Skip to main content
HomeSpecial Sessions 2021

 

Publishing in, and Reviewing for, The Journal of Sex Research


Presenter:

Cynthia Graham, PhD
Editor, Journal of Sex Research, University of Southampton

Saturday, November 20th at 2:45 PM

Accordion Widget
Bio & Abstract
Bio & Abstract
Bio:
Cynthia Graham is a Professor of Sexual and Reproductive Health at the University of Southampton and a Senior Research Fellow at the Kinsey Institute. She is Co-Director of the Centre for Clinical and Community Applications of Health Psychology (CCCAHP), Deputy Head for Research of the school of Psychology, and Faculty Chair of Ethics at the University of Southampton. She is a member of the Centre for Sexual Health Research at the University of Southampton She has been a member of the Kinsey Institute Condom Use Research Team (KI-CURT) since 2000. 

Professor Graham received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from McGill University in 1990 and her MSc. in Clinical Psychology in 1992 from the University of Glasgow. Her current research focuses on male condom use errors and problems, the effects of hormonal contraceptives on women’s sexuality, women’s sexual problems, and sexual health among older adults. She has published over 220 peer-reviewed articles and chapters and co-edited the 2012 book “The Cultural Context of Sexual Pleasure and Problems.”

Professor Graham has been Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Sex Research since 2009. She is currently Chair of Ethics for the Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences at the University of Southampton. She was a member of the DSM-5 Workgroup on Sexual and Gender Identity Disorders from 2007-2015 and is a current member of the DSM-5 review committee. In 2016 she was awarded the Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award and in 2019 the Distinguished Service to SSSS Award by the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. In 2009 she was elected President of the International Academy of Sex Research.  


Abstract:
This session will provide information and guidance for those working in different areas of human sexuality on how to write for publication and submit articles for publication in The Journal of Sex Research (JSR). The session will also outline the peer-review process at JSR and will provide guidelines for reviewing manuscripts. 

 

 

*Recording will be available in conference app by December 3rd.*

Addressing Disparities and Inequities in HIV in the U.S. and Globally through Innovative Technologies and Community-Driven Initiatives


Presenters:
Omar Martinez, JD, MPH, MS; Temple University’s School of Social Work
Aima Ahonkhai, MD, MPH; Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Keosha T. Bond, EdD, MPH, CHES; CUNY School of Medicine
Donaldson Conserve, PhD; George Washington University
Caroline Kingori, PhD, MPH; Ohio University
Peter Memiah, DrPH, MSc; University of Maryland School of Medicine

Friday, November 19th at 10:30 AM

Accordion Widget
Abstract
Abstract
Background: The HIV epidemic continues to disproportionately impact vulnerable populations, including adolescents, racial/ethnic minorities, immigrants, individuals impacted by the criminal justice system, people who use substances, and sexual and gender minorities, in the U.S. and globally.

Program Description: The HIV Intervention Science Training Program (HISTP) was established at the Columbia University School of Social Work to address critical gaps in epidemiological and implementation science research. HISTP is an NIMH-funded multidisciplinary training program that seeks to develop and facilitate the growth of underrepresented scholars conducting HIV-related research, including dissemination and implementation research. Key activities include (1) summer training programs on innovative technology solutions, including a Summer Game Jam program that paired scholars with game designers to develop a game prototype to address important HIV prevention or care delivery challenges; (2) implementation science to expeditiously introduce evidence-based strategies in real-world settings; and (3) community-engaged initiatives to better respond to the systematic health disparities and inequities impacting vulnerable populations in the U.S. and globally.

Lessons Learned: The proposed symposium will highlight the lessons learned from the groundbreaking epidemiologic, implementation, and community-engaged research led by scholars of color. Innovative mHealth collaborative partnerships will be featured, as well as novel methodological approaches to develop culturally-tailored HIV prevention and intervention strategies for communities disproportionately burdened by HIV. The interventions developed by underrepresented scholars have addressed and incorporated social and structural determinants of HIV prevention and treatment, including structural racism and discrimination, stigma, medical mistrust, and anti-immigration rhetoric and policies. Addressing these social and structural determinants in underrepresented communities is critical in the quest to end the HIV epidemic. We will also highlight research initiatives and collaborative approaches responsive to the concurrent HIV and COVID-19 pandemics. Opportunities that respond at the intersection of HIV and COVID-19 prevention and treatment are urgently needed, including capacity building for community-based organizations engaged in serving communities that are directly impacted by systematic racism and other forms of oppression.

Recommendations:
The HISTP initiative supports accelerated development of innovative HIV prevention and treatment strategies led by scholars of color to respond to the growing disparities and inequities in HIV. We urgently recommend the replication of similar training programs and opportunities to support the next generation of underrepresented scholars.


 

 

*Recording will be available in conference app by December 3rd.*

Colonization and Sexual Health: Perspectives on Research and Clinical Work on Sexual Health in Puerto Rico


Presenters:

Leonardo Candelario Pérez, PhD; University of Minnesota
Caleb Esteban, PhD; Ponce Health Sciences University


Saturday, November 20th at 1:30 PM

Accordion Widget
Abstract
Abstract
BACKGROUND: In 1943 Christopher Columbus landed in Borinquen, which would eventually be called by its current name Puerto Rico. Initially, Puerto Rico was a major Caribbean colony of Spain until the 1898 Spanish American war. At the end of the war, and without consideration of the impact on the Puerto Rican People, Puerto Rico became a colony of the United States. To this day, Puerto Rico remains a colony of the US without representation in the national governing body, without statehood, and with less access to resources of the mainland. Puerto Rican citizens experience numerous barriers to sexual health, including marginalization of and sexual health disparities across LGBTQ+ communities (Asencio & Acosta, 2009; Esteban, 2018; Esteban et al., 2016; Martínez-Taboas, Esteban, & Vázquez-Rivera, 2018), women (Esteban, 2015; Peña-Vega, 2019), and communities of color (Previdi & Vélez Vega, 2020). For example, in 1937, the U.S. Federal Government passed Law 116 which permitted widespread use of sterilization among low-income Puerto Rican women (see Klausen, 2009; Reichard, 2020). This workshop will explore the impact of colonization on sexual health in Puerto Rico and will engage participants to critically consider how colonization shapes their own professional experiences in sexual health. 

The symposium begins with a 25-minute presentation led by two native Puerto Rican professionals trained at Albizu University in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Their differing career paths will allow for a robust discussion and experiential comparison of sexual health careers across the U.S. and Puerto Rico. Dr. Caleb Esteban is an Assistant Professor and researcher for the Ponce Health Sciences University in Puerto Rico. Dr. Leonardo Candelario Pérez is a clinical psychologist in sexual medicine and an adjunct professor at the University of Minnesota. They will present on their differing perspectives and share some of the systemic and more specific challenges to doing sexual health and medicine work from the perspective of being professionals from a modern colony. Following the formal presentation, attendees will participate in facilitated discussions regarding colonized experiences, moderated by the presenters and supported by members of the SSSS Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) committee. Attendees will reflect on the ways in which their own research, teaching, and practice has been shaped by colonization and begin to strategize ways to mitigate the effects of colonization in practice and research. 

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND: Critical theories promote a reflective and systemic analysis of power and privilege within prevailing social structures (e.g., policy, law, health care, housing; Crenshaw, Gotanda, Peller, & Thomas, 1995). Critical theories prominent in the current academic and professional discourse include critical race (Armstrong, Gleckman-Krut, & Johnson, 2018), gender (Parikh, 2012), and queer studies (Eguchi & Hannah, 2019). Other theoretical frameworks that utilize a critical framework are intersectionality and decolonization (Weiss, 2019). This symposium holds as its theoretical background the umbrella scholarship of critical theories and interrogates the power dynamics of colonization on sexual health and medicine as well as training in the field. 

SIGNIFICANCE TO THE FIELD: Although the fields of psychology and sexuality have made some progress in the expansion and advocacy for diverse voices, little work has addressed the impact of colonization in U.S. territories, such as Puerto Rico. Recent scholarship (Fahs & McClelland, 2016) has highlighted the presence and growing need for critical thought in the field of sexual health and medicine. This symposium answers that call in the context of colonization and explores the implications of applying existing “norms” within the sexual health field to the people of Puerto Rico. It also invites reflection on colonizing practices such as top-down cross-cultural scholarship and practice.



 

 

Working towards an antiracist organizational culture: How AASECT is using Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion as a foundation for meaningful change


Presenter(s):

Chris Fariello, PhD, MA, LMFT, CSE, CST, CSTS; President- American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists (AASECT)
Juan Camarena, PhD, LMFT, LPCC, CST; Chair, Outreach Steering Committee- American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists (AASECT)
Melissa Novak, LCSW, CST, CSTS; Secretary & Bylaws Chair- American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists (AASECT)
Eric Garrison, MAEd, MSc, DipLSHTM, CSC, CSC-S, FRSPH; Certification Chair- American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists (AASECT)
Shadeen Francis, LMFT, CST; Public Relations, Media, & Advocacy Chair- American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists (AASECT)


Friday, November 19th at 12:45 PM

Accordion Widget
Abstract
Abstract
Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion committees are becoming more and more commonplace in organizations that are being intentional of social justice issues. However, it is not enough simply to create a body designed to advise on these matters. Meaningful change happens through policy and organization level changes with meaningful member input. As an organization leading the way for sexuality education and practice, AASECT has committed itself to using a DEI lens in creation of every committee, every project, every election, every policy, and every decision made. This is made possible with the structure of a new strategic plan, that centers DEI while having a goal of creating an antiracist organization. We believe that, ultimately, we cannot be an organization that promotes Sexual Health without doing our own work to achieve Social Justice. This symposium will walk through the underlying motivation for this change, the steps we have taking to create change, the challenges we have faced, and the results of our efforts.

 

 

Student Event: Combating Burnout and Supporting our Student Family


Presenter:
Finn Muzzey, Incoming SSSS Senior Student Representative
Dr. Remi Coker, SSSS Senior Student Representative
Shelby Astle, Incoming SSSS Junior Student Representative

Friday, November 19th at 6:00PM

Accordion Widget
Description
Description

This student event will be an interactive session discussing burnout. How do we identify when we are feeling burnout? How do we combat burnout? What are some tips and techniques we can share with each other in combating burnout? Bring your experiences and let's chat about how we can support each other.

 

More Special Sessions will be announced soon!
Check back often!

Questions?

Contact SSSS



Copyright © 2020 The Society For the Scientific Study of Sexuality, INC.