Do women find other men more attractive if they are sexually active, either by themselves (e.g., via masturbation) or with a partner (e.g., via sexual intercourse)?
The answer appears to be no, according to new research.
Researchers were interested in discovering whether individual differences in sexual activity during the past 30 days, in particular penile-vaginal intercourse (a measure which in psychological research has typically been associated with measures of relationship quality), are related to the perception of the facial attractiveness of male strangers.
Forty-five women reported the frequency of a variety of sexual behaviors and rated the facial attractiveness and friendliness of 24 men. Women who reported more frequent orgasm from masturbation rated men as less friendly. The researchers suggested that this finding might be reflective of the more anti-social attitude associated with more frequent masturbation.
The results from the study also show that women who engaged more frequently in most kinds of sexual behavior considered unknown men to be less facially attractive. That is, individuals who engage more frequently in a variety of sexual behaviors with their partner perceived unknown men as less attractive and thereby may be less susceptible to the lure of other men. Women who engage in more frequent masturbation perceived all the male strangers’ faces as unattractive.
Take these findings with a grain of salt, however. The study has a small sample size that was taken from a small subset of the population. It is not known whether similar results would be discovered if the subjects were men.
It is intriguing, however, to wonder about whether there is some sort of evolutionary mechanism at work here. If one is already in a sexually satisfying relationship with a man (or oneself), there’d be less incentive to look elsewhere for sexual satisfaction.
The study will be published in the December 2007 issue of the journal Personality and Individual Differences.
Reference:
Hess, U., Brody, S., & van der Schalk, J. (2007). Sexual activity is inversely related to women’s perceptions of the facial attractiveness of unknown men. Personality and Individual Differences, Vol 43(8), 1991-1997.
(11 votes, average: 3.55 out of 5)
Loading ...You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Links to This Article
Las mujeres sexualmente satisfechas ven a otros hombres como poco atractivos (11/20/2007)
From Psych Central's World of Psychology:
How Women Choose Their Partners - World of Psychology (3/25/2008)
6 Comments to
“Why Sexually-Active Women Don’t Need a (or Another) Man”
Uh, I totally take this with a grain of salt it doesn’t apply to me at all. I love men and find many of them attractive no matter what my current sex life is like.
I am attracted to men all the time. If I seat in front of a man, even he is not looking at me, I will have an orgasm. I do love men. I am crazy about them, I can not live with them. Bad with them, worst without them. I know the are problem and cause a lot of problems, but i can not be with what I dont have in my body. I need them.
I am a man, I´m from Costa Rica, and I know from experience that women are not atracted only to men´s faces in terms of their apearance, they are also (in terms of physical appereance) attracted to the way they are percieved overall, is he agressive looking?, or a providor?, or tough enough??, manly?, has a charismatic body language??? has a good body?. The research is biased by the researcher´s associtation of sexual disire with facial characteristics. e-mail: carlo115@hotmail.com
i totally i agree think it only makes sence that if you engage in an activity repeatedly for a long time, you a re bound to get stuck in the routine and see everything else as boring.i once had a partner who would refuse to have sex then wait for me to fall asleep and start masturbating this happened everyday including some days when she was on her period i thought it was sexy at first but she got offended everytime i tried to join her and then it got irritating and she neva wants to have sex eva she always prefered masturbating in private…wiered
A vibrator can do much more than a man ever can. No worries about catching a disease, either, and a vibrator is not abusive. Women do not need men, esp. if women make enough money to be comfortable to live on their own. The whole relationship dynamic depends on men wanting women for sex and childbearing and women wanting men for money and a meal ticket.
I would much rather have non-orgasmic sex with a man to whom I am attracted than have an orgasm by myself (which I do frequently, but privately). I would rather fake orgasm and ‘give’ him the pleasure of ’satisfying’ me. The tenderness and awe reflected in his face are THE most precious moments! I want to be the best lover he has ever encountered…and I succeed, which certainly endears me to him. The best sex (to me) is more about giving than receiving pleasure.
Join the Conversation! Post a Comment:
Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 27 Oct 2007
