The Routledge International Handbook of Sexual Compulsivity and Clinical Sexology
Book Details
- Publisher : Routledge
- Published : April 2026
- Cover : Hardback
- Pages : 654
- Category :
Family, Couple and Systemic Therapy - Catalogue No : 98502
- ISBN 13 : 9781032771977
- ISBN 10 : 1032771976
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The Routledge International Handbook of Sexual Compulsivity and Clinical Sexology is a cutting-edge and comprehensive guide to understanding compulsive sexual behaviours (CSBs) in-depth in the twenty-first century.
Drawing on classic conceptualisations as well as the most recent research, the handbook evaluates and critiques undue pathologisation of diverse sexual behaviours, as well as identifying areas of concern for thorough assessment and treatment. It centres on the knowledge of clinical sexology and includes discussions around the diagnostic criteria of CSB disorder by the ICD-11 (WHO), filling the gaps in the literature with up-to-date scientific knowledge. It promotes multiple therapeutic modalities for treatment and considers perspectives from populations who have historically been harmed by pseudo-diagnosis, such as LGBTQ+ people and sex workers. All this takes place within a sex-positive lens, with robust ethical consideration, as well as curiosity and cultural humility. This handbook is a significant contribution to the literature on sexual compulsivity research and clinical practice, particularly in including diverse populations, erotic orientations, sexual minorities, and effective therapeutic methods. Topics include debating sex addiction versus CSBs, pornography-related distress, CSBs and trauma, kink-informed therapy, and more. The handbook includes crucial contributions in the field from an international team of specialist clinicians. It follows the great tradition of sexology in its sex-positive philosophy, innovative thinking, and respect for social justice.
This handbook is essential to psychologists, psychotherapists, sexologists, sex therapists, and psychiatrists. It will be useful for individual practitioners, students, and researchers in clinical sexology worldwide.
Reviews and Endorsements
The field of problem sexual behaviors has been plagued with simplistic, reductive, moralistic thinking. In The Routledge International Handbook of Sexual Compulsivity and Clinical Sexology, Neves has curated an excellent collection of chapters which fully embrace the complexity and diversity of human sexuality, and encourage clinicians and researchers to avoid the many past mistakes in this area. This book is an excellent guide to assist in effective, non-shaming and evidence-based treatment for those who struggle with their sexual desires.
David J. Ley, PhD, clinical psychologist and sex therapist
Comprehensive, clear, and deeply practical, this handbook equips therapists with the tools they need to work confidently with clients struggling with compulsive sexual behaviours. With its strong inclusion of LGBTQ+ perspectives and diverse cultural contexts, it provides an invaluable guide for delivering effective, sex-positive, and culturally attuned care. By moving beyond outdated ‘sex addiction’ models and amplifying diverse, sex-positive perspectives, Silva Neves and an international team of experts offer clinicians an indispensable guide to understanding and treating sexual compulsivity with nuance, compassion, and rigor.
Joe Kort, PhD, leading sex and relationship therapist, best known for coining the term “Side” to describe gay men whose sexuality does not include penetration
A comprehensive integration of clinical sexology and contemporary psychotherapy, this book is a narrative-rich, principle-based guide for addressing compulsive sexual behaviors. Moving beyond the narrow limits of sex addiction frameworks, it sets a new international standard for understanding and treating the personal, relational, and cultural dimensions of this complex human behavior.
Douglas Braun-Harvey, founder of The Harvey Institute
The Routledge International Handbook of Sexual Compulsivity and Clinical Sexology is a timely and essential contribution to the field of Sexual Health. Edited by Silva Neves, whose clinical expertise and thought leadership in this area are widely recognised, the volume brings together diverse perspectives while positioning clinical and positive sexology as the primary lens through which to understand and respond to sexual compulsivity. This work challenges stigma, integrates global voices, and advances ethical, evidence-based care. It will undoubtedly shape research, policy and most importantly person-centred clinical care for years to come.
Dr Elna Rudolph, immediate past president, World Association for Sexual Health, South Africa
This book is essential reading for clinicians working on sexual compulsivity, and arguably for those working in the field of sexualities more generally. Silva Neves brings together expert clinicians, practitioners, and academics to provide a truly comprehensive overview of sexual compulsivity as it relates to different areas of sexuality, including pornography, chemsex, BDSM, recognising the need to think about these topics holistically, considering aspects of gender, neurodiversity, ethnicity, and trauma. There is a significant lack of research and practical considerations around CSB, especially rooted within sexology frameworks – this book helps fill that gap and provides an excellent foundation in paving the way for more.
While perspectives related to CSB are often divisive, these debates help push the boundaries of knowledge and encourage thinking around these sensitive and complex topics. Even if you do not agree with all the various perspectives and considerations in the book, you will come away with a more comprehensive understanding of a topic that has made you question your thoughts, beliefs, and actions. Self-reflection and the ability to be challenged is so vital in this field.
One of the key appeals of the book is its writing style – each chapter has a distinct personality that shines from the author’s. Large handbooks can often be daunting, but the comprehensive overview provided by each author allows the reader to dip in and out of different chapters of interest as needed, and it feels like you’re having a conversation with the author.
Dr Liam Wignall, University of Brighton, UK
The Routledge International Handbook of Sexual Compulsivity and Clinical Sexology is a must have for clinicians working with people who are experiencing sexual compulsivity and related concerns! Editor, Silva Neves, brings together an incredible team of international authors in this text and each groundbreaking chapter addresses areas of intersectionality that often warrant careful consideration when working with people struggling with sexual compulsivity; these areas include, but are not limited to—neurodiversity, chemsex, artificial intelligence, and attachment bonds and related processes. The consistent lens presented throughout the handbook is one that is grounded in research and scholarship, as well as being rooted in sex-positivity, high care ethics, and anti-oppressive practices.
Markie L. C. Twist, PhD, LMFT, LMHC, CSE, CSE-S, RegCOSRT, teaching faculty, Antioch University New England; session instructor, University of Guelph; editor-in-chief, Sexual and Relationship Therapy
Table of Contents
1. Introduction - Silva Neves
Section 1: Clinical formulations of compulsive sexual behaviours
2. The debate: “sex addiction” Vs compulsive sexual behaviours - Annika Tamme & Mary-Ann Kubre
3. Compulsive sexual behaviour disorder: where are we at? A literature review - Madga Piesiewicz
4. Lay epistemology of compulsive sexual behaviour - Lisa Etherson
5. Pornography-related distress: answers to common practice questions through a contextual lens - Brian A. Droubay
6. Compulsive sexual behaviour: an integrated and inclusive approach - Dr Roberta Babb
7. Exploring the function of the “dysfunction”: re-thinking attachment, connection and intimacy for broader perspectives on sexual compulsivity - Silva Neves
Section 2: The causes of compulsive sexual behaviour
8. Attachment injuries, shame and the aetiology of compulsive sexual behaviour - Lisa Etherson
9. Trauma and compulsive sexual behaviour: unraveling the connection and exploring therapeutic approaches - Rita Torres
10. Compulsive sexual behaviour, impulse control and emotional dysregulation: a broader view - Rima Hawkins
11. Perceived compulsive sexual behavior: when sexual diversity is misunderstood - Stefano Eleuteri & Berfin Alyesil
12. The organic causes of hypersexuality - Dr Angela Wright
Section 3: Specific clinical presentations of compulsive sexual behaviour
13. Women and compulsive sexual behaviour - Jenna Mc Caffrey
14. How psychosexual issues could influence compulsive sexual behavior (CSB), and how CSB could maintain psychosexual issues - Catriona Boffard
15. Aberrance, identity, and serious leisure: understanding BDSM/Kink within the framework of compulsive sexual behavior - Stefani Goerlich
16. Compulsive sexual behaviour and neurodiversity - Julie Marshall
17. Addressing compulsive sexual behaviour disorder in clients from the Global Majority - Natasha Anderson-Foster
18. Chemsex - Dr Aoife Drury
19. Artificial Intelligence and sexual compulsivity - Neil McArthur
Section 4: Treatments of compulsive sexual behaviour
20. Compulsive sexual behaviour and the three-phase model - Hanna Möllås
21. Compulsive sexual behaviour and the person-centred approach - Lorraine Carpenter-Emery
22. Compulsive sexual behaviour and Gestalt Therapy - Juliette Clancy
23. Sexual Integration Therapy: A sex-positive, non-pathologizing approach shifting compulsive sexual behavior to authentic sexual expression - Galen Fous & Christina Bazzaroni
24. Compulsive sexual behaviour and the CBT approach - Simon Lyne
25. Working with compulsive sexual behaviour using Transactional Analysis - Alison Bryant
26. Treating problematic sexual behavior with Internal Family Systems viewed through a polyvagal lens - Dr Peg Hurley and Carl Mojta
27. Addressing compulsive sexual behaviour through a psychodynamic lens: insights from case study analysis - Dorota Mucha
28. Working through shame in psychodrama: A trauma-informed approach to compulsive sexual behaviours - Eva Koumpli
29. EMDR as a treatment for compulsive sexual behaviour - Nicola Pinder
30. Kink-affirming perspectives on clients presenting with sexual behavior concerns - Stephen E. Ratcliff and Stefani Goerlich
31. Compulsive sexual behaviour and an existential approach: avoiding existential truths - Niki D
32. Compulsive sexual behaviour and Compassion Focused Therapy - Alexis Caught
33. Group work in the context of compulsive sexual behaviours - Dr Christopher McCormack and Dr Michael Yates
34. Compulsive sexual behaviour and intimate partner therapy - Deborah Sless
35. Supporting partners of people with compulsive sexual behaviours - Ella Shannon Morter
36. The Clinical supervision of therapists working with compulsive sexual behaviours. Providing a sex-positive, sexologically-informed reflective space for therapists to examine their work, projection, countertransference and blind spots - Keith Marshall
Section 5: Further perspectives
37. Homosexuality as Addiction: The Rev. Jerry Falwell’s Approach to Queerness and Its Legacy in the New Christian Right - Lucas F.W. Wilson & Christine M. Robinson
38. The impact of Purity Culture teachings on sexual behaviour and self esteem - Lucy Rowett
39. Beyond the “porn addiction” myth: Delivering Sexually Explicit Material (SEM) literacy in sexological practice - Mahmoud Baydoun
40. Gay men and the benefits of visiting gay sex clubs - Silva Neves
41. Conclusion - Silva Neves
About the Editor(s)
Silva Neves is an award-winning, COSRT-accredited and UKCP-registered psycho-sexual and relationship psychotherapist, and a trauma psychotherapist. He is a Pink Therapy Clinical Associate. Silva is a member of the editorial board for the leading international journal Sexual and Relationship Therapy. Silva wrote several articles in psychotherapy magazines and peer-reviewed journals, including New Psychotherapist, Therapy Today, Sexual and Relationship Therapy, The European Journal of Psychotherapy & Counselling, Attachment. He speaks internationally.
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