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The specific importance of communicating about sex to couples’ sexual and overall relationship satisfaction
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This study examined the impact of general and sexual communication on couples’ overall and sexual satisfaction. Data were collected from 116 heterosexual, monogamous couples in relationships of at least three months’ duration. Open sexual communication accounted for unique variance in both sexual and overall relationship satisfaction; general communication effectiveness did so only for overall satisfaction. The relationship between open sexual communication and overall satisfaction was stronger for males, and the relationship between open sexual communication and sexual satisfaction was stronger for couples who had been together longer. The three-way interaction of open sexual communication, relationship length, and gender significantly predicted overall relationship satisfaction but not sexual satisfaction. Sexual satisfaction mediated the relationship between open sexual communication and overall satisfaction.
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... Much research has established the positive associations between sexual communication and sexual satisfaction and relationship satisfaction. In general, those that communicate more about their sexual desires, preferences, fears, and fantasies report higher levels of sexual satisfaction and relationship satisfaction (e.g., Byers, 2005;Fallis et al., 2016;Mallory, 2022;Merwin & Rosen, 2020;Montesi et al., 2011), and these are associated with greater life satisfaction (e.g., Schmiedeberg et al., 2017;Woloski-Wruble et al., 2010). ...
... Sexual communication is deemed a unique form of communication that is crucial to developing and maintaining satisfying sexual relationships (Brown & Weigel, 2018;Coffelt & Hess, 2014;Lucero Jones et al., 2022;Merwin & Rosen, 2020), even beyond general self-disclosure (Montesi et al., 2011). The ability to speak with one's partner about sex is seen as a relational skill that is separate from other types of relational communication (Jones, Robinson, & Seedall, 2018;MacNeil & Byers, 1997). ...
... Frequency of sexual communication concerns how often couples discuss their sexual relationship, including their fantasies and desires. And the quality of sexual communication captures the satisfaction with the (open) communication with the partner about the sexual relationship, including fantasies and desires (Cupach & Comstock, 1990;Montesi et al., 2011). Those that are not satisfied with their sexual communication and perceive the quality of the communication to be poor may harbor a wish that they and their partner become better at communicating about their sex life, desires, and fantasies. ...
Sexual communication is associated with higher levels of sexual and relationship satisfaction. However, research suggests that many struggle with sexual communication. Using a cross-country convenience sample of 7,139 respondents from six European countries (Denmark, Finland, France, Norway, Sweden, and the UK), we investigated sociodemographic predictors of different facets of sexual communication and their associations with sexual, relationship, and life satisfaction. Data was collected in May and June 2022 through respondent panels, by Cint, a market research software platform. Participants received an email invitation to the study and completed an online self-report survey. We found that a large proportion did report difficulties with sexual communication or a wish to improve such communication. We also found that sociodemographic factors predicted each facet (self-disclosure, frequency of communication, and quality of communication) of sexual communication as a set, but that the strongest predictors were sexual frequency and dissatisfaction with the low frequency of sex. Lastly, each facet of sexual communication was associated with higher levels of sexual, relationship, and life satisfaction. Across results, we generally found little cross-country variation.
... Research suggests that individuals disclose their sexual information to maintain intimacy while influencing advice outcomes (Feng & Magen, 2016;Leaper, 2019). During advice giving interactions, advice givers' assessment of their relationship can influence their communication about sex (Montesi et al., 2011). Relational scholars posit that relational characteristics can also influence the interaction (Bradbury & Fincham, 1988;Knobloch, 2005). ...
... Particularly, in line with prior research (R. D. Brown & Weigel, 2018), when individuals feel that they are in a close supportive relationship talk about their vulnerabilities, they are more willing to discuss their sexual beliefs and desires. Additionally, open communication about sex can promote better discussions about one's preferences and fears (Montesi et al., 2011). On the other hand, results revealed that having expertise about sex does not generally lead to more conversations about sex. ...
... Furthermore, encouraging open communication between couples concerning their sexual values and desires is recommended to foster a supportive and gratifying sexual relationship. 54 Importantly, there is a need for a broader focus beyond just interest in sex. Menopause brings numerous changes in sexual function, including decreased libido, vaginal dryness, painful intercourse, reduced arousal, and difficulties achieving orgasm. ...
Background
The sexual interest of postmenopausal women is a crucial aspect of their overall well-being. Despite its importance, factors influencing postmenopausal sexual interest, particularly in Asian women, remain understudied and poorly understood.
Aims
To investigate the various factors influencing sexual interest in postmenopausal women in Malaysia.
Methods
A cross-sectional study was conducted of postmenopausal women attending a gynecology or primary care clinic in a teaching hospital in Malaysia.
Outcomes
We investigated how interpersonal dynamics and cultural norms—including the physical and mental health of women and their partners, as well as their sexual values—affect menopausal sexual interest as measured by the Menopausal Sexual Interest Questionnaire.
Results
Women in the study reported an average sexual interest, with a mean score of 32.8 (SD, 9.4) out of 70 on the Menopausal Sexual Interest Questionnaire. Multivariable analysis results showed that higher personal sexual values (odds ratio [OR], 2.65; 95% CI, 1.26-5.61) and spousal sexual values (OR, 2.68; 95% CI, 1.22-5.86) were significantly associated with higher menopausal sexual interest. There was a positive correlation between the physical fitness of spouses and menopausal sexual interest, with women who rated their spouses as very fit or fit (OR, 3.22; 95% CI, 1.15-9.00) or moderately fit (OR, 2.63; 95% CI, 1.05-6.63) showing higher menopausal sexual interest as compared with those whose spouses were very unfit or unfit. Women with normal stress levels (OR, 5.89; 95% CI, 1.03-33.62) and mild to moderate stress levels (OR, 8.13; 95% CI, 1.53-43.22) reported higher menopausal sexual interest.
Clinical Implications
This study emphasizes a holistic approach to postmenopausal sexual health, highlighting the significance of promoting positive sexual values, improving physical fitness, and managing stress. Health care providers should educate, counsel, and collaborate interdisciplinarily, ensuring culturally sensitive care tailored to individual needs.
Strength and Limitations
The study’s strength lies in its provision of valuable insights into factors affecting sexual interest among postmenopausal Asian women, enhancing comprehension of holistic sexual health approaches. However, reliance on self-assessments may introduce response bias influenced by social desirability, and limited generalizability stems from single-site data collection.
Conclusion
Our study highlights the significance of adopting a holistic approach to addressing sexual health in postmenopausal women, which includes promoting positive sexual values, improving physical fitness, and managing stress.
... Communication is vital for sexual satisfaction, yet candid communication about desire is rare, with individuals expressing fear of partner rejection, vulnerability, embarrassment, and shame around self-disclosure (Rubinsky & Roldán, 2021), especially in the infancy of a relationship (Montesi et al., 2011). However, even in long-term relationships, only two-thirds of individuals know what their partners find sexually satisfying (Byers, 2011). ...
BDSM practitioners typically report higher sexual satisfaction than the general population (Botta et al., 2019; Joyal & Carpentier, 2017; Strizzi et al., 2022). One possible reason for this is that the BDSM community prioritizes open communication and challenges traditional sexual scripts. In a sample of 376 individuals, we found a positive association between BDSM participation and sexual satisfaction which was fully mediated by direct communication about sex. These results build upon previous literature that emphasizes the vital role of communication in sexual satisfaction, broadening this result to a more sexually diverse population. In addition, the frameworks used by BDSM communities could inspire the use of similar strategies to improve communication and sexual satisfaction in non-BDSM populations.
Under cisheteropatriarchy, women's and gender expansive individuals’ bodies are highly stigmatized. Research finds internalizing stigma about the genitals has negative implications for sexual satisfaction, but this work has predominantly focused on heterosexual cisgender women. We examined associations between genital stigma and partnered sexual satisfaction among Queer (including any minoritized sexual identity) women (cisgender and transgender) and gender expansive people. We also examined whether comfort communicating with a sexual partner mediated the relation between genital stigma and sexual satisfaction, and whether positive LGBTQ+ identity may buffer against internalized genital stigma (i.e., moderate relations between stigma, communication, and sexual satisfaction). We analyzed survey data from 452 Queer women and gender expansive people. We tested a moderated mediation model. Mediation was supported—greater genital stigma was associated with less comfort communicating with a sexual partner, and greater discomfort communicating was associated with lower sexual satisfaction. Moderated mediation was supported, as the negative association between genital stigma and comfort communicating with a partner increased as participants’ LGBTQ+ identity positivity decreased. Our findings offer novel insights into genital stigma and factors that may facilitate and hinder Queer women's and gender expansive individuals’ sexual satisfaction.
Orgasm is considered by many to be an essential part of women's ideal sexual experiences. As a result, sexual liberation narratives have often advocated for the prioritization of women's orgasms - particularly during heterosex - framing them as a central indicator of "good," healthy, liberated sex. However, scholars have increasingly critiqued these narratives, arguing that they result in an orgasm imperative that has negatively impacted women's sexual lives. Perspectives that promote the prioritization of women's orgasm and those that warn against the negative repercussions strive for the same thing - to draw attention to women's sexuality in ways that will lead to more pleasurable, enjoyable, and equitable sex for women overall. Yet, together, they offer contradictory messages about the role that women's orgasms can or should play in women's sexual liberation. For example, one could argue that it perhaps makes sense to prioritize women's orgasms given that they often are highly pleasurable for women, center a unique form of embodied pleasure, and offer a supposedly clear objective for women and their men partners. On the other hand, such narratives frame women's orgasm absence as abnormal, concede to men's sexuality in problematic ways, and constrain more comprehensive possibilities for women's sexual pleasure. In this critical feminist review, I offer a summative outline of these and other contradictions, focusing on how narratives prioritizing women's orgasms can have simultaneous benefits and negative repercussions when it comes to (1) women's sexual pleasure, (2) the medicalization/pathologization of women's orgasms, and (3) heterosex norms.
Sexual conflict is common, yet it is one of the most challenging topics for couples because it provokes more negative emotions relative to other conflicts. Such challenges might prompt couples to rely on less adaptive sexual communication styles. Communication patterns during sexual conflict - such as demand-withdrawal - have received little attention, and studies that do exist relied on self-report measures. Demand-withdrawal communication refers to when one partner exerts pressure to talk about a problem while the other withdraws, and is associated with poorer psychological and relationship well-being. In an observational dyadic study, we examined associations between demand-withdrawal patterns during a sexual conflict and sexual and relationship outcomes concurrently and over time. Couples (N = 151, Mage = 31.92, SDage = 9.07) in long-term relationships completed measures of relationship satisfaction, sexual satisfaction, and sexual distress at baseline (T1) and 12 months later (T2). One week after T1, they engaged in an in-lab discussion of an important sexual conflict, coded by trained observers for degree of demand-withdrawal. Individuals in a couple who were observed to display higher demand-withdrawal reported lower relationship and sexual satisfaction and higher sexual distress at T1, as well as lower relationship satisfaction at T2. Effects were not moderated by gender. Findings demonstrate the relevance of demand-withdrawal patterns during sexual conflict.
Acquired communication disorders are prevalent, particularly for older adults and people in healthcare settings. They can have substantial impacts on sexual health and intimacy. Yet, it is not clear whether speech-language pathologists (SLPs) or clinical psychologists whether they are aware of the impacts of communication disorders on sexuality or whether they feel empowered to address them. This study surveyed clinical psychologists and SLPs to determine (a) whether either profession was addressing sexuality-related concerns consistently, (b) if they believed sexuality was important to their clients, (c) what they felt their role was in addressing this, (d) how much they believed communication disorders effected sexuality in comparison with other physical or psychological disorders, and (e) what barriers they found to addressing sexuality in their work. The results indicate that clinical psychologists and SLPs believe communication disorders can impact sexual health at similar rates to physical and psychological disorders, but they are not clear on what professionals should be addressing these effects. SLPs, particularly, are divided about whether this work is in their scope of practice. Implications for the accessibility of sexuality interventions for people with communication disorders are discussed.
When is it timely to publish a synthesis of previously published and original materials from a specific discipline? I believe it to be timely when one has a sufficient amount of high-quality material covering the critical areas of that topic, when the previously published material is scattered over a wide range of journals and books, and when there is no single book that synthesizes the discipline. The treatment of sexual dysfunction emerged to the front lines of health delivery only during the past decade with the pioneering work of William Masters and Virginia Johnson. In spite of the rash of sex clinics and sex therapists that followed, preciously little solid research has been conducted on the various strategies of therapy, the means of assessing complex interpersonal sexual relation ships, and the manner by which clinical change is objectively assessed. No one reader can keep pace with the multitude of jounials that publish key material by sophisticated investigators. And no one investigator can cover these salient areas alone with his or her original work in a single volume. The critical papers have now been written. Ten were written specifically for this volume and thirty-three have previously appeared. This volume laces them together into a coherent pattern. Thus, the time for a synthesis in sexual dysfunction.
The present study has a threefold purpose. First, it addresses the issue of measuring sexual satisfaction (i.e., single- versus multiple-item scales), as well as response bias (i.e., social desirability and sexual defensiveness) in ratings of sexual satisfaction. Second, it examines sexual satisfaction in married and cohabiting males (N = 57) and females (N = 91). Finally, it examines the relationship between sexual satisfaction and nine theoretically and nine theoretically relevant variables drawn from Kaplan's multicausal model of sexual functioning.
This study examined the relationships between sexual problems, sexual self-disclosure and sexual satisfaction in a community sample. Fifty-three women and 34 men in long-term, heterosexual relationships returned completed questionnaires. A majority of the men and women reported that they had experienced one or more sexual concerns or problems in the past 18 months. For both men and women, an increasing number of sexual concerns and problems for self and for partner was associated with decreased sexual satisfaction. Both better communication in general, and disclosure of specific sexual likes and dislikes in particular, were associated with increased sexual satisfaction. However, the quality of communication did not alter the relationship between sexual problems and concerns and sexual satisfaction. Implications for sex therapy and future research are discussed.
We examined two proposed pathways between sexual self-disclosure and sexual satisfaction. According to the proposed expressive pathway, reciprocal sexual self-disclosure contributes to relationship satisfaction, which in turn leads to greater sexual satisfaction. According to the instrumental pathway, own sexual self-disclosure leads to greater partner understanding of sexual likes and dislikes, which in turn leads to a more favorable balance of sexual rewards and costs and thus to higher sexual satisfaction. Seventy-four heterosexual dating couples completed questionnaires assessing self-disclosure, sexual and relationship satisfaction, as well as own and partner positive and negative sexual exchanges. Support was found for the instrumental pathway for both women and men and for the expressive pathway for women. For men, the expressive pathway was between own nonsexual self-disclosure and sexual satisfaction. These results are interpreted in light of the more instrumental role for men in sexual relationships.
The present research explored the importance of several communication-related variables, including perspective-taking, self-disclosure, conflict tactics and relational competence, as well as love attitudes, in the prediction of relationship satisfaction. Some 140 dating couples completed several measures, including assessments of self as well as the romantic partner. Findings revealed that self and partner communication variables, and love orientations were significant predictors of relationship satisfaction. Implications for the importance of communication in relationships are discussed.
This study examined dating individuals' self‐disclosure about their sexual likes and dislikes to their partner. Forty‐seven college men and 52 college women in a dating relationship of 3 to 36 months completed a questionnaire measuring sexual exchange variables, sexual satisfaction, relationship satisfaction, sexual communication satisfaction, and sexual and non‐sexual self‐disclosure with their partner. Both sexual and nonsexual self‐disclosure were at the level of revealing some detail but not fully disclosing personal attitudes and feelings. Participants reported self‐disclosing significantly more about non‐sexual than about sexual topics. Sexual and nonsexual self‐disclosure were related to sexual satisfaction, relationship satisfaction, and sexual communication satisfaction. Sexual self‐disclosure was uniquely related to sexual communication satisfaction when nonsexual self‐disclosure was controlled, but was not uniquely associated with relationship satisfaction or sexual satisfaction. The study provided evidence that both sexual exchanges and relationship satisfaction mediate the relationship between sexual self‐disclosure and sexual satisfaction as proposed by Cupach and Metts (1991). The results of a series of analyses suggest that self‐disclosure affects sexual satisfaction through two routes. First, sexual self‐disclosure may increase sexual rewards in the relationship. Second, it may increase overall relationship satisfaction. Both increased sexual rewards and increased relationship satisfaction, in turn, enhance sexual satisfaction.