ERP responses to sexual cues among young women attracted to men

• Published in: Psychophysiology 2023-02, Vol.60 (2), p.e14162-n/a
• Main Authors: Huberman, Jackie S., Mangardich, Haykaz, Sabbagh, Mark A., Chivers, Meredith L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Cognition; Cues; EEG; Electroencephalography - methods; Event-related potentials; event‐related potential; Evoked Potentials - physiology; Female; Humans; Information processing; Male; neural response; Penis; Photic Stimulation; Sexual Behavior; sexual processing; sexual response
• ISSN: 0048-5772; 1469-8986; 1540-5958
• DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14162

Previous event‐related potential (ERP) studies reported larger N170, P3, and late positive potential (LPP) amplitudes to sexual than nonsexual stimuli. These ERPs may not be specifically sensitive to processing sexual cues, however, because the sexual stimuli included information beyond sexual cues (e.g., faces, bodies, social interaction) to a greater extent than comparison stimuli. We investigated ERPs to stimuli that focused on sexual and nonsexual body regions, in different states of readiness for activity, to elucidate neural responses involved in processing sexual cues. Forty cisgender, primarily white, undergraduate women who were attracted to men (Mage = 18.6, SD = 0.9) viewed images that varied by male body part (penis, arm) and activity state (rest, poised for activity). Participants viewed 40 images per category (flaccid penises, erect penises, outstretched arms, bent arms). Electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded using a 128‐channel net, time‐locked to the onset of each image. Using a whole‐head cluster‐mass approach, we found that the P3 was sensitive to sexual readiness—P3 amplitudes were larger to erect than flaccid penises, but not to bent than outstretched arms. The N170 and LPP components did not show evidence of similarly specific responses to sexual readiness, revealing potential dissociation of different neural processes commonly elicited in response to more complex sexual stimuli. An additional novel finding was that an anterior N270‐400 was sensitive to sexual readiness. Findings clarify the brain's rapid responses to sexual stimuli, setting the stage for future research aimed at better understanding the neurocognitive processes that contribute to the coordination of sexual arousal. This study was the first to examine ERPs to constrained stimuli that specifically varied in a salient sexual cue—readiness for sexual activity. We tested whether previously identified ERPs were integrally involved in sexual processing among young women, and our whole‐head analysis revealed a novel ERP that was sensitive to sexual cues. Results provide insight into the brain's rapid detection of sexual cues and the fundamental neurocognitive processes involved in sexual response.