In-situation safety behaviours as a factor in the maintenance and treatment of sexual dysfunctions

Abstract

In recent years, safety behaviours have received a lot of attention in cognitive-behavioural accounts of anxiety disorders, especially their role as a maintenance factor in social phobia. The present paper aims at exploring the potential of safety behaviours for furthering the understanding of sexual dysfunctions. We argue that safety behaviours, in the context of other cognitive variables such as self-focused attention and negative expectations, increase negative sexual affect (e.g. fear of failure, shame, sadness), thus maintaining sexual dysfunctions in creating a vicious circle. Important implications for treatment, clinical implications and limitations are discussed.

Keywords:

• sexual dysfunction
• cognition
• theory
• safety behaviour
• attention