Does Sexual Desire Fluctuate More Among Women than Men

Dados Bibliográficos

ID8358192
AutoresE A Harris (0000-0003-1777-083X, The University of Melbourne, autor correspondente), Matthew J Hornsey (0000-0003-1275-3977, The University of Queensland), Wilhelm Hofmann (0000-0003-0295-4679, Ruhr University Bochum), Patrick Jern (0000-0001-9044-7604, Åbo Akademi University), Sean C Murphy (0000-0002-6783-9906, The University of Melbourne), Fanny Hedenborg (Åbo Akademi University), Fiona Barlow (0000-0001-9533-1256, The University of Queensland), Fiona K Barlow
Ano2023
Volume52
Fascículo4
Páginas1461-1478
Data de publicação2023-05-01
Peer ReviewedSim
Open AccessSim
TipoARTICLE
PeriódicoArchives of Sexual Behavior (JOURNAL)
Identificadores do periódicoISSN: 0004-0002 • E-ISSN: 1573-2800
EditoraSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s10508-022-02525-y
PMID36695962
OpenAlexW4317938502
IdiomaEN
Citações recebidas7
Referências citadas61

There is a lay assumption that women’s sexual desire varies substantially over time, whereas men’s is stable. This assumption is mirrored in prominent theories of desire, which posit that women are more variable than men in the extent to which they desire sex, and that women’s sexual desire is more contextually sensitive than men’s. We tested this assumption across three longitudinal studies. Study 1 assessed desire at 3 time points spanning 13 years ( N observations = 5562), and Studies 2 and 3 ( N observations = 11,282) assessed desire moment-to-moment over 7 days. When desire was measured over years, women were more variable in their sexual desire than men (Study 1). However, we found a different pattern of results when desire was measured over the short term. In Studies 2 and 3, we found no significant differences in women’s and men’s desire variability. The extent to which desire varied as a function of affective states (e.g., happiness) and relationship-oriented states (e.g., partner closeness) was similar for women and men, with some exceptions; women’s desire was more negatively associated with tiredness and anger in Study 2. These data qualify existing assumptions about sex differences in sexual desire variability

Developmental psychology · Public health · Sexual behavior · Clinical Psychology · Marriage and Sexual Relationships · Medicine · Psychology · Sexual function and dysfunction studies · Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology · Social Psychology