Sexual Disorders: Perspectives on Diagnosis and Treatment

Sexual disorders may arise from multiple causes. Their clinical assessment, diagnosis, and treatment must take into account the patient's underlying biology, history, and behaviors. Using an approach pioneered at the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, Peter Fagan applies the four "perspectives of psychiatry" (disease, dimension, behavior, and life story) to the diagnosis and treatment of sexual disorders. This book offers therapists an efficient and clinically proven way to organize the range of theoretical methodologies currently available, presenting a framework that is both conceptually cohesive and readily applicable in clinical settings. After an introduction, each chapter offers a case study followed by an analysis based on one perspective methodology as well as a discussion of the clinical implications of that perspective. The book closes with a chapter integrating the approaches. This book will be of interest to mental health care professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers, who treat patients with sexual disorders.