Patterns and Themes of Addictive Sexual Disorders (Patrick Carnes "Facing the Shadow"):
1. Fantasy sex: Items focused on sexual fantasy life and consequences due to obsession. Themes include denial, delusion, and problems due to preoccupation.
2. Seductive role sex: Items focused on seductive behavior for conquest Multiple relationships, affairs, and unsuccessful serial relationships.
3. Voyeuristic sex: visual sex, including pornography, window peeping, and secret observation. Highly correlated with excessive masturbation, even to the point of injury.
4. Exhibitionist sex: exposing oneself in public places or from the home or car; wearing clothes designed to expose.
5. Paying for sex: paying prostitutes for sex, paying for sexually explicit phone calls.
6. Trading sex: receiving money or drugs for sex or using sex as a business. Highly correlated were swapping partners and using nudist clubs to find sex partners.
7. Intrusive sex: touching others without permission.
8. Anonymous sex: high risk sex with unknown partners, engaging in sex
with anonymous partners, having one night stands.
arousal: being humiliated or hurt
9. Pain exchange: causing or receiving pain to enhance sexual pleasure. Use of dramatic roles, sexual aids, and animals were common themes.
10. Exploitative Sex: Use of force or partner vulnerability to gain sexual access. Using position or power (e.g. professional, religious) to sexually exploit another person; rape.
Examples in the above list are not necessarily representative of an addictive disorder.
Sexual fantasies, multiple relationships, masturbation, and viewing pornography can be normative and/or life-enhancing for most (some) people.
Additionally in different cultures some behaviors maybe normative in some cultures - e.g. paying for sex by unmarried males, exploitative sex with social inferiors (e.g. household servants) .
See also: Acting out