I'm going to summarize a scientific study in decision-making under the effects of sexual arousal described in the book "Predictably Irrational" by Dan Ariely. Basically, participants of this study were asked several sets of questions pertaining to sexual boundaries, ethics, and safe sex. They were asked, while unaroused, to answer the questions AS IF they were aroused. The questions were all yes/no. The next part of the study had the participants take the same questionnaire again, but this time they were actually sexually aroused while answering the questions (masturbating). The key was comparing the two results: How we THINK we'll feel while aroused and how we ACTUALLY feel while aroused.
The results? Participants VASTLY misjudged their expected answers. There are details in the study about the actual questions, but I'll sum it up: when we're aroused, our sense of ethics and responsibility goes out the window. We can doubt this now, as we sit and type with limp dicks, but our world changes when we get aroused.
How does this translate to the argument at hand? Teaching abstinence-only sex ed to a TEENAGER is futile.
Not only that, the lessons of this study can be translated to other forms of arousal such as anger, jealousy and exhilaration.
|