Do people have sex as much as they would like to?
A group of researchers in Australia recorded whether couples who are in a stable long-term relationship were satisfied with the frequency of their sexual encounters.
The survey was conducted on a sample of 4,290 men and an equal number of women with a mean age of 40 years. The results were impressive, because only 46% of men and 58% of women reported that they were satisfied with the frequency of their sexual encounters.
The vast majority of men who were not happy with the frequency of their encounters would like to have sex more often. Of the women who were not satisfied, 2/3 wanted sex more often and only 1/3 wanted sex less frequently. An interesting feature of this study is that those who felt dissatisfied with the frequency of their contacts were more likely to be dissatisfied with their relationship overall.
What contributes to the frequency of the couple’s sexual encounters?
The fact that a large percentage of couples were satisfied with the frequency of sex shows that there is a gap between people’s expectations and what they finally manage to experience in their relationship.
The fact that discontent was common in both genders shows that the problem arises not from different levels of sexual desire, but from other activities and obligations that occupy the time that the couple could spend together.
It seems clear that it is not possible to load our daily schedule with duties and responsibilities without this having effects on the sexual life of the couple, but also in the relationship. We may need to remember that every time we add some activities we will have to abandon others, if we consider it important to spend time for our relationship.
Smith A, Lyons A, Ferris J et al. (2011) Sexual and relationship satisfaction among heterosexual men and women: the importance of desired frequency of sex. J Sex Marital Ther 37: 104-115.
