Sexual Fluidity: Understanding Women's Love and Desire (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Many women experience a fluid sexual desire that is responsive to a person rather then a specific gender, argues Diamond n this fascinating and certain to be controversial study. Diamond, associate professor of psychology and gender studies at the University of Utah, is best when detailing, with vivid examples, how scientific studies of sexual desire and behavior have focused on the experience of men, for whom the heterosexual/homosexual divide seems mostly fixed. Diamond says traditional labels for sexual desire are inadequate; for some women even bisexual does not truly express the protean nature of their sexuality. Diamond details in accessible and nuanced language her own study of 100 young women (by her own admission not fully representative) over a period of 10 years. She says that she is calling for an expanded understanding of same-sex sexuality that could radically affect both LGBT activists who hold that sexual identity is fixed and antigay groups who believe sexuality is chosen. Sexual fluidity involves a mix of internal and external factors, but is not, Diamond emphasizes, a matter of conscious choice, and she speculates that a younger generation that views sexuality as personal rather than political might embrace this less rigid view. (Feb.)
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Review

Sexual Fluidity is the most important book on sexuality in many years. The scholarship is impeccable and the writing lucid. Exploring issues that have political, scientific, and personal ramifications, Diamond answers the tough questions: Do women have a sexual orientation? Do women choose their sexuality? Can a heterosexual woman fall in love with a woman? Can a lesbian fall in love with a man? Are women really sexually changeable? Are men? Diamond challenges both traditionalists and radicals—if you want to understand female sexuality, listen to what women say.
--Ritch C. Savin-Williams, author of The New Gay Teenager (20080301)

The book raises fundamental questions about women's sexuality. Lisa Diamond's comprehensive analysis of the scientific evidence illuminates the interconnections of love, sex and sexual identity in women's lives. Her analysis of sexual fluidity is both original and compelling.
--Anne Peplau, UCLA (20080413)

Fascinating and certain to be controversial...Diamond says traditional labels for sexual desire are inadequate; for some women even "bisexual" does not truly express the protean nature of their sexuality. Diamond details in accessible and nuanced language her own study of 100 young women (by her own admission not "fully representative") over a period of 10 years. She says that she is "calling for an expanded understanding of same-sex sexuality" that could radically affect both LGBT activists who hold that sexual identity is fixed and antigay groups who believe sexuality is chosen. (Publishers Weekly 20080417)

Freud once asked: 'What do women want?' He did not really know. In this beautiful and scholarly book, Diamond has attempted to answer his question. In her study of 100 young women growing up in the postmodern era, she has found that what women want is far more complex than was previously thought and cannot easily be answered with a simple theory. This book will be read by students and scholars across the social and biological sciences. It is a gift to be cherished.
--Ken Zucker, University of Toronto (20080619)

Captivating, nuanced, and rigorous...Diamond's work is vital precisely because sexual fluidity is not a new concept--Freud called his version "polymorphous perversity"--but merely one that is typically dismissed. Nor is it news to women, particularly not to a generation for whom a nonspecific "queer" affiliation, or no affiliation at all, is increasingly common. What is so important is not that this fluidity exists, but that someone has finally paid it systematic attention and found that it is in fact not the exception, but may well be the rule.
--Hanne Blank (Ms. )

Traditionally, female sexuality has been presumed to work in the same way and by the same rules as male sexual identity, but Diamond argues that for women, sexual identity isn't fixed in the same categories.
--Temma Ehrenfeld (Psychologies )

Setting out to prove the theory that, for some women, love is truly blind where gender is concerned, Diamond presents her evidence in a fascinating, anecdotal fashion--by tracking over the span of a decade the relationships of nearly 100 women who at one point or another had experienced "same-sex attractions." The women move from men to women and back again (or vice-versa), their sexual identity as changeable as their desires. Additionally, she delves into the brain science behind lust, love and infatuation, revealing that what draws women toward a particular partner is as much a function of biology as it is anything else. To her credit, Diamond avoids scripting her arguments in obtuse academese. With her compassionate, understated approach, she has stepped up the business of gender research.
--Lily Burana (Washington Post Book World )

A fascinating read. (Times Higher Education Supplement )

The book has many riveting accounts by women of their own experiences of sexual attraction and distraction...Diamond has written a fascinating book.
--Adam Phillips (London Review of Books )

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Harvard University Press (February 28, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0674026241
• ISBN-13: 978-0674026247
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #481,392 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Getting it straight!, February 18, 2008

By	Joe Kort "www.joekort.com" (Royal Oak, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Lisa Diamond does a great job breaking down the differences between sexual orientation, sexual identiy, sexual behavior and sexual fantasies. Her work is an important contribution to the growing body of knowledge that people do not always fit into the straight, gay or even bisexual categories.

I highly recommend this book.

20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very intereting discussion of female sexuality, August 5, 2008

By	queer_reader (Portland, OR) - See all my reviews

This book is a very interesting read for any woman, queer or straight.

The discussion of the to-date research on female sexuality and major premises in sexuality research are a great overview resource for anyone interested in this topic.

Female sexuality and the discussions stemming from Diamond's research are described in an approachable way. Topics stemming out of this book will force queer and straight women to rethink their perception of sexuality and their experiences.

I'd bet this book will stand the test of time and will provide a good resource for female sexuality discussions.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Every woman should read this book, July 2, 2009

By	MH (Ca) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sexual Fluidity: Understanding Women's Love and Desire (Paperback)

This book was fascinating, informative and easy to read. Every woman I know over 40 feels that there is no need in thier life for a man. Men should read this book to understand why women get tired of them.