Editing Human sexual activity (section)

==Legal issues==
{{Main|Sex and the law}}
There are many laws and social customs which prohibit, or in some way affect sexual activities. These laws and customs vary from country to country, and have varied over time. They cover, for example, a prohibition to non-consensual sex, to sex outside marriage, to sexual activity in public, besides many others. Many of these restrictions are non-controversial, but some have been the subject of public debate.

Most societies consider it a serious crime to force someone to engage in sexual acts or to engage in sexual activity with someone who does not consent. This is called [[sexual assault]], and if sexual penetration occurs it is called rape, the most serious kind of sexual assault. The details of this distinction may vary among different legal jurisdictions. Also, what constitutes effective consent in sexual matters varies from culture to culture and is frequently debated. Laws regulating the minimum age at which a person can consent to have sex ([[age of consent]]) are frequently the subject of debate, as is [[adolescent sexual behavior]] in general. Some societies have forced marriage, where consent may not be required.

===Same-sex laws===
{{Main|LGBT rights by country or territory}}
Many locales have laws that limit or prohibit [[Same-sex relationship|same-sex sexual activity]].

===Sex outside marriage===
In the West, [[fornication|sex before marriage]] is not illegal. There are social taboos and many religions condemn pre-marital sex. In many Muslim countries, such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eyeontheun.org/voices.asp?p=632 |title=Human Rights Voices – Searching for Freedom, Chained by the Law |publisher=Eyeontheun.org |date=21 August 2008 |access-date=30 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121175822/http://www.eyeontheun.org/voices.asp?p=632 |archive-date=21 January 2013 }}</ref> Afghanistan,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.e-ariana.com/ariana/eariana.nsf/allArticles/807B10B75C9F425487257A740056F9CD?OpenDocument |title=Afghanistan sees rise in 'dancing boys' exploitation |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=9 September 2012 |author=Ernesto Londoño |location=DEHRAZI, Afghanistan |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130510180701/http://www.e-ariana.com/ariana/eariana.nsf/allArticles/807B10B75C9F425487257A740056F9CD?OpenDocument |archive-date=10 May 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aidsportal.org/news_details.aspx?ID=4236 |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20081026065259/http://www.aidsportal.org/news_details.aspx?ID=4236 |url-status=dead |archive-date=26 October 2008 |title=Home |publisher=AIDSPortal |access-date=30 June 2013 }}</ref><ref name="travel.state.gov">{{cite web|url=https://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1142.html |title=Iran |publisher=Travel.state.gov |access-date=30 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801084310/http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1142.html |archive-date=1 August 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Iran,<ref name="travel.state.gov"/> Kuwait,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/2f5665ae20b956cb8025675a0033cafb?Opendocument |title=United Nations Human Rights Website – Treaty Bodies Database – Document – Summary Record – Kuwait |publisher=Unhchr.ch |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref> Maldives,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Maldives.html |title=Culture of Maldives – history, people, clothing, women, beliefs, food, customs, family, social |publisher=Everyculture.com |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref> Morocco,<ref>{{Cite news|last=Fakim |first=Nora |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-19049000 |title=BBC News – Morocco: Should pre-marital sex be legal? |publisher=Bbc.co.uk |date=9 August 2012 |access-date=30 June 2013|newspaper=BBC News }}</ref> Oman,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.interpol.com/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/csaOman.pdf |title=Interpol |publisher=Interpol" |access-date=30 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160516065620/http://www.interpol.com/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/csaOman.pdf |archive-date=16 May 2016 }}</ref> Mauritania,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2010/af/154358.htm |title=2010 Human Rights Report: Mauritania |publisher=State.gov |date=8 April 2011 |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref> United Arab Emirates,<ref>{{cite web|author=Dubai FAQs |url=http://www.dubaifaqs.com/education-dubai.php |title=Education in Dubai |publisher=Dubaifaqs.com |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Judd |first=Terri |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/briton-faces-jail-for-sex-on-dubai-beach-863918.html |title=Briton faces jail for sex on Dubai beach – Middle East – World |newspaper=The Independent |date=10 July 2008 |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref> Sudan,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/2007/06/28/idUSL28849488._CH_.2400 |title=Sudan must rewrite rape laws to protect victims |newspaper=Reuters |date=28 June 2007 |access-date=30 June 2013 |archive-date=15 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130615115805/http://www.reuters.com/article/2007/06/28/idUSL28849488._CH_.2400 |url-status=dead }}</ref> and Yemen,<ref>{{cite web|author=United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees |url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/47387b712f.html/ |title=Refworld &#124; Women's Rights in the Middle East and North Africa – Yemen |publisher=Unhcr.org |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref> any form of sexual activity outside marriage is illegal. Those found guilty, especially women, may be forced to wed the sexual partner, may be publicly beaten, or may be stoned to death.<ref>[https://www.proquest.com/docview/1231356905, "Girl faces lashing for pre-marital sex"], Shanghai Daily, 2012</ref> In many African and native tribes, sexual activity is not viewed as a privilege or right of a married couple, but rather as the unification of bodies and is thus not frowned upon.<ref>Lee, [http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/search/recordDetails.jsp?ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED137169&searchtype=keyword&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&_pageLabel=RecordDetails&accno=ED137169&_nfls=false "Exploring Sex Roles in African Studies"], 1976</ref>

Other studies have analyzed the changing attitudes about sex that American adolescents have outside marriage. Adolescents were asked how they felt about oral and vaginal sex in relation to their health, social, and emotional well-being. Overall, teenagers felt that oral sex was viewed as more socially positive amongst their demographic.<ref name="Halpern-Feisher, B.L. 2005">{{cite journal |author1=Halpern-Feisher B.L. |author2=Cornell J.L. |author3=Kropp R.Y. |author4=Tschann J.M. | year = 2005 | title = Oral Versus Vaginal Sex Among Adolescents: Perceptions, Attitudes, and Behaviour | journal = Pediatrics | volume = 115 | issue = 4| pages = 845–851 | doi = 10.1542/peds.2004-2108 |pmid=15805354 |s2cid=5903926 | doi-access =  }}</ref> Results stated that teenagers believed that oral sex for dating and non-dating adolescents was less threatening to their overall values and beliefs than vaginal sex was.<ref name="Halpern-Feisher, B.L. 2005"/> When asked, teenagers who participated in the research viewed oral sex as more acceptable to their peers, and their personal values than vaginal sex.<ref name="Halpern-Feisher, B.L. 2005"/>

===Minimum age of sexual activity (age of consent)===
{{Main|Age of consent}}
The laws of each jurisdiction set the minimum age at which a young person is allowed to engage in sexual activity.<ref name="waites">{{cite book|last=Waites| first = Matthew|title=The Age of Consent: Young People, Sexuality and Citizenship|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|year=2005|isbn= 978-1-4039-2173-4}}</ref> This [[age of consent]] is typically between 14 and 18 years, but laws vary. In many jurisdictions, age of consent is a person's mental or functional age.<ref name="kopple-wolf1">{{cite web|url=http://www.kopple-wolf.com/lawyer-attorney-1139001.html |title=Kopple-Wolf.com |publisher=Kopple-Wolf.com |access-date=30 June 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130605002946/http://www.kopple-wolf.com/lawyer-attorney-1139001.html |archive-date=5 June 2013 |df=dmy-all }}</ref><ref name="supremecourt1999">{{cite web |url=http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/1999/apr99/126545.htm |title=People vs Floers: 126545: April 21, 1999: J. Gonzaga-Reyes: En Banc |date=21 April 1999 |publisher=Supreme Court of the Philippines |access-date=25 December 2014 |quote=WHEREFORE, the judgment of the ''court a quo''convicting Lorenzo Andaya of the crime of rape is hereby AFFIRMED... |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190308193520/http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/1999/apr99/126545.htm |archive-date=8 March 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="lawphil1">{{cite web|url=http://lawphil.net/judjuris/juri1999/apr1999/gr_126545_1999.html |title=G.R. No. 126545 |publisher=Lawphil.net |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref> As a result, those above the set age of consent may still be considered unable to legally consent due to mental immaturity.<ref name="kopple-wolf1"/><ref name="supremecourt1999"/><ref name="lawphil1"/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lawskills.com/case/ga/id/412/60/index.html |title=348 SE2d 486 (Affirmed) |website=Lawskills.com |date=15 July 1986 |access-date=25 December 2014 |quote=The defendant appeals his conviction for aggravated sodomy (OCGA 16-6-2 (a)) on a five-year-old child victim. |archive-date=17 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917150250/http://www.lawskills.com/case/ga/id/412/60/index.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lawphil.net/judjuris/juri1998/aug1998/gr_126921_1998.html |title=G.R. No. 126921 |publisher=Lawphil.net |access-date=30 June 2013}}</ref> Many jurisdictions regard any sexual activity by an adult involving a child as [[child sexual abuse]].

Age of consent may vary by the type of sexual act, the sex of the actors, or other restrictions such as abuse of a [[position of trust]]. Some jurisdictions also make allowances for young people engaged in sexual acts with each other.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/canada-s-age-of-consent-raised-by-2-years-1.754941|title=Canada's age of consent raised by 2 years|publisher=CBC News|date=1 May 2008|access-date=22 March 2009}}</ref>

===Incestuous relationships===
{{main|Legality of incest}}
Most jurisdictions prohibit sexual activity between certain close relatives. These laws vary to some extent; such acts are called [[incest]]uous.

Incest laws may involve restrictions on [[marriage]] rights, which also vary between jurisdictions. When incest involves an adult and a child, it is considered to be a form of [[child sexual abuse]].<ref name=Levesque>{{cite book|title=Sexual Abuse of Children: A Human Rights Perspective |url=https://archive.org/details/sexualabuseofchi0000leve |url-access=registration |last=Levesque |first=Roger J. R. |publisher=Indiana University Press |year=1999 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/sexualabuseofchi0000leve/page/1 1], 5–6,176–180|isbn=9780253334718 }}</ref><ref name=UNchildren>{{cite web|url=http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/crc.htm |title=United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child |publisher=Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights |year=1989 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100611182141/http://www2.ohchr.org/english/law/crc.htm |archive-date=2010-06-11 }}</ref>

===Sexual abuse===
{{Main|Sexual abuse|Rape|Sexual assault}}

Non-consensual sexual activity or subjecting an unwilling person to witnessing a sexual activity are forms of [[sexual abuse]], as well as (in many countries) certain non-consensual paraphilias such as [[frotteurism]], [[telephone scatophilia]] (indecent phonecalls), and non-consensual [[exhibitionism]] and [[voyeurism]] (known as "[[indecent exposure]]" and "[[Voyeurism|peeping tom]]" respectively).<ref>{{cite web |author=Lawrence Greenfeld |url=http://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/SOO.PDF |title=Sex Offenses and Offenders |publisher=U.S. Department of Justice |date=6 February 1997 |access-date=25 December 2014}}</ref>

===Prostitution and survival sex===
{{main|Prostitution}}
People sometimes exchange sex for money or access to other resources. Work takes place under many varied circumstances. The person who receives payment for sexual services is known as a prostitute and the person who receives such services is referred to by a multitude of terms, such as being a [[Client (prostitution)|client]]. Prostitution is one of the branches of the [[sex industry]]. The [[prostitution and the law|legal status of prostitution]] varies from [[Prostitution by country|country to country]], from being a punishable crime to a regulated profession. Estimates place the annual revenue generated from the global prostitution industry to be over $100&nbsp;billion.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.havocscope.com/activities/prostitution/| title= Prostitution Market Value| date= 25 March 2010| access-date=22 May 2010}}</ref> Prostitution is sometimes referred to as "the world's oldest profession".<ref>The prostitution of women and girls – Page 5; Ronald B. Flowers – 1998</ref> Prostitution may be a voluntary individual activity or facilitated or [[forced prostitution|forced]] by [[pimp]]s.

[[Survival sex]] is a form of prostitution engaged in by people in need, usually when [[homeless]] or otherwise disadvantaged people trade sex for food, a place to sleep, or other [[basic needs]], or for [[Recreational drug use|drugs]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Flowers|first=R. Barri|title=Street kids: the lives of runaway and thrownaway teens|url=https://archive.org/details/streetkidslivesr00flow|url-access=limited|year=2010|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-0-7864-4137-2|pages=[https://archive.org/details/streetkidslivesr00flow/page/n118 110]–112}}</ref> The term is used by [[sex trade]] and poverty researchers and [[aid workers]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Hope Ditmore|first=Melissa|title=Prostitution and Sex Work (Historical Guides to Controversial Issues in America)|year=2010|publisher=Greenwood|isbn=978-0-313-36289-7|page=4|url=https://www.amazon.com/Prostitution-Historical-Controversial-America-ebook/dp/B004H0O9R4}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Kelly|first1=Sanja |first2=Julia |last2=Breslin|title=Women's Rights in the Middle East and North Africa: Progress Amid Resistance (Freedom in the World)|url=https://archive.org/details/womensrightsmidd00kell|url-access=limited|year=2010|publisher=Freedom House / Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|isbn=978-1-4422-0396-9|page=[https://archive.org/details/womensrightsmidd00kell/page/n568 556]}}</ref>