Brakes and Accelerators: The Dual Control Model of Sexual Response

Most of us were taught to think about sexual interest like a single dial. Turn it up and you want sex; turn it down and you do not. If your dial seems low, the usual advice is to find ways to turn it up: novelty, lingerie, a weekend away.

Researchers John Bancroft and Erick Janssen proposed a more useful picture. Instead of one dial, they described two systems working at the same time: one that excites sexual response and one that inhibits it. Think of an accelerator and a brake. How aroused you feel in a given moment depends on the balance between the two, and people differ in how sensitive each system is.

This is the dual control model. It started as a theory about men, and it has become one of the most practical ideas in sex research for people of any gender.

Where the model came from

In 2000, Bancroft and Janssen published "The dual control model of male sexual response: a theoretical approach to centrally mediated erectile dysfunction" in the journal Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews. Bancroft was director of the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University from 1995 to 2004, and the institute describes the model as developed by Bancroft and Janssen there in the late 1990s.

Their abstract describes the core idea: sexual response depends on "the balancing of central excitation and inhibition, with individuals varying in their propensity for both sexual excitation and inhibition of sexual response." In plain terms, your brain is constantly weighing reasons to become aroused against reasons to hold back, and your personal settings for both are part of who you are.

Measuring the accelerator and the brakes

To test the idea, the researchers developed a questionnaire called the Sexual Inhibition and Sexual Excitation Scales, usually shortened to SIS/SES. When they analyzed the answers, they found one excitation factor and two separate inhibition factors.

• SES (sexual excitation). How readily you respond to sexual cues: a partner's touch, an attractive person, a fantasy.
• SIS1 (inhibition due to threat of performance failure). The paper links this factor with fear of performance failure. It is the brake that engages when you worry about whether your body will cooperate.
• SIS2 (inhibition due to threat of performance consequences). The paper says this factor may relate to external threats, for example from within the sexual relationship. It is the brake that responds to risks such as being discovered, pregnancy, infection or emotional fallout.

Having two kinds of brakes turns out to matter. Someone with a sensitive SIS1 may lose arousal because they are anxious about performing. Someone with a sensitive SIS2 may lose arousal because the situation feels unsafe or uncertain. The same outcome, but very different causes.

What the authors predicted about treatment

The 2000 paper made a striking prediction. The authors suggested that men with high SIS2 would respond to psychological treatment, while men with high SIS1 would respond better to medication. Whether or not that specific prediction holds up in every case, the broader point stuck: if you know which brake is involved, you can choose a better response.

That idea has since been applied well beyond erectile problems. Research teams at the Kinsey Institute later developed a version of the questionnaire for women, and educators have used the brake and accelerator language with all kinds of clients.

Why the brakes deserve more attention

Most popular advice about desire focuses on the accelerator. Try something new. Watch something sexy. Plan a date night. These can help, but for many people the real problem is not a weak accelerator. It is that the brakes are pressed hard.

Common things that press the brakes include:

• Stress and exhaustion
• Worry about how your body looks or performs
• Fear of pain, often after a painful experience
• Feeling pressured, judged or rushed
• Unresolved conflict or resentment toward a partner
• Worry about being overheard, interrupted or discovered
• Concerns about pregnancy or infections

If any of these are in play, adding more stimulation may not help much. It is a bit like pressing harder on the gas while the parking brake is still on. Our article on body image and bedroom confidence looks at one of the most common brakes in more detail.

Using the model in real life

You do not need to take the questionnaire to make use of the model. Try these steps on your own or with a partner.

1. Make two lists. On one, write things that reliably turn you on or make you feel open to sex. On the other, write things that reliably shut you down. Be specific. "A clean bedroom," "knowing the kids are asleep," "being kissed slowly" and "a partner who texts something sweet during the day" are all fair game.

2. Look at the brake list first. For each item, ask whether it can be reduced or removed. A lock on the door, a set time when phones go in another room or a conversation about a lingering argument can sometimes do more than any new technique.

3. Share the lists. Partners often guess wrong about each other's brakes. One person may assume the other needs more seduction, when what they actually need is less mental load before bed. Our desire discrepancy toolkit for couples suggests ways to compare notes without turning it into a scorecard.

4. Notice context. The same person can have a sensitive brake in one setting and not in another. Many people find that vacations, for example, work partly because they remove everyday brakes such as chores and work worries.

Sensitive brakes are not a flaw

A sensitive brake system is not a defect. Inhibition has a purpose. It helps people avoid sex in situations that are risky or unwanted. Someone with highly sensitive brakes may simply need more safety, privacy and trust before arousal can take hold. That is a preference to accommodate, not a problem to fix.

Equally, someone with a very responsive accelerator is not broken either, though very low inhibition can sometimes go along with taking more sexual risks. The model is about understanding your own settings so you can make choices that suit them.

When to get support

If brakes are linked to pain, trauma, anxiety or depression, or if a change in arousal comes on suddenly, it is worth talking to a doctor or a certified sex therapist. Physical causes such as medication side effects, hormonal changes or pelvic pain can masquerade as low desire. See how to talk to a doctor about a sexual concern for a simple way to bring it up.

The takeaway

Arousal is not one dial. It is the balance between what excites you and what holds you back, and everyone's balance is a little different. Before you push harder on the accelerator, check whether something is pressing the brake. Taking a brake off is often the faster route to feeling present and interested again.

Sources

• Kinsey Institute. Dual Control Model of Sexual Response. https://kinseyinstitute.org/research/dual-control-model.html

• Bancroft J, Janssen E. The dual control model of male sexual response: a theoretical approach to centrally mediated erectile dysfunction. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews. 2000;24(5):571 to 579. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0149-7634(00)00024-5

• Europe PMC record and abstract for Bancroft and Janssen 2000 (PMID 10880822). https://europepmc.org/article/MED/10880822

• Basson R. The Female Sexual Response: A Different Model. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy. 2000;26(1):51 to 65. https://doi.org/10.1080/009262300278641