that you feel is not applicable to you, or a statement that refers to a situation that may have occurred in the past but is not likely to occur now. In such cases please indicate how you think you would respond, if you were in that situation. Some of the questions sound very similar, but are different; please read each question carefully and then mark the response which indicates your answer. Don’t think too long before answering. Please give your first reaction to each question. a

• Inhibitory Cognitions

Sometimes I have so many worries that I am unable to get aroused.

If I feel that I am expected to respond sexually, I have difficulty getting aroused. Sometimes I feel so “shy” or self-conscious during sex that I cannot become fully aroused.

If I think about whether I will have an orgasm, it is much harder for me to become aroused. If I am worried about taking too long to become aroused, this can interfere with my arousal. When I am having sex, I have to focus on my own sexual feelings in order to stay aroused.

If I am concerned about being a good lover, I am less likely to become aroused. Unless things are “just right” it is difficult for me to become sexually aroused.

• Relationship Importance

It would be hard for me to become sexually aroused with someone who is involved with another person. I really need to trust a partner to become fully aroused.

If I am very sexually attracted to someone, I don’t need to be in a relationship with that person to become sexually aroused.* If I think that I am being used sexually it completely turns me off.

If I think that a partner might hurt me emotionally, I put the brakes on sexually.

• Arousability

When I think about someone I find sexually attractive, I easily become sexually aroused. I think about sex a lot when I am bored.

Sometimes I am so attracted to someone, I cannot stop myself from becoming sexually aroused. Just talking about sex is enough to put me in a sexual mood.

Just being physically close with a partner is enough to turn me on.

• Partner Characteristics and Behaviors

Someone doing something that shows he/she is intelligent turns me on.

Seeing a partner doing something that shows his/her talent can make me very sexually aroused. If I see a partner interacting well with others, I am more easily sexually aroused.

If a partner surprises me by doing chores, it sparks my sexual interest. I find it arousing when a partner does something nice for me.

• Setting (Unusual or Unconcealed)

If it is possible someone might see or hear us having sex, it is more difficult for me to get aroused.* I get really turned on if I think I may get caught while having sex.

I find it harder to get sexually aroused if other people are nearby.* Having sex in a different setting than usual is a real turn-on for me.

• Dyadic Elements of the Sexual Interaction

While having sex, it really decreases my arousal if my partner is not sensitive to the signals I am giving. If interferes with my arousal if there is not a balance of giving and receiving pleasure during sex.

If I am uncertain how my partner feels about me, it is harder for me to get aroused.

a The response choices for each question are: 1 Strongly Disagree; 2 Disagree; 3 Agree; 4 Strongly Agree.

*Items should be reverse coded when scoring.