Virginia Johnson

Professional Life
Virginia Johnson was born on February 11, 1925, in Springfield, Missouri. She spent some time dabbling in the arts before she landed in St. Louis. She was studying social anthropology when she received a job offer that forever changed the course of her life. While attending Washington University, Johnson sought employment at the medical school and was quickly hired by Dr. William Masters. Masters needed a research assistant for his Obstetrics and Gynecology department and together with Johnson, conducted years of groundbreaking research on human sexuality. Masters and Johnson studied and recorded responses to sexual stimuli as they occurred within test subjects in their laboratory. As a result of their pioneering efforts, Johnson and Masters published two widely popular books within three years, Human Sexual Response and Human Sexual Inadequacy. Prior to publishing these books, the team began collaborating in clinical practice as well, offering the expertise and knowledge they had gained from their research to couples seeking treatment for sexual issues. Together, Johnson and Masters founded the Reproductive Biology Research Foundation, and several years later married and co-directed their own institute, the Masters & Johnson Institute in St. Louis.

Contribution to Psychology
Virginia Johnson is recognized as one of the leading sexologists of our time. She spent more than five decades conducting research, teaching, and practicing treatment for sexual dysfunction. Along with her long-time partner, William Masters, Johnson spearheaded the field of sexual psychology. In addition to the accomplishments that she achieved on her own and with Masters, Johnson also collaborated with Robert C. Kolodny on several other publications, including CRISIS: Heterosexual Behavior in the Age of AIDS.

At the Masters & Johnson Institute, Johnson observed and recorded heterosexual couples, gay and lesbian couples, and individuals, for sexual response. The work conducted at the institute led to monumental leaps in the identification and treatment of sexual dysfunction. Prior to their studies, very few experts had delved so deeply into the field of sexology. Alfred Kinsey was among the few who touched on the psychological aspects of sexual issues before Johnson and Masters, but Johnson and her colleague were the first to study sexual intercourse and masturbation as it relates to sexual behavior and psychology. The team developed the four stage model of human sexual response and dispelled many sexual myths relating to age, gender, and sexual orientation.

One of the most profound impacts Johnson’s work had on the field of psychology was in the area of treating sexual dysfunctions. Until the observations at the Masters & Johnson Institute, sexual impairments were treated with very little success through prolonged courses of psychoanalysis. However, the team created a treatment method that involved both partners rather than only one. The therapy was designed to be a talking therapy and involved no sexual activity observation. Couples who previously had faced frustration and disappointment saw success rates over 80% with this novel technique.