Erick JanssenView profile
Professor
Erick Janssen serves as Professor & Director of the Institute for Family and Sexuality Studies at KU Leuven, where he leads the Department of Neurosciences and directs the Master's Program in Human Sexuality. Concurrently, he holds a Senior Research Fellowship at The Kinsey Institute, reflecting his transnational impact on sexual science research and policy development. Education: Ph.D. in Psychology, Universiteit van Amsterdam (1995) M.A. in Psychology, Universiteit van Amsterdam (1988) Research Focus: Dr. Janssen's work centers on sexual psychophysiology and dyadic sexual dynamics , with pioneering contributions to the Dual Control Model of Sexual Response (co-developed with John Bancroft). This framework examines individual differences in sexual excitation/inhibition propensities across 75,000+ participants globally. His methodology integrates fMRI neuroimaging , ecological momentary assessment , and psychophysiological measurement to explore sexual dysfunction, aggression, and relationship dynamics. Publication Trends: Recent work (2023-2025) reveals three dominant trajectories: (1) Dyadic approaches to sexual desire using real-time couple assessment, (2) Network analysis applications in forensic sexual risk prediction, and (3) Ethical development of research stimuli emphasizing consent/pleasure expression. Over 60% of current publications involve multinational European collaborations. Scientific Recognition: Hugo Beigel Award (twice) for Journal of Sex Research publications SSTAR Award for student-led theoretical work Reiss Theory Award for conceptual contributions IASR Best Student Manuscript Award Leadership & Collaboration: As Past-President of the International Academy of Sex Research and Chair of WAS Scientific Committee, Dr. Janssen directs KU Leuven's psychophysiology lab while coordinating the SexLab (global sexual psychophysiology network) and EuroSex (European research consortium). His grant portfolio includes EU-funded projects across 8 countries investigating sexual health in aging populations and forensic risk factors. Research Infrastructure: He maintains active psychophysiology laboratories at KU Leuven specializing in genital pulse amplitude measurement (including clitoral plethysmography) and fMRI-based sexual response classification (BASIC model). Current projects include the UN-MENAMAIS study on LGB+ health in Belgium and the Kinsey Reporter citizen science initiative.









