Summary: Older adults who feel more positively about aging tend to have more fulfilling love lives, a new study reveals.
Source: University of Missouri
Researchers have long known that having a positive outlook can benefit a person’s health.
Now, a new study by the University of Missouri has found older adults who feel positively about aging have a healthier sex life—a finding that didn’t surprise the researcher, who’s been studying the benefits of the positive perceptions of aging.
“There’s really robust and quickly growing literature about perceptions of aging,” said Hanamori Skoblow, the lead author of the study.
“We know positive perceptions of aging can be really beneficial, but when they are negative, they can be really detrimental.
“Negative perceptions of aging are linked to higher likelihood of cognitive decline, higher likelihood of cardiovascular disease and even shorter lifespans. We wanted to see how it would affect people’s sexual relationships.
“As expected, thinking positively about the way you age can also lead to a healthy sex life.”
Skoblow believes that the information can be used to help inform doctors that work with older adults. She said that physicians, who are often reluctant to discuss sexual issues with older patients, are reinforcing ageist beliefs that sexual activity is only for young adults. She also believes that sex therapists could see better results by promoting positive perceptions of aging.
As a doctoral student in the MU College of Education and Human Development, Skoblow came to these findings by using a well-established database that contained information gathered from adults over age 50 who were either married or living with a partner and had completed a questionnaire related to their perceptions of social constructs and sexuality.
The data allowed Skoblow to compare the participants’ perception of aging to their sexual satisfaction within their relationship.
“We found this relationship to be strong with both men and women,” Skoblow said. “With data from more than 1,100 couples, we were able to find that participants with a more positive perception of aging also had sex more frequently as well as increased satisfaction.”
In the study, participants were asked to strongly agree, agree, disagree or strongly disagree with statements such as “with age comes physical decline.” Skoblow would then average a participant’s answers into a single scale, meaning the higher the score, the more positive the participant felt about aging and compared that to the person’s responses to questions about sexual frequency and satisfaction.
Skoblow said there are several possible reasons why perceptions of aging can impact a person’s sex life.
“It’s possible that if people expect a steep physical decline as an inevitable part of aging, they could have anticipatory inhibitions. They stop enjoying themselves in the moment and could have less satisfying sexual encounters,” Skoblow said.
“We also know that western cultures often have many youthful beauty ideals, so maybe people with more positive perceptions of aging don’t buy into them as much, leading to a more satisfying sex life as their body begins to change.”
Skoblow said this research is just the beginning. She’d also like to study how negative perceptions of aging are formed and how those views impact a person’s well-being.
About this aging and relationships research news
Author: Press Office
Source: University of Missouri
Contact: Press Office – University of Missouri
Image: The image is in the public domain
Original Research: Closed access.
“Sexual Activity and Satisfaction in Older Adult Dyads: The Role of Perceptions of Aging” by Hanamori F Skoblow et al. The Gerontologist
Abstract
Sexual Activity and Satisfaction in Older Adult Dyads: The Role of Perceptions of Aging
Background and Objectives
This study assessed the associations between perceptions of aging (POA) and sexual frequency and satisfaction in older adult dyads.
Research Design and Methods
Using dyadic data from up to 1,122 different-sex married and cohabiting couples ages 50–89 (Mmen = 66.63 [7.40]; Mwomen = 64.43 [7.27]), we estimated 2 actor-partner interdependence models. We first examined the association between men’s and women’s POA and each partner’s reports of frequency of partnered sexual activity (e.g., intercourse, oral sex, kissing, petting, and fondling). Then, we tested the link between POA and each partner’s sexual satisfaction.
Results
Actor effects were detected in both models. Both men’s and women’s positive POA were associated with their own reports of more frequent sexual activity and greater satisfaction with their sex lives.
Discussion and Implications
These findings provide insight into how positive views on aging relate to older couples’ sexuality. Future research should consider how attitudes shape later-life sexuality over time.
