Sexual arousal though they are generally considered secondary in role to the other three. Erotic stimuli which can result in sexual arousal can include conversation, reading, films or images, or a smell or setting, any of which can generate erotic thoughts and memories in a person. Given the right context, these may lead to the person desiring physical contact, including kissing, cuddling, and petting of an erogenous zone. This may in turn make the person desire direct sexual stimulation of the breasts, nipples, buttocks and/or genitals, and further sexual activity. Erotic stimuli may originate from a source unrelated to the object of
Sexual arousal to sexual stimuli, with men showing higher levels of amygdala and hypothalamic responses than women. This suggests the amygdala plays a critical role in the processing of sexually arousing visual stimuli in men. Research suggests that cognitive factors like sexual motivation, perceived gender role expectations, and sexual attitudes play important roles in women's self-reported levels of sexual arousal. In her alternative model of sexual response, Basson suggests that women's need for intimacy prompts them to engage with sexual stimuli, which leads to an experience of sexual desire and psychological sexual arousal. Psychological sexual arousal also has an effect on physiological