THE SEXUALITY CONNECTION IN REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH

Sexuality and power relations based on gender are relevant to research ers, policymakers, and service providers in the reproductive health fi eld, because they underlie virtually all of the behaviors and conditio ns that their programs address. Yet, a review of conventional treatmen ts in the demographic and family planning literature reveals that, whe n they consider these topics at all, researchers typically adopt narro w definitions of sexual behavior and focus almost exclusively on risks of pregnancy and disease. This article proposes an analytic framework as a guide to researchers and family planning providers. It relates f our dimensions of sexuality to reproductive health outcomes and conclu des that family planning policies and programs should address a broade r spectrum of sexual behaviors and meanings, consider questions of sex ual enjoyment as well as risk, and confront ideologies of male entitle ment that threaten women's sexual and reproductive rights and health.