Tierney K Lorenz
Biographic Data
| ID | 5220001 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Tierney K Lorenz |
| GIVEN NAMES | Tierney K |
| FAMILY NAME | Lorenz |
| SIGNATURE | LORENZ T K |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Nebraska–Lincoln |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4999-1584 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 17 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 24 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 17 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2012 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Boundary-Setting at Sexual Debut Predicts Later Sexual Wellbeing Including Communication, Condom Use Negotiation, Exposure to Coercive Sex, and Pleasure Deservingness in Young Adults
Little is known about how first partnered sexual experiences - i.e. sexual debut - contribute to long term sexual outcomes. Using a mixed methods approach, we analyzed quantitative and open-ended items from an online, cross-sectional survey of 856 undergraduates from the Midwestern United States, exploring links between sexual debut communication and current sexual communication satisfaction, condom use attitudes, lifetime sexual coercion, and pl…
Sexual Coercion and Perceived Sexual Knowledge Positively Predict Comfort Communicating About Sex in College Students
Objectives Comfort communicating about sex is associated with better sexual health and wellbeing across the lifespan. However, experiencing sexual coercion may decrease one’s comfort communicating about sex. Perceived knowledge about sex may serve as a potential buffer of this association that can be easily intervened upon in college students, a high-risk population for sexual coercion. The current study tested the hypothesis that students who ex…
Body Shame and Sexual Sensation Seeking Contribute to Associations Between Interpersonal Objectification Experiences and Sex-Linked Substance Use Among Women in College
Objectification theory suggests that women who are treated as sexual objects may disengage from internal bodily experiences, increasing their risk for sexual dysfunction. Extending this framework, it is possible that when objectification dulls women's sexual sensation, they turn to substances they believe will heighten sexual sensation (i.e. sex-linked substance use; SLSU). The present study examined relationships between interpersonal sexual obj…
Sex/gender differences in how plurisexual attractions contribute to young adults’ thoughts and feelings about their sexual selves
These findings point to subtle gender differences in how attractions interact with young people's conceptualization of their sexual selves
Proposing a model whereby negative valence bias increases the risk for more severe dysphoric posttraumatic stress disorder and depression symptomology
Experiencing trauma increases risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression, and individuals who experience psychopathology after a traumatic event often experience symptoms from both disorders. Because a tendency to view events in a more negative light and a propensity toward threat appraisals are risk factors for both PTSD and depression, negative valence bias-a tendency to appraise emotional ambiguity as having a more negative (…
Barriers experienced by emerging adults in discussing their sexuality with parents and health care providers
Qualitative analyses revealed that while embarrassment, shame, and awkwardness were commonly reported barriers to communicating with both parents and providers, participants reported different effects across settings: Parent-related embarrassment was associated with concerns about changing the intimacy of the parental relationship, while provider-related embarrassment was associated with fears of seeming incompetent or eliciting dismissal. These …
Four Additional Questions for the Preparation Hypothesis
Relational and Trait Factors Mediate the Associations between Women’s Intoxication-Related Unwanted Sexual Experiences, Pleasure, and Desire
Despite documented negative sexual health sequelae of unwanted sexual contact (USC), it is unclear why individuals who have experienced USC within the context of intoxication (intoxication-related USC) are at particular risk for poor sexual functioning. Intoxication-related USC may impact relational factors like relationship satisfaction, as trauma symptoms interfere with emotional closeness during sex. Additionally, although individual traits - …
On Methods and Marshmallows
In this commentary, we argue that feminist science and open science can benefit from each other’s wisdom and critiques in service of creating systems that produce the highest quality science with the maximum potential for improving the lives of women. To do this, we offer a constructive analysis, focusing on common methods used in open science, including open materials and data, preregistration, and large sample sizes, and illuminate potential be…
The Sexual Objectification and Alcohol Use Link
Response to Sakaluk (2020)
Reproducibility and Registration in Sexuality Research
Most readers of the Archives of Sexual Behavior will, by now, be familiar with an upsurge of interest in best practices for reproducibility and replicability across modern scientific disciplines (Ioannidis, 2005; National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine, 2019; Simmons, Nelson, & Simonsohn, 2011). Concerns about the basic validity of findings that cannot be replicated—and the widespread practices and incentive systems that lead to u…
Brief Report
Objective: To assess differences in sexual wellbeing among men and women with exclusively heterosexual, mostly heterosexual, and bisexual attractions. Method: An anonymous online survey in a convenience sample of 597 young adults (394 women, 203 men; average age = 20.04) assessed patterns of sexual attraction, desire, sexual functioning, and sexual satisfaction using validated questionnaires. Results: Individuals with mostly heterosexual attracti…
The impact of heteronormative ideals imposition on sexual orientation questioning distress
Interactions Among Sexual Activity, Menstrual Cycle Phase, and Immune Function in Healthy Women
Past research has found menstrual-cycle-related changes in functional immune response; we examined if sexual activity also changed markers of immune defense. We followed 32 naturally cycling women (15 sexually active with a partner ≥ 1 time/week, 17 sexually abstinent for the last four months) over one menstrual cycle. Participants provided serum and saliva samples at menses and ovulation, and additional saliva samples at midfollicular and midlut…
Linguistic changes in expressive writing predict psychological outcomes in women with history of childhood sexual abuse and adult sexual dysfunction
An expressive writing treatment was recently reported to reduce depressive symptoms and improve sexual function and satisfaction in a sample of female survivors of childhood sexual abuse (Meston, Lorenz, & Stephenson, 2013). We conducted a linguistic analysis of this data to determine whether pre- to posttreatment changes in participants' language use were associated with the improvements in sexuality and depression. Linguistic Inquiry and Word C…
Physiological stress responses predict sexual functioning and satisfaction differently in women who have and have not been sexually abused in childhood
Physiological responses to sexual stimuli may contribute to the increased rate of sexual problems seen in women with childhood sexual abuse (CSA) histories. We compared two physiological stress responses as predictors of sexual function and satisfaction, sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activation and cortisol in women with (CSA, N = 136) and without CSA histories (NSA, N = 102). In CSA survivors, cortisol response to sexual stimuli did not signi…
The impact of heteronormative ideals imposition on sexual orientation questioning distress
The Sexual Objectification and Alcohol Use Link
Reproducibility and Registration in Sexuality Research
Most readers of the Archives of Sexual Behavior will, by now, be familiar with an upsurge of interest in best practices for reproducibility and replicability across modern scientific disciplines (Ioannidis, 2005; National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine, 2019; Simmons, Nelson, & Simonsohn, 2011). Concerns about the basic validity of findings that cannot be replicated—and the widespread practices and incentive systems that lead to u…
Response to Sakaluk (2020)
On Methods and Marshmallows
In this commentary, we argue that feminist science and open science can benefit from each other’s wisdom and critiques in service of creating systems that produce the highest quality science with the maximum potential for improving the lives of women. To do this, we offer a constructive analysis, focusing on common methods used in open science, including open materials and data, preregistration, and large sample sizes, and illuminate potential be…
Relational and Trait Factors Mediate the Associations between Women’s Intoxication-Related Unwanted Sexual Experiences, Pleasure, and Desire
Despite documented negative sexual health sequelae of unwanted sexual contact (USC), it is unclear why individuals who have experienced USC within the context of intoxication (intoxication-related USC) are at particular risk for poor sexual functioning. Intoxication-related USC may impact relational factors like relationship satisfaction, as trauma symptoms interfere with emotional closeness during sex. Additionally, although individual traits - …
Interactions Among Sexual Activity, Menstrual Cycle Phase, and Immune Function in Healthy Women
Past research has found menstrual-cycle-related changes in functional immune response; we examined if sexual activity also changed markers of immune defense. We followed 32 naturally cycling women (15 sexually active with a partner ≥ 1 time/week, 17 sexually abstinent for the last four months) over one menstrual cycle. Participants provided serum and saliva samples at menses and ovulation, and additional saliva samples at midfollicular and midlut…
Physiological stress responses predict sexual functioning and satisfaction differently in women who have and have not been sexually abused in childhood
Physiological responses to sexual stimuli may contribute to the increased rate of sexual problems seen in women with childhood sexual abuse (CSA) histories. We compared two physiological stress responses as predictors of sexual function and satisfaction, sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activation and cortisol in women with (CSA, N = 136) and without CSA histories (NSA, N = 102). In CSA survivors, cortisol response to sexual stimuli did not signi…
Linguistic changes in expressive writing predict psychological outcomes in women with history of childhood sexual abuse and adult sexual dysfunction
An expressive writing treatment was recently reported to reduce depressive symptoms and improve sexual function and satisfaction in a sample of female survivors of childhood sexual abuse (Meston, Lorenz, & Stephenson, 2013). We conducted a linguistic analysis of this data to determine whether pre- to posttreatment changes in participants' language use were associated with the improvements in sexuality and depression. Linguistic Inquiry and Word C…
Interactions Among Sexual Activity, Menstrual Cycle Phase, and Immune Function in Healthy Women
Past research has found menstrual-cycle-related changes in functional immune response; we examined if sexual activity also changed markers of immune defense. We followed 32 naturally cycling women (15 sexually active with a partner ≥ 1 time/week, 17 sexually abstinent for the last four months) over one menstrual cycle. Participants provided serum and saliva samples at menses and ovulation, and additional saliva samples at midfollicular and midlut…
Brief Report
Objective: To assess differences in sexual wellbeing among men and women with exclusively heterosexual, mostly heterosexual, and bisexual attractions. Method: An anonymous online survey in a convenience sample of 597 young adults (394 women, 203 men; average age = 20.04) assessed patterns of sexual attraction, desire, sexual functioning, and sexual satisfaction using validated questionnaires. Results: Individuals with mostly heterosexual attracti…
The impact of heteronormative ideals imposition on sexual orientation questioning distress
Response to Sakaluk (2020)
Reproducibility and Registration in Sexuality Research
Most readers of the Archives of Sexual Behavior will, by now, be familiar with an upsurge of interest in best practices for reproducibility and replicability across modern scientific disciplines (Ioannidis, 2005; National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine, 2019; Simmons, Nelson, & Simonsohn, 2011). Concerns about the basic validity of findings that cannot be replicated—and the widespread practices and incentive systems that lead to u…
On Methods and Marshmallows
In this commentary, we argue that feminist science and open science can benefit from each other’s wisdom and critiques in service of creating systems that produce the highest quality science with the maximum potential for improving the lives of women. To do this, we offer a constructive analysis, focusing on common methods used in open science, including open materials and data, preregistration, and large sample sizes, and illuminate potential be…
The Sexual Objectification and Alcohol Use Link
Four Additional Questions for the Preparation Hypothesis
Relational and Trait Factors Mediate the Associations between Women’s Intoxication-Related Unwanted Sexual Experiences, Pleasure, and Desire
Despite documented negative sexual health sequelae of unwanted sexual contact (USC), it is unclear why individuals who have experienced USC within the context of intoxication (intoxication-related USC) are at particular risk for poor sexual functioning. Intoxication-related USC may impact relational factors like relationship satisfaction, as trauma symptoms interfere with emotional closeness during sex. Additionally, although individual traits - …
Barriers experienced by emerging adults in discussing their sexuality with parents and health care providers
Qualitative analyses revealed that while embarrassment, shame, and awkwardness were commonly reported barriers to communicating with both parents and providers, participants reported different effects across settings: Parent-related embarrassment was associated with concerns about changing the intimacy of the parental relationship, while provider-related embarrassment was associated with fears of seeming incompetent or eliciting dismissal. These …
Sex/gender differences in how plurisexual attractions contribute to young adults’ thoughts and feelings about their sexual selves
These findings point to subtle gender differences in how attractions interact with young people's conceptualization of their sexual selves
Proposing a model whereby negative valence bias increases the risk for more severe dysphoric posttraumatic stress disorder and depression symptomology
Experiencing trauma increases risk for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression, and individuals who experience psychopathology after a traumatic event often experience symptoms from both disorders. Because a tendency to view events in a more negative light and a propensity toward threat appraisals are risk factors for both PTSD and depression, negative valence bias-a tendency to appraise emotional ambiguity as having a more negative (…
Boundary-Setting at Sexual Debut Predicts Later Sexual Wellbeing Including Communication, Condom Use Negotiation, Exposure to Coercive Sex, and Pleasure Deservingness in Young Adults
Little is known about how first partnered sexual experiences - i.e. sexual debut - contribute to long term sexual outcomes. Using a mixed methods approach, we analyzed quantitative and open-ended items from an online, cross-sectional survey of 856 undergraduates from the Midwestern United States, exploring links between sexual debut communication and current sexual communication satisfaction, condom use attitudes, lifetime sexual coercion, and pl…
Sexual Coercion and Perceived Sexual Knowledge Positively Predict Comfort Communicating About Sex in College Students
Objectives Comfort communicating about sex is associated with better sexual health and wellbeing across the lifespan. However, experiencing sexual coercion may decrease one’s comfort communicating about sex. Perceived knowledge about sex may serve as a potential buffer of this association that can be easily intervened upon in college students, a high-risk population for sexual coercion. The current study tested the hypothesis that students who ex…
Body Shame and Sexual Sensation Seeking Contribute to Associations Between Interpersonal Objectification Experiences and Sex-Linked Substance Use Among Women in College
Objectification theory suggests that women who are treated as sexual objects may disengage from internal bodily experiences, increasing their risk for sexual dysfunction. Extending this framework, it is possible that when objectification dulls women's sexual sensation, they turn to substances they believe will heighten sexual sensation (i.e. sex-linked substance use; SLSU). The present study examined relationships between interpersonal sexual obj…
Psychology (13 works) · Clinical Psychology (8 works) · Developmental psychology (8 works) · Medicine (8 works) · Clinical Psychology (6 works) · Human sexuality (6 works) · Social Psychology (6 works) · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health (5 works) · Sexual behavior (5 works) · Sexual function and dysfunction studies (5 works)