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Sexuality in the Later Years

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 November 2008

Richard A. Kaye
Richard A. Kaye
Affiliation:
Kingsborough Community College, 2001 Oriental Boulevard, Brooklyn, New York 11235.
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Abstract

Many people deny the existence and importance of sexuality among the elderly members of our population. In a time when people are increasingly tolerant of sexual self-determination for virtually every segment of our population, why do we cling to puritanical moralities and outdated ideas in our approach toward sex in ageing men and women? Reasons range from psychological conflicts to social taboos; some stem from the selfish concerns of the young, and others are rooted in the cultural stereotypes and ignorance about the sexual behaviour of elderly people. It is not easy to find research on ageing and sexuality that does not suffer from extreme sample bias or the difficulty in getting older people to speak candidly about their sexuality. This paper explores some of the issues relating to sexuality in the later years.

Type
Forum
Information
Ageing & Society , Volume 13 , Issue 3 , September 1993 , pp. 415 - 426
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1993

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