50 Years of Masters & Johnson:

Past Stories, Present Influences, and Future Directions

Description

We were invited to give two presentations at the Annual Conference of the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors, & Therapists Aasect in Las Vegas. This was especially exciting for two reasons. First, we offered a workshop on 50 Years of Masters & Johnson: Past Stories, Present Influences, and Future Directions in which we re-created the late 1950’s atmosphere in which sex therapy pioneers William Masters, M.D., and Virginia E. Johnson, D.Sc (Hon), did their the research that served as the basis of their sex therapy treatment program. We also participated in a panel discussion on Updating Traditional Sex Therapy Approaches for Modern Sex Therapy, moderated by the editor of the book in which we published our chapter on Sensate Focus, Zoë Peterson, Ph.D. We presented on Sensate Focus, and were joined by well-known sex therapist Laurie Mintz, Ph.D., who lectured on Problems of Passion.

About The Conference

The American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) will host its 49th Annual Conference June 15 – 18, 2017 at the Green Valley Ranch Resort, Spa & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. At this year’s conference we will celebrate AASECT’s 50th Anniversary.

This year’s conference theme, Honoring Our Past, Celebrating the Present and Envisioning Our Future, seeks to reflect on and honor the roots of our organization’s family tree, while also nurturing our collective and continued development. For the full conference theme, please click here.
Founded in 1967, AASECT is devoted to the promotion of sexual health by the development and advancement of the fields of sexual therapy, counseling and education. AASECT’s mission is the advancement of the highest standards of professional practice for educators, counselors and therapists. The AASECT Annual Conference averages 600+ conference attendees from around the world in disciplines such as sexuality education, counseling, therapy, social work, psychology, sociology, nursing, medicine and more. The conference attracts physicians, nurses, social workers, psychologists, allied health professionals, clergy members, lawyers, sociologists, marriage and family counselors and therapists, family planning specialists and researchers, as well as students in various relevant professional disciplines – all sharing an interest in promoting understanding of human sexuality and healthy sexual behavior. The latest clinical techniques, research applications and educational approaches in the field of sexual science are featured each year.

As we approach our 50th Anniversary, we reflect on our bold and important history while simultaneously moving forward together to collectively shape the future directions of AASECT. We continue to shed light on today’s taboos, working together toward meaningful change and a broader, more inclusive organization. We look forward to celebrating our 49th Annual Conference with you!

BRIEF Workshop Summary

The 50th anniversary of Masters and Johnson’s landmark publication Human Sexual Response provides an opportunity to explore their fascinating history and the ethical issues with which they contended in a conservative era. In this 1 1/2 hour workshop, the discussants will speak from direct personal and training experience with Masters and Johnson. The presentations will entertain and inform through stories and a review of their contributions in the past, and how what they did led to where we are now and to where we are going.

DETAILED Workshop Summary

Purpose: This dialogue panel discussion will honor, reminisce about, and reflect upon the contributions of William Masters and Virginia Johnson on the 50th anniversary of the publication of their revolutionary Human Sexual Response. Through entertaining and informative professional and personal stories offered by the discussants (all of whom had direct contact with them), Masters and Johnson will become more understandable as human beings and professionals wrestling with myriad ethical and scientific challenges in an era of sexual conservatism.

Issues:

It is human nature to look for the new and exciting. In a world caught up with the latest innovations, it is helpful to reflect on the pioneers in any field, on their contributions and humanity. This suggests the profoundness of the ground they broke and the fact that some ideas that seem innovative today were actually addressed by the pioneers years ago. This is no less the case in the field of sexology on the 50th anniversary of Masters and Johnson’s first publication, Human Sexual Response, especially at this conference on Honoring Our Past, Celebrating the Present and Envisioning Our Future that anticipates the 50th anniversary of the founding of AASECT.

So as not to forget what they contributed to the field, and how they affect our work in the present and for years to come, this presentation will review Masters and Johnson’s contributions to sex therapy and the hurdles they overcame, many of which we think we are facing for the first time today. This presentation will also humanize them by using personal stories offered by the panelists based on their direct experience with Masters and Johnson. All the discussants worked for and/or were trained by Masters and Johnson. Issues addressed will include, among others: the radical changes in sex therapy brought about by their research and treatment approaches; their genius in organizing community support for their research, minimizing dissent and ethical dilemmas; their attempts to widen the scope of their research and treatment and how the problems they confronted doing this are reflected in difficulties we face today; problems they confronted integrating sexuality into mainstream, professional and personal discussion, and how these problems often surface in our current practice; criticisms they encountered and how we continue to deal with these; stories about the specifics of their sex therapy program and why it was so revolutionary; the specifics of their early and later graduate training programs; what they were like as people; and some of their shortcomings. Understanding Masters and Johnson as both people and innovators forms a secure base from which we can go forth and experiment with new ideas, refine old ideas, and expand the field of sex therapy to work with more diverse populations.

This was a workshop presented by the Institute for Sexual & Relationship Therapy & Training and AASECT