MARCH Announcements | Society for Sex Therapy and Research

March 01, 2023

Happy March fellow SSTARGazers! Another month down, meaning that much closer to warmer weather (at least for those of us in colder climates). We are also that much closer to our annual meeting, and we are definitely excited to see everyone again.

We have lots of exciting announcements this month, including the conference, training opportunities, research opportunities, a new resource, and a job posting. For all the details, please read on or go to the SSTAR website: https://sstarnet.org/?p=4656&preview=true

And still as always, if you have a workshop, book, job opportunity, call for participants, or any other promotional announcement that you would like distributed to our members (on behalf of yourself or someone else), please send an email to info@SSTARnet.org and please include “SSTAR MONTHLY ANNOUNCEMENTS” in the subject line, to the communications committee – to Elisabeth Gordon at DrGordon@PsychandSexMD.com, or to Karen Washington at kwashingtoniv@yahoo.com– at least five (5) days before the end of the month for it to be posted the following month. Please do not post this information separately to the listserv.

SSTAR Annual Meeting Announcement

We are pleased to announce that registration is still OPEN for SSTAR’s 48^th Annual Meeting, Sex Science for Social Change. You can read through the entire program attached to this email. And you can also register directly here.

IN-PERSON and VIRTUALLY

May 4 – 7, 2023 at the Marriott Tampa Water Street, Tampa, Florida and via Zoom

SSTAR is offering the complete program - two Thursday pre-conference workshops, the full scientific meeting on Friday-Saturday, and the Sunday Ethics workshop both in-person and virtually. SSTAR gratefully acknowledges The Center for Marital & Sexual Health South for sponsoring this hybrid event.

SCHOLARSHIPS

SSTAR is foremost committed to fostering clinical sexuality practice and research. In order to fulfill this mission, SSTAR is dedicated to being a welcoming and inclusive environment for all who are interested in human sexuality, including Black, Indigenous or other Persons of Color (BIPOC), individuals from the 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, students, as well as early career professionals.

SSTAR recognizes that payment of conference registration fees can be an economic hardship and is therefore offering 3 scholarships for the 2023 Annual Meeting of up to $1,500. Each scholarship will cover in person or virtual registration for 2 preconference workshops, the annual meeting on Friday and Saturday and post conference Ethics workshop on Sunday. Applicants need not be SSTAR members. Click here to apply.

PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS

In addition to two pre-conference workshops, five plenary talks and a post-conference ethics workshop, engaging program sessions will include:

Masters & Johnson Awardee Dr. Cynthia Graham
2023 Consumer Book Awardee Dr. Anne Katz for “Women Cancer Sex”
Sandra R. Leiblum Awardee Todd L. Jennings
Live and interactive poster presentations
Data blitzes
In-depth research and clinical addresses on exciting new sexuality research

Confirmed speakers include:

Dr. Eunice Avilés
Dr. Leonardo Candelario-Perez
Dr. Eli Coleman
Dr. Diana Greene Foster
Dr. Anne Katz
Dr. Nathan Lachowsky
Dr. Katie Spencer
Dr. L. Monique Ward

As always, these sessions are a balance of invited and peer-reviewed talks that reflect a wide variety of topics and cutting-edge research in human sexuality.

HOTEL

Marriott Tampa Water Street

505 Water Street

Tampa, Florida, 33602

Phone: (813) 221-4900

Reservations: A block of rooms with a special group rate has been reserved for SSTAR meeting attendees at the Single/Double Room rate of $229 (USD). Reserve your room today here.

If calling the hotel, please inform reservations that you are attending the SSTAR 2023 Annual Meeting to receive this special rate. The room block will be released on April 10, 2023, so please make your reservation early. After that day, room reservations are subject to availability and prices may go up.

SPONSORSHIPS

Support SSTAR’s mission to foster clinical sexuality practice and research and gain exposure to over 150 attendees. The sponsorship opportunities listed below are limited in availability and secured on a first come first serve basis. Please review the second attachment to this email for all sponsor options.

Deb Ryan

DIRECTOR, ASSOCIATIONS

Research Recruitment Requests

Hello,

I hope you are doing well. I am an honors thesis student at Mount Holyoke College. I’m currently recruiting for my qualitative study on how sexual scripts affect the emotional health and self-image of people experiencing symptoms of female sexual dysfunction. I am reaching out to sex therapy and sexual health clinics to advertise my study.

There will be two interviews; the first will be around 30 to 40 minutes long (and participants will receive a compensation of $10 USD) and the second will be 60 to 80 minutes long (and participants will receive a compensation of $30 USD). Participation in this study is confidential.

The inclusion criteria for this project is participants must be adults (18+) living in the US, experience symptoms or be diagnosed with female sexual dysfunction, and must have experience of being in relationships of people with different genders.

Would you be open to posting a recruitment flyer of my study on your website or in the lobby of your sex therapy center? I have linked a flyer below to either post on your website or in the lobby as you see fit. (Here is also a link the the screening survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NW5FSCQ)

Thank you for your consideration. If you have any questions about the project, please feel free to email me at insal22m@mtholyoke.edu

Best,

Milena Insalaco (she/they)

March Study Flyer M.I.

_______________

Hello friend/colleague,

I am currently working on my qualitative dissertation titled, "Where Transphobia Meets Misogyny: A Grounded Theory Exploration of the Social Synonymity Between Reproduction and Femininity" as part of my doctoral studies at Adler University. The purpose of my study is to understand how assumptions about femininity and reproduction influence healthcare for people with ovaries. I am emailing to ask for your help in recruiting participants for this IRB-approved qualitative study (IRB # 23-011). While you yourself cannot participate since you have a relationship with me, I am asking you to please forward this information to interested possible participants. I am specifically looking to contribute to the literature about the perspectives of trans and gender nonconforming people with ovaries.

I'll be recruiting participants who have ovaries, are at least 18 years old, and have experienced discrimination in reproductive healthcare for my grounded theory study. Interested persons can scan a QR code on the attached flyer to fill out a screener questionnaire to determine eligibility. Participants can expect to be interviewed on two separate occasions for 60 to 90 minutes per interview. Interviews will occur through HIPAA compliant Zoom and the participant may elect to have their camera on or off. Participants may decline to answer any questions, limit their response to any questions, or withdraw from the study at any time without penalty. Participants will be compensated with a $10 Amazon gift card after their first interview and with a $20 Amazon gift card after their second interview.

If you have any questions you may reach out to me at ggebel@adler.edu or my dissertation chair, Rachel Diamond, at rdiamond@adler.edu.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Gabrielle C. Gebel, MS, LMFT

She/her/hers

PhD Candidate, Adler University

ggebel@adler.edu

_______________

Hello, You are being invited to participate in a study examining the emotional impact of the end of a long-term relationship, specifically being “ghosted”, or the sudden and unexpected cut-off of communication from one’s partner. This study is being conducted to fulfill the requirements for my dissertation as a doctoral student in Couple and Family Therapy at Adler University. This study has been reviewed by the Adler University Institutional Review Board (IRB #22-128).

Qualified participants for this survey will be at least 18 years old, will have experienced a breakup within the last six months, and must have been in that relationship prior to the breakup for at least one year. Participants will be asked to respond to survey questions about their views and feelings about how clearly a relationship ends, as well as standard demographic questions. This survey will be anonymous and may take approximately 12-15 minutes to complete. Please share this survey with others who are interested and meet the criteria for inclusion.

Please use the link below to participate: https://qfreeaccountssjc1.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b8cnJb46WVd2Xl4

Your participation is voluntary, and your responses will be kept confidential. All identifying information will be removed to ensure confidentiality. Data will be kept in password-protected, cloud-based storage and will only be accessible to the researcher. Data will be destroyed 7 years after data collection is complete. To minimize the risk of possible dual relationships and to best ensure anonymity, I am not collecting identifying information and am not requesting open-ended questions. If there is a concern the survey may identify individual(s) via survey answers, please be advised not to participate in the survey.

While there are no direct benefits to participants for completing this survey, the summary of responses will provide useful information to individuals to help understand the impact of being ghosted, as well as for therapists and mental health clinicians. Participants may experience some emotional distress when answering survey questions. If so, participants are advised to leave any questions blank that they do not wish to answer, and they may discontinue their participation at any time. Should you wish to contact a licensed therapist, a searchable directory of mental health professionals may be found at https://therapistlocator.net/ or https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapists. Participants may also be able to find a therapist through their health insurance provider.

Please use the link below to participate: https://qfreeaccountssjc1.az1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b8cnJb46WVd2Xl4 If you have questions about any aspect of the study, please feel free to email Stevi at the email listed below. You may also contact the Adler IRB at irb@adler.edu. We would like to thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

Sample questions of what can be expected from the survey:

What is your gender identification?

Female b. Male c. Nonbinary d. I prefer to self-describe

__________ I tend to find being in a romantic relationship difficult.

Very true b. Sometimes true d. Not true at all

Over your entire relationship history, have you been ghosted by multiple partners?

Yes b. No

Stevi Gould, MA, LMFT – Primary Investigator | sgould@adler.edu | 704-724-5635 Marsha Vaughn, PhD, LMFT – Dissertation Chair | mvaughn@adler.edu | 312-662-4314

Training Opportunities

Title: Sensate Focus Modifications for Trauma Informed Interventions for Survivors

***a synchronous webinar***

Date: Thursday, April 13, 2023 9am-5pm Central

CE’s pending: 6 AASECT CEs

for more information please go to www.sextherapiststlouis.com

Linda Weiner, MSW, LCSW
Pronouns: She/Her/Hers
Owner, Sex Therapist St. Louis, LLC
AASECT Certified Diplomate in Sex Therapy, Certified Supervisor and CE Provider
Co-Author of Sensate Focus in Sex Therapy: The Illustrated Manual
sextherapiststlouis@gmail.com
www.sextherapiststlouis.com

_______________

March 2023

Title: Kink & BDSM

Presenters: Anna Randall, MSW, DHS, MPH & Richard Sprott, Ph.D.

Date & Time (incl. # of CE hrs.): Friday, March 17, 2023 | 2pm to 6pm Eastern (4 CE Credits)