E. Sandra Byers
{{short description|Canadian psychologist and sex researcher}}
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| name =E. Sandra Byers
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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1951|11|09}}
| birth_place = Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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| education =B.A., 1973, Psychology, University of Rochester
MA., PhD., Clinical Psychology, 1978, West Virginia University
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| thesis_title =Counselor skill-training in a year-round therapeutic wilderness camp: Effect on camper and counselor behaviors during problem solving sessions
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| thesis_year =1978
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| workplaces =University of New Brunswick
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Elaine Sandra Byers {{post-nominals|list=FRSC}} (born November 9, 1951) is a Canadian psychologist, sex researcher, educator and therapist. As a faculty member of psychology at the University of New Brunswick, she established the Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre for Family Violence.{{cite web |title=Profile page for: Sandra Byers {{!}} UNB |url=https://www.unb.ca/faculty-staff/directory/arts-fr-psychology/byers-sandra.html |website=www.unb.ca |access-date=11 September 2023 |language=en}}
Early life and education
Byers was born on November 9, 1951, in Montreal, Quebec.{{cite web |title=E. Sandra Byers CV |url=http://www2.unb.ca/~byers/VITA%20March%202016.pdf |website=unb.ca |accessdate=January 23, 2020}} She attended West Virginia University for her Master's degree and PhD.{{cite web |title=Sandra Byers |url=http://www.policyresearchnetwork.ca/sandra-byers/ |website=policyresearchnetwork.ca |date=19 December 2013 |accessdate=January 23, 2020}} Her PhD thesis was titled "Counselor Skill-Training in a Year-Round Therapeutic Wilderness Camp: Effect on Camper and Counselor Behaviors during Problem Solving Sessions."{{cite web |title=PhDs in Psychology from West Virginia University |url=https://psychology.wvu.edu/files/d/589c0f1b-0e49-4b06-ba65-04a9e264be8b/psychology-phds-from-west-virginia-university.pdf |website=psychology.wvu.edu |accessdate=January 23, 2020}}
Career
After graduating from the West Virginia University, she joined the faculty of University of New Brunswick (UNB) and established their first human sexuality course in the Department of Psychology.{{cite web |title=Making the private public |url=https://www.unb.ca/difference/byers.html |website=unb.ca |accessdate=January 23, 2020}} One of her first research projects at UNB was to study stroke survivors opinions on sexual activities.{{cite web |title=NEW BRUNSWICK PROFESSOR RECEIVES RECOGNITION FOR RESEARCH IN SEX STUDIES |url=http://frenchfortcove.com/new-brunswick-professor-receives-recognition-for-research-in-sex-studies/ |website=frenchfortcove.com |accessdate=January 23, 2020}} She later became the founding director of the University's Muriel McQueen Fergusson Centre for Family Violence and co-edited "Sexual Coercion in Dating Relationships."{{cite book |author1=Peter B. Anderson |author2=Cindy Struckman-Johnson |title=Sexually Aggressive Women: Current Perspectives and Controversies |date=June 22, 1998 |publisher=Guilford Press |isbn=9781572301658 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EwWSXYqtmk4C&pg=PR6 |accessdate=January 23, 2020}} By 2003, she was elected Chair of the psychology department at UNB.{{cite web |title=Prof Sandra Byers wins prestigious international award for groundbreaking work on human sexuality |url=https://blogs.unb.ca/newsroom/2013/11/prof--sandra-byers-wins-prestigious-international-award-for-groundbreaking-work-on-human-sexuality.php |website=unb.ca |accessdate=January 23, 2020 |date=November 19, 2013}}
In 2004, Byers and S. Andrea Miller conducted a study published in the Journal of Sex Research that concluded men in heterosexual relationships were often dissatisfied with the length of foreplay and intercourse.{{cite web |last1=Rob |first1=Alice |title=Study: Men Don't Last Very Long in Bed—and It Bothers Them More Than Women |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/117463/study-half-men-take-2-minutes-finish-sex-who-bothered |website=newrepublic.com |accessdate=January 23, 2020 |date=April 22, 2014}} Two years later, Byers was named a University Research Scholar by UNB for her contributions to the study of human sexuality, sexual health and intimate partner relationships.{{cite web |title=Sandra Byers 2008 University Research Scholar Recipient |url=https://www.unb.ca/hr/_resources/awardrecipients/sandrabyers.html |website=unb.ca |accessdate=January 23, 2020 |date=2008}}
In 2013, Byers was awarded the Alfred C. Kinsey Award by the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. Later, Byers, Kaitlyn Goldsmith and Amanda Miller concluded that out of 107 men and 102 women, only 30 percent would choose to live life as the opposite gender. Byers' analysis of the results was that sexist beliefs and stereotypes played a role in the participants' answers.{{cite web |title=Many people reluctant to switch genders even for a short period of time |url=https://toronto.citynews.ca/2016/08/19/many-people-reluctant-to-switch-genders-even-for-a-short-period-of-timestudy/ |website=toronto.citynews.ca |accessdate=January 23, 2020 |date=August 19, 2016}} In 2018, she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada{{cite web |title=UNB psychology chair inducted to Royal Society of Canada |url=https://blogs.unb.ca/newsroom/2018/11/unb-psychology-chair-inducted-to-royal-society-of-canada.php |website=unb.ca |accessdate=January 23, 2020 |date=November 21, 2018}} and recognized by the Canadian Sexual Research Forum with an Outstanding Contribution Award.{{cite web |title=Dr. Sandra Byers recognized for contributions to human sexuality research |url=https://blogs.unb.ca/newsroom/2018/10/dr-sandra-byers-recognized-for-contributions-to-human-sexuality-research.php |website=unb.ca |accessdate=January 23, 2020 |date=October 24, 2018}}
References
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Category:Anglophone Quebec people
Category:Canadian women academics
Category:Canadian women psychologists
Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Canada
Category:University of Rochester alumni
Category:Academic staff of the University of New Brunswick
Category:West Virginia University alumni