Psychology and the Development of the Sexual Fetish Criteria

http://helenhill.wordpress.com/2011/09/17/psychology-and-the-development-of-the-sexual-fetish-criteria-io9-com/
9/21/11
by Annalee Newitz

Ever since the term "sexual fetish" was first used over a century ago, there's been a raging scientific debate over what it means. Why does one person get off on shoes, while another gets off on certain large body parts? Are these erotic feelings signs of illness, or simply preferences that are as inexplicable and harmless as liking spaghetti more than sausage?

Though sexual fetishism started out as a fairly neutral term over a century ago in early psychiatry, it's become one of the most contested ideas in medicine. Here's why.