Welcome to episode 97 of the Sexology Podcast, today I’m delighted to be joined by Dr. Justin J. Lehmiller who talks to us about sexual fantasies, the influence culture has in this area and understanding the difference between sexual fantasy and sexual desire.
Dr. Justin J. Lehmiller received his Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Purdue University. He is a Research Fellow at The Kinsey Institute and author of the book Tell Me What You Want: The Science of Sexual Desire and How It Can Help You Improve Your Sex Life. Dr. Lehmiller is an award-winning educator, having been honored three times with the Certificate of Teaching Excellence from Harvard University, where he taught for several years. He is also a prolific researcher and scholar who has published more than 40 pieces of academic writing to date, including a textbook entitled The Psychology of Human Sexuality (now in its second edition) that is used in college classrooms around the world. Dr. Lehmiller’s research focuses on topics including casual sex, sexual fantasy, sexual health, and friends with benefits. His studies have appeared in all of the leading journals on human sexuality, including the Journal of Sex Research, Archives of Sexual Behavior, and The Journal of Sexual Medicine.
Dr. Lehmiller has run the popular blog Sex and Psychology since 2011, and it now receives several million page views per year. He has been interviewed by numerous media outlets, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Boston Globe, CNN.com, The Atlantic, The Globe and Mail, and The Sunday Times. He has been named one of 5 “Sexperts” You Need to Follow on Twitter by Men’s Health and one of the “modern-day masters of sex” by Nerve. Dr. Lehmiller has appeared on several episodes of the television program Taboo on the National Geographic Channel and has been a guest on numerous podcast and radio shows, including the Savage Lovecast and the NPR programs Radio Times and Airtalk. He is a popular freelance writer, penning columns and op-eds for major publications, including Playboy, USA Today, VICE, Psychology Today, Politico, and New York Magazine. In addition, the articles he writes on Sex and Psychology have been syndicated on major websites, including Business Insider, Huffington Post, Men’s Health, and Thought Catalog.
In this episode, you will hear:
- Findings about sexual fantasies Justin’s found from a recent survey
- The similar sexual themes that emerged across various age groups
- The influence culture has on sexual fantasy
- How political leanings can influence sexual fantasy
- Understanding the difference between sexual fantasy and sexual desire
- Creating emotional safety around fantasies
- Learning to communicate with your partner to please each other’s fantasies
Podcast Produced by Pete Bailey – http://petebailey.net/audio