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Development and Validation of a Tantric Sex Scale: Sexual-Mindfulness, Spiritual Purpose, and Genital/Orgasm De-Emphasis

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Development and Validation of a Tantric Sex Scale: Sexual-Mindfulness, Spiritual Purpose, and Genital/Orgasm De-Emphasis DEVELOPMENT AND VALIDATION OF A TANTRIC SEX SCALE: SEXUAL- MINDFULNESS, SPIRITUAL PURPOSE, AND GENITAL/ORGASM DE-EMPHASIS Brandon Lee Gordon A Thesis Submitted to the Graduate College of Bowling Green State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS December 2018 Committee: Joshua Grubbs, Advisor Anne Gordon Kenneth Pargament © 2018 Brandon L. Gordon All Rights Reserved iii ABSTRACT Joshua Grubbs, Advisor Tantra is a religious tradition that holds sex as nourishing to the spiritual life. Within popular culture and scholarly works alike, there are reports claiming that tantric sex results in deepening intimacy, increasing sexual passion, and increasing relational and sexual satisfaction. To date, there is a complete absence of empirical research concerning the purported effects of tantric sex. Given the reported benefits associated with tantric sex, there is a basis for empirical inquiry. This study examined tantra empirically by developing, testing, and validating a brief measure of tantric sexual practice. Additionally, this work demonstrates how this measure of tantric sex might predict relevant outcomes such as relationship and sexual satisfaction. An exploratory factor analysis approach was used with a goal of reducing a large item bank (81 items) to a briefer, 25-item scale. Three subscales emerged: Sexual-mindfulness, Spiritual Purpose, and Genital/orgasm De-emphasis. Further hypothesis testing was conducted using both correlation and regression analyses. Sexual-mindfulness was associated with Relationship and Sexual Satisfaction in correlational and regression analysis. Spiritual Purpose was negatively associated with Relationship Satisfaction in correlational and regression analysis. Genital/orgasm De-emphasis was positively associated with Relationship Satisfaction in correlational and regression analysis. Implications of the results are discussed exploring possible implications for romantic relationships. iv This thesis is dedicated to my romantic partner, Julie Pomerleau. She supports me tremendously and my vocational endeavors by expressing love for me and inspiring me to continually accomplish meaningful activities. This thesis would not be the same without her spiritual love and encouragement. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to express immense gratitude for the work Joshua Grubbs contributed in conceptualizing and actualizing this project; I look forward to continuing scholarship with him. Kenneth Pargament and Anne Gordon are both responsible for honing the final product. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS Page INTRODUCTION………………………………………………….………………………. 1 Background and Literature Review..……………………………………………….. 3 Historical Considerations……………………………………………...……. 3 Tantric Sex………………………………………………………………….. 4 The Practice of Tantric Sex…………………………………………………. 6 Purported Benefits of Tantric Sex.………………………………………….. 8 Mindfulness……………………...………………………………….. 8 Spiritual purpose………………...………………………………….. 10 Intimacy and passion..…………...………………………………….. 11 Physical, tantric techniques……...………………………………….. 13 Purpose of the Present Study…….………………………………………….. 14 METHOD…………………………………………………………..………………………. 16 Participants………………………………………………………………………….. 16 Procedure……………………………………………………………………………. 16 Measures…………………………………………………………………………….. 17 Tantric Sex Scale (TSS)………………………………………………….…. 17 Relationship Satisfaction……………………………………………………. 18 Sexual Satisfaction………………………………………………………….. 18 Triangular Love…………………………………………………….…….… 18 Sanctification of Sexuality in Relationships………………………….…….. 19 Secure Attachment…………………………………….……………………. 20 vii RESULTS……………………….…………………………………………………………. 21 Factor Analysis.…………………………………………………………………….. 21 Bivariate Correlations………………………………………………….……………. 22 Hierarchical Linear Regressions……………………………………………………. 23 DISCUSSION………………………………………………………………………………. 26 Summary of Findings……………………………………………………………….. 26 Integration with Extant Literature……………………………………..……………. 28 Sexual Mindfulness…………………………………………………………. 28 Spiritual Purpose…………………………………………………………….. 29 Genital/orgasm De-emphasis…………………………………….………….. 30 Implications………………………………………………………………………….. 31 Limitations and Future Directions………………………………….……………….. 33 Conclusions………………………………………………………………………….. 34 REFERENCES……………………….……………………………………………………… 35 APPENDIX A. TABLES……………………………………………………………………. 46 APPENDIX B. TANTRIC SEX ITEM BANK……………………….…………………….. 63 APPENDIX C. SHORTENED TANTRIC SEX SCALE……………………….…………… 67 APPENDIX D. RELATIONSHIP SATISFACTION SCALE………………………………. 69 APPENDIX E. SEXUAL SATISFACTION SCALE……………………….………………. 70 APPENDIX F. STERNBERG’S TRIANGULAR LOVE SCALE……………………….…. 71 APPENDIX G. REVISED SANCTIFICATION OF RELATIONAL SEXUALITY………. 73 APPENDIX H. ATTACHMENT STYLE QUESTIONAIRE………………………………. 75 1 INTRODUCTION Drop all masks. Be true. Reveal your whole heart; be nude […] Whatsoever arises in your heart should remain transparent to your beloved, and whatsoever arises in her heart should remain transparent to you. You should become two transparent beings to each other. By and by, you will see that through each other you are growing to a higher unity. Shree Rajneesh, 1976 In the context of religion, sexual behavior is often described as being a potential source of conflict or vice (Penhollow, Young, & Denny, 2005; Woodley, 1988). Religiosity is tied to lower rates of sexual behavior (Zaleski & Schiaffino, 2000) and more restrictive attitudes towards sex (e.g., Grubbs, Exline, Pargament, Hook, & Carlisle, 2015; Grubbs, Wilt, Exline, Pargament, & Kraus, 2017; Lefkowitz, Gillen, Shearer & Boone, 2004). Past research has found that religious people, such as a subset of Christian adherents, often promote antagonistic views towards sexuality (Bullough, 1977; Thomas, 2013, 2016). Even so, despite such trends, there are, in fact, traditions that hold sex as nourishing to the spiritual life. One such tradition is tantric sex (Douglas & Slinger, 1979). Traditional Tantra is a religious path originating from Hindu, Daoist, and Buddhist traditions (Douglas & Slinger, 1979; Feuerstein, 1998; Guether & Trungpa, 1975). This path holds that people can enhance their spiritual lives through meditative practices, such as meditative approaches to sexual behavior (Feuerstein, 1998). In traditional Tantra, the goal of all meditative practice, including meditative sexuality, is enlightenment, a spiritual state of being wherein the subject (also known as a practitioner, Feuerstein, 1998) no longer experiences suffering caused by selfish human desires (Das, 1998; Kishimoto, 1954). Similarly, a related system known as Neotantra, (or New Age Tantra) shifted the focus from enlightenment to the 2 improvement of the relationship between lovers (Muir & Muir, 1989; Richardson, 2003) through practices variously referred to as tantric sex, tantric yoga, Karmamudra, spiritual sex, sacred sex, or mystical sex (Douglas & Slinger, 1979; Feuerstein, 1998; Kruse, 2002; Simmer-Brown, 2002). The notion of tantric sex is relatively popular in Western societies. Through a search on Amazon.com, the key words “tantric sex” retrieve over 650 results in the book section alone (Tantric Sex, 2017). Through the popular video website YouTube.com, a similar search yields 150,000 results (Tantric Sex: Video, 2017), with collective views into the millions (Tantric Sex: Google, 2017). A general web search through a popular search engine (i.e., Google.com) yielded far greater feedback at nearly two million results for “tantric sex.” As a comparison to “tantric sex,” “healthy sex” retrieves over 100 million views in a search on google. Moving further, in popular culture, tantric sex has often been a topic of discussion. For example, the well-known recording artist, Sting, and the popular television series Sex in the City have both mentioned tantric sex as a beneficial and enjoyable practice (“Sting Talks 7-Hour Tantric Sex,” 2014; “Sex and the City Tantric Sex Workshop,” 2013). In short, modern Western (particularly American) culture is full of significant references to this new practice. Beyond discussing the topic of tantric sex itself, many popular resources are laden with claims of the purported benefits of this practice. Within popular culture and scholarly works alike, there are reports claiming that tantric sex results in spiritual enlightenment, states of transcendence, heightened levels of ecstasy, expanded consciousness, and a generally more fulfilled existence (Kruse, 2002; Martin, 2015; Voigt, 1991). Furthermore, there are also claims of it benefitting romantic relationships by deepening intimacy, increasing sexual passion, and increasing relational and sexual satisfaction (Muir & Muir, 1989; Richardson, 2003). 3 Given this popularity and the reported benefits associated with tantric sex, there is a basis for empirical inquiry. Even so, to date, there is an absence of empirical studies researching the purported effects of this form of sex. Considering this absence, the primary purpose of the present work is to establish an empirical study of tantric sex. I aim to accomplish this goal by developing, testing, and validating a relatively brief measure of tantric sexual practice. Additionally, I aim to examine how this newly developed measure of tantric sex might predict or be associated with relevant outcomes such as relationship and sexual satisfaction. Background and Literature Review Below, I seek to examine the historical background of tantric sex, current definitions of tantric sex, and the ways in which tantric sex may be a relevant construct to study in the greater context
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