Difference between revisions of "Primary vs. secondary sexual attraction model"

Revision as of 06:54, 3 August 2011

This theoretical model defines sexuality in terms of types of sexual attraction and desire.

Under this model, primary sexual attraction is an instant attraction to people based on instantly available information such as their appearance or smell which may or may not lead to arousal or sexual desire. Secondary sexual attraction is considered to be an attraction that develops over time based on a person's relationship and emotional connection with another person. Primary sexual desire is the desire to engage in sexual activity for the purposes of personal pleasure whether physical, emotional, or both. Secondary sexual desire is the desire to engage in sexual activity solely for the sake of the happiness of the other person involved, or for another ulterior motive such as the conception of children.

Most sexuals in romantic relationships feel both primary and secondary sexual desire. The term demisexual, under this model, tends to refer to people who experience secondary sexual attraction but not primary sexual attraction. According to the model, asexuals are people who lack primary sexual desire.

History of the model

This model was placed on AVENwiki by the wiki editors after a post by the AVENite Rabger, under the username ~Forbidden Fury~, which addressed perceived problems with AVEN's definition of asexuality. It was named Rabger’s model from 2006 until 2011 and remained largely unchanged during this time. However, the model described on the AVENwiki was very different from Rabger's original proposal, and was renamed to reflect this fact after Rabger expressed concerns about the misrepresentation of their views.

A more detailed discussion of Rabger's original post can be found here.

See also:

• ABCD types
• Asexuality
• Collective identity model
• Dual Definitional Model
• Nonlibidoism
• "Not interested" model