|
Today's women have less sex
than their 1950s counterparts, a survey suggests.
Researchers in the United States believe the demands of
modern life are to blame - leaving women with little time
or energy.
Fifty years ago, most women were stay-at-home mums with
more free time. Few had jobs and television sets were
rare.
Today, many women hold down jobs while also raising
children. Any spare time is often spent shopping, working
out in the gym or watching their favourite television
programmes. |
Modern women have little
free time, say researchers
Monday, 20 January, 2003, 11:58 GMT |
Researchers from the Kinsey Institute said their survey
suggested women have less time for sex.
According to the study, 42% of women who cohabit with male
partners have sex two or three times a week. This compares
to just one in three married women.
Less time
The researchers said that while figures from the 1950s are
not directly comparable they were higher.
"People don't have as much sex as they used to," Dr John
Bancroft, the institute's director, told the Daily Mail.
"Couples are often weighted down by double careers and
childcare, and by the time people have been to the
shopping mall and watched all the television they want,
there is not much time for sex.
"We live in an age where there is little unfilled leisure
time. Sex used to fill that gap."
The findings are based on telephone interviews with 853
women between the ages of 20 and 65.
The survey also revealed that fewer women may have sexual
problems than was previously thought.
It suggested that just one in four American women are
"significantly distressed" about their sex lives.
This compares to a 1999 study which suggested that almost
half of all women suffered from sexual dysfunction, such
as a lack of interest in sex.
The researchers said the sharp difference may be due to
the fact that previous studies have only looked at the
physical aspects of sexual dysfunction - problems with
arousal and orgasm.
Sexual problems
The Kinsley Institute team said emotional and mental
aspects need to be taken into account when trying to
determine levels of sexual dysfunction in women.
They said women's sexual satisfaction, her general
emotional well-being and her emotional relationship with
her partner are important factors.
"This study emphasizes the importance of non-physiological
components of sexuality as well as the general importance
of mental health," said John Bancroft, director of the
Indiana University-based Kinsey Institute.
"It's not conclusive, but it counterbalances what I
believe to be the rather extraordinary conclusion that 43%
of women suffer from sexual dysfunction."
The Kinsey study, which will appear in the June issue of
the Archives of Sexual Behavior, was a random telephone
survey of women who had been in a heterosexual
relationship for at least six months.
|
