Defining sexuality for holistic nursing practice: an analysis of the concept

Abstract

Sexuality is an integral part of personhood, permeating all aspects of being. Nonetheless, agreement is lacking as to what sexuality actually is. The objective of this paper is to examine the usage and understanding of the term ‘sexuality’, and to extrapolate from these a working definition of the concept in its expressed condition. This is achieved by identifying the defining characteristics of the concept and considering their existence in a particular context. It is proposed that this resultant definition of expressed sexuality represents a move away from the limiting nature of previous understandings towards encompassing many forms of expressed sexuality