The Development of Sexual Pleasure During Adolescence

The motivating question of this talk is “what is the
ontogeny of sexual pleasure during adolescent sexuality
development?” I also consider the question of whether
adolescents, as with adults, are primarily motivated by
sexual pleasure in sexual relationships, or whether
pleasure is even primary in early sexual experiences.
My approach to addressing the ontogeny of pleasure is
rooted in inquisitive scepticism about pleasure as an
innate or essential element of sexual experience, in a
long-standing awareness of the contradictions of sexual
pleasure in young people’s sexual development, and in
an interrogation of the meaning and function of sexual
pleasure through an examination of youth’s sexual
embodiments, with focus on bodies that are marginalized
or considered sexually disabled. My goal is to
reposition sexual pleasure into an inclusive, developmentally-
relevant framework that illuminates the many
nuances of pleasure experiences and their contributions
to sexual wellbeing.
Keywords: adolescence, sexual pleasure, sexual
wellbeing
Conflict of Interest and Disclosure Statement: None