Founded by Michael A. Perelman, Ph.D. in 2011
THE PROBLEM:
It is a distressing global reality that hundreds of millions of men and women face sexual difficulties, preventing them from fully experiencing the strong relationship between sexual health, overall well-being, and happiness.
THE MISSION:
The MAP Education & Research Foundation is committed to empowering healthcare providers, particularly the upcoming generation, with the knowledge needed to help alleviate such suffering.
THE SOLUTION:
The Foundation supports educational initiatives that are fueled by our Sexual Tipping Point® model, which unifies biomedical-psychosocial and cultural perspectives to comprehend, diagnose, and treat sexual disorders. Bolstered by the contributions of our scientific advisors, the Sexual Tipping Point® Award Program encourages and mentors healthcare students and professionals, as well as providing certificates and monetary rewards for outstanding abstracts presented at professional sexual health society conferences.
A Sexual Tipping Point Award Certificate and $1000 prize was presented to Katrina N. Bouchard, PhD at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Sex Therapy & Research (SSTAR) April, 2024 in Toronto, Canada. Katrina's presentation was on: "Hold me: A pilot study of cognitive-behavioral couple therapy for sexual interest/arousal disorder.” Pictured is Samantha Dawson, Ph.D. (SSTAR Program Chair) presenting on behalf of the Foundation to Katrina N. Bouchard, PhD.
A Sexual Tipping Point Award Certificate and $1000 prize was presented to Rose Hartzell, PhD, EdS, CHES, LMFT, IF during the 2023 Annual Fall Meeting of the Sexual Medicine Society of North America (SMSNA) in San Diego, November 2023. Rose’s presentation was on: "Psychosocial Factors in PGAD/GPD Patients Who Underwent Spine Surgery for Lumbosacral Annular Tear-Induced Sacral Radiculopathy (#097).”
A Sexual Tipping Point Award Certificate and $1000 prize was presented to Elisa Maseroli, MD during the 2024 Annual Meeting of the International Society for Women’s Sexual Health, April, 2024. Elisa's presentation was on: "Inhibition and Excitation in the Sexual Brain: An Useful Tool for the Prediction of the Diagnosis and Treatment of Hypoactive Sexual Desire in Women with Sexual Dysfunction (#001).”
A Sexual Tipping Point Award Certificate and $1000 prize was presented to Rose Hartzell, PhD, EdS, CHES, LMFT, IF during the 2023 Annual Fall Meeting of the Sexual Medicine Society of North America (SMSNA) in San Diego, November 2023. Rose’s presentation was on: "Psychosocial Factors in PGAD/GPD Patients Who Underwent Spine Surgery for Lumbosacral Annular Tear-Induced Sacral Radiculopathy (#097).”
The Foundation maintains and promotes mapedfund.org to distribute its Sexual Tipping Point® resources free to all health care students and professionals.
Foundation lectures and publications familiarize healthcare providers with the Foundation's Sexual Tipping Point® model's biomedical-psychosocial and cultural approach to understanding, diagnosing and treating sexual disorders.
The STP model uses a dynamic balance scale with two arms labeled excitation and inhibition to represent the billions of factors that can influence a person's sexual response. These factors are shown as sliders on a matrix of potentially relevant Mental and Physical factors listed below the Sexual Balance Scale. Each slider moves along its axis based on its degree of excitation or inhibition, with changing hues of red indicating increasing excitation and blue indicating increasing inhibition. The size of the slider reflects the magnitude or strength of the factor's contribution to the sexual response. Both inhibitory and excitatory processes can occur simultaneously, and the balance between these processes determines the overall sexual response. The sliders are labeled “M” or “P” to indicate whether they refer to a Mental or Physical factor and numbered according to the factor they represent. Numbered and lettered balls in the cups of the STP Balance Scale indicate the polarity and strength of the sliders displayed in the matrix. The balance between the opposing forces of excitation and inhibition of all the sliders combined, represents an individual's sexual tipping point, and shows their transitioning between a sexual and/or non-sexual state.
The dots separating the Mental and Physical sides within the matrix represent the continuous link between the mind and body. Some factors may be neutral (=) while others remain still undiscovered (?). Disorders, diseases and/or injuries are indicated by the placement of the relevant sliders on various factor axes. Overall, the STP model provides a graphic and conceptual framework for understanding the complex interplay of mind and body factors that influence a person’s sexual response. By identifying the factors that contribute to an individual sexual tipping point, the model can be used to guide personalized approaches to sexual health and well-being.
FAQ: What is the citation that should be used if I incorporate any of the STP or mapedfund images into my own presentation or use in my own publications? "This image is provided courtesy of Michael A. Perelman, Ph.D. and is based on the Sexual Tipping Point Model®, owned by and used with the permission of the MAP Education & Research Foundation (mapedfund.org).”
2018 SEXUAL TIPPING POINT® MODEL
(EARLIER VARIABLE CONTROL IMAGES)
“Sex Coaching: How The Sexual Tipping Point Model® Helps Optimize The Diagnosis & Treatment Of PE,”
Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Urological Association, San Francisco, CA, May, 2018.
We want to thank the Sexual Medicine Society of North America (SMSNA) for honoring Dr. Perelman with their 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award presented at the 2022 Joint Scientific Meeting of the SMSNA/ISSM opening ceremonies in Miami, Fl. It is especially appreciated as an implicit recognition of the work of the MAP Education & Research Foundation and its Sexual Tipping Point® Model that promotes a biomedical-psychosocial and cultural approach to the understanding, diagnosis and treatment of sexual disorders in women and men.
We want to thank the American Association for Sex Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) membership for honoring Dr. Perelman with their 2019 Integrative Approaches to Sex Therapy Award, presented at their 2019 Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, PA. It is especially appreciated as implicit recognition of the work of the MAP Education & Research Foundation and its Sexual Tipping Point® Model that promotes a biomedical-psychosocial and cultural approach to the understanding, diagnosis and treatment of sexual disorders in women and men.
