Summary of Hooked: New Science on how Casual Sex is Affecting our Children
Yolanda Heyward
Liberty University
Summary
The purpose of this paper is to review Joe McIlhaney and Freda McKissic’s book Hooked: New Science on How Casual Sex is Affecting Our Children. The book was published by Northfield Publishing in 2008. The authors describes how the brain is the most important sexual organ and provide scientific proof that allow not only brain activity to be viewed, but also how and when three chemicals (dopamine, oxytocin and vasopressin) are released and how these chemicals affect sexual behavior. “Breakthroughs in the burgeoning neuroscience explain the impact having sex has on the developing brains of adolescents and young adults” (McIlhaney & McKissic Bush, 2008). They describe how dopamine, the chemical that gives a feeling of pleasure, has a “great influence over human behavior” (pg. 31) and with this comes the want for more of the activity. Oxytocin, the chemical more prevalent in women, activates the feelings of closeness and trust and when experienced outside the bonds of marriage women can become deceived into thinking a bad relationship is good because of the touch dependent effects of oxytocin (pg. 40). In men, this bonding feeling is called vasopressin. McIlhaney & Bush, 2008 describe how sexual activity activate these neurochemicals reactions in our brain that form how we think and feel and describe how this make adolescents vulnerable to getting “hooked” on unhealthy sexual behaviors. Although the authors do not write the book from a Christian perspective they do recognize the role spirituality play in the adolescent development of having healthy sexual behaviors. The book’s intent help adolescents abstain from sex until they are married. McIlhaney & Bush, 2008 had these tips to offer adolescents: have friends with the same intentions about sex, let people you date know your values about sex...