L-R:
John Bancroft, MD, director of the Kinsey Institute at Indiana
University, Janet Hyde, PhD, University of Wisconsin, Alan
Leshner, PhD, CEO of the American Association for the Advancement of
Science, and Tom Coates, PhD, UCLA David Geffen School of
Medicine.
Janet Hyde answers a question from the audience.
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The American Psychological Association and the broader scientific
community have been working for several months on ways to counter the
congressional attacks on peer-reviewed research funded by the National
Institutes of Health (NIH). As we reported in the Fall PSA, there was an
amendment proposed in July 2003 that would have cut off funding for five
specific peer-reviewed grants, mostly grants that had to do with sexual
behaviors. In response, APA joined with the Consortium of Social Science
Associations and 45 other scientific and public health organizations to
form the Coalition to Protect Research (CPR), which it now co-chairs.
CPR member organizations represent scientists, physicians, health care
providers, patients, and advocates that support federal investments in
basic biomedical and behavioral research in human sexual development,
sexual health, HIV/AIDS and sexually-transmitted diseases. One of the
goals of CPR is to educate policymakers about the importance of sexual
health research, which it does through letters from constituents, visits
with members of Congress and sponsoring congressional briefings for
congressional staff and others.
On March 5, CPR, along with the Decade of Behavior and 20 other
organizations, sponsored its first congressional briefing entitled,
"Lost in Translation: Public Health Implications of Sexual Health
Research." Speakers included psychologists Tom Coates, PhD, UCLA
David Geffen School of Medicine, Janet Hyde, PhD, University of
Wisconsin, and Alan Leshner, PhD, CEO of the American Association for
the Advancement of Science, who served as the moderator as well as John
Bancroft, MD, director of the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University.
The three speakers addressed a crowd of nearly 100, including
congressional staff, NIH officials and members of the broader scientific
community. Dr. Leshner began the briefing with a brief explanation of
the concerns that the scientific community has had with the Toomey
amendment and the continuing congressional inquiries into more than 150
peer-reviewed research projects and reiterated the importance of
behavioral factors to the burden of many public health challenges.
Dr. Hyde began her talk with an explanation of the 2001 Surgeon
General's Call to Action on Sexual Health and Responsible Sexual
Behavior that was published by former Surgeon General David Satcher and
explicitly calls for additional federal investments in basic research in
human sexual development, sexual health, reproductive health, as well as
social and behavioral research on risk and protective factors for sexual
health. Dr. Hyde later discussed the importance of sexuality in marriage
and highlighted research that has shown that report of sexual
dissatisfaction in marriage was predictive of divorce three years later.
Dr. Bancroft discussed the biological factors and psychophysiology of
sexual health research and explained why it is important to understand
the mechanisms of sexual arousal from a biomedical perspective and the
various methods used to measure sexual arousal. From a public health
standpoint, sexual health research is needed to understand and prevent
the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases, unplanned
pregnancies, child sexual abuse, sexual assault and rape and sexual
dysfunction. The goal of much sexual health research is to really help
people manage their sexual behavior and reduce the likelihood of
unacceptable or high-risk sexual behavior.
Dr. Coates then discussed several case studies of successful
prevention interventions that have addressed the transmission of
HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases in the United States
and Africa. One especially successful intervention took place in Uganda
through the use of the ABC program in that encourages individuals to: a)
abstain until marriage; b) be faithful; and c) use condoms. While the
intervention has produced a dramatic rise in condom usage and reduced
the spread of HIV/AIDS, it does not address the particular factors that
impact the spread of HIV/AIDS to women. In part, this is because of the
dramatic rates of sexual violence against women and for married women,
who are likely to be infected by their unfaithful partners.
In response to an audience question about the impact that
congressional inquiries have had on scientists themselves, Dr. Hyde
explained that political pressure often comes in waves and she praised
the courageous researchers who continue to work during these times of
increased pressure. Dr. Coates was concerned that the current chilling
effect not only impacts current sexual health researchers, but could
also discourage future generations of scientists from pursuing these
areas of research at a time when there is a greater need than ever for
people in the field.
APA Public Policy staff will continue work on this important issue
and chair the Coalition to Protect Research, which is drafting a
petition to be signed by scientists themselves to speak out in support
of scientific principles and the National Institutes of Health. Please
visit the APA website to find out what you can do to let your own member
of Congress know that you support the peer review system.
 Read
more about CPR and its activities
View
Dr. Hyde's presentation [PPT 2 MB]
View
Dr. Bancroft's presentation [PPT 530 K]
View
Dr. Coates' presentation [PPT 5 MB]
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