Upcoming Meeting Program

We are pleased to announce the preliminary program for the IASR 2026 Annual Meeting!

After two thorough rounds of review, our Scientific Programming Committee (SPC) has chosen symposium and plenary speakers for this year’s conference. If you would also like to present your research at our meeting, brief oral and poster abstracts are still invited. Stay tuned for further updates in the coming months on the exciting sexual science that will be presented in Porto this summer!

Plenary Speakers

note: talk titles to be announced in the coming months

Preconference Workshop

The Use of AI in Sexuality Research
Organized by IASR President-Elect David Moskowitz

This workshop introduces practical ways artificial intelligence can be integrated into sex research across the entire research pipeline. Drawing on examples from ongoing projects in digital health and relationship science, Laura Vowels will demonstrate how AI can support qualitative and quantitative methodologies, including conducting AI-facilitated interviews, coding qualitative data, and supporting data analysis workflows while maintaining scientific rigour. Matthew Vowels will complement this by showing how AI can be used to build new research infrastructure, from rapid development of bespoke research tools to AI-assisted systems for managing and analysing complex datasets. Through live demonstrations and case studies, the workshop will illustrate how researchers can leverage AI to accelerate research while maintaining methodological transparency, reproducibility, and ethical safeguards. The session is designed for students and early-career researchers interested in integrating AI into their research practice and will provide practical guidance on both opportunities and limitations of these emerging methods.

Symposia

note: symposium order does not reflect conference order and speakers may change slightly

Sex research in Portugal: From science to societal impact
Organizer: Pedro Nobre, University of Porto, Portugal

• Ana Gomes, University of Porto, Portugal. Advancing sexual health and well-being through clinical psychological interventions

• Mariana Carrito, University of Porto, Portugal. Affirmative consent: What’s lab got to do with it

• Pedro Costa, University of Porto, Portugal. The “science” of harm: Clinical, legal and policy perspectives on conversion practices of LGBTQ+ people

• Ricardo Barroso, University of Porto, Portugal. Clinical pathways in sexual offending: Tailored psychological interventions for diverse offender profiles

Past and future directions of neurophysiology in sex research
Organizer: Celeste Bittoni, University of Padova, Italy

• Jeff Kiesner, University of Padova, Italy. Electroencephalography in sex research: Previous studies

• Celeste Bittoni, University of Padova, Italy. The neurophysiology of female orgasm: A new empirical study

• Arianna Brancaccio, Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Italy. How EEG biomarkers of orgasm can inform new treatments for chronic pain and SSRI-related sexual dysfunctions

• Barry Komisaruk, Rutgers University, United States. Explaining the shared neural pathways between pain and orgasm

Behind a strong mask: Research and intervention perspectives on masculinity, trauma, and sexuality
Organizer: Natacha Godbout, Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada

• Ateret Gewirtz-Meydan, University of Haifa, Israel. Men, sex, and trauma: Heterogeneous paths from childhood sexual abuse to adult sexual well-being

• Marie-Pier Vaillancourt-Morel, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, Canada. (Dis)similarity between partners’ childhood maltreatment and sexual satisfaction: A dyadic response surface analysis

• Natacha Godbout, Université du Québec à Montréal, Canada. Understanding male victimization, masculinity and sexuality: Findings and knowledge transfer initiative from the National Collective on Male Victimization (CNVAM)

Know, stroke, swell and reconstruct: The clitoris, the primary female pleasure organ
Organizer: Stephanie Both, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Netherlands

• James Pfaus, Charles University, Czech Republic. Clitoral pleasure versus clitoral aversion in the rat: Effects on partner preference and brain activation

• Stephanie Both, Amsterdam University Medical Center, Netherlands. Changes in clitoral volume in response to visual erotic stimulation in pre- and postmenopausal women

• Jasmine Abdulcadir, University of Geneva, Switzerland. Psychosexual function after female genital mutilation/cutting: Advancing reconstructive and therapeutic approaches

• Tanja Oschatz, Joahnnes-Gutenberg University Mainz & Medical School Hamburg, Germany. The influence of men partner’s sexual communal strength and clitoral knowledge on women’s orgasm and sexual pleasure: A dyadic analysis of women-men relationships

Substance use and sex among sexual minority men
Organizer: Trevor Hart, Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada

• Trevor Hart, Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada. longitudinal variable-centred and person-centred approaches to understanding crystal methamphetamine use and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men

• Shayna Skakoon-Sparling, University of Guelph, Canada. Factors that contribute to sexualized substance use among sexual minority men: Considering the impact of relationship power dynamics

• Adhm Zahran, Toronto Metropolitan University, Canada. Intersectional minority stress, problematic alcohol use, and sexual health among sexual minority men of colour

• Tyrel Starks, Hunter College, United States. Sexual relationship quality, sexual behavior, and drug use symptom severity: Evaluating key assumptions in interdependence theory