Sex and public speaking
Prof. Stuart Brody has worked on a variety of research studies related to vaginal intercourse and whether or not it is associated with specific physiological effects in ways that are different than oral sex, masturbation or other sexual behaviors. In the past, his research has suggested that penile-vaginal intercourse is associated with greater release of oxytocin and prolactin, hormones associated with feelings of closeness or bonding (oxytocin) or feeling satiated (prolactin). He has also shown that penile-vaginal intercourse is associated with a lowering of blood pressure in ways that other sexual behaviors are not (granted, he has not studied all sexual behaviors, but a few common ones as a comparison).
I find Dr. Brody’s work to be quite interesting and you can imagine, too, that it is fairly controversial among sex researchers, therapists and educators who have sometimes struggled to help couples expand their ideas of what it means to "have sex". A recent BBC news article describes some of his recent research related to penile-vaginal intercourse and stress. You can read the news report here.
