Study: “There are many women who want more sex than many men”

On average, men are more sexually motivated than women. This is what social psychologists from the University of Saarland have found in the analysis of more than 200 studies since 1996 involving a total of more than 620,000 participants aged 14 years and older. “The difference is just under half the size of the sex difference in height,” said study co-author Malte Friese. The study was published in the journal Psychological Bulletin.

Researchers defined sexual motivation based on how often a person experiences sexual feelings, thoughts, and behaviors. “People with strong sexual motivation think about sex more often, feel sexual desire more often, and masturbate more,” says Friese.

However, the results say nothing about individual individuals, he stresses: “Even if men have stronger sexual motivation on average than women, there are many women who have more sex drive than many men.” The scientists estimate that 24 to 29 percent of women are more sexually motivated than the average man.

According to the researchers, previous studies on the topic have shown that men generally have stronger sexual motivation than women. But there were still unanswered questions about the size of the difference.

How the differences between women and men can be explained was not the subject of the study. According to the authors, this leaves room for interpretation. They assume that sexual motivation is determined by both social and genetic factors. “For example, if children already notice that men and women express their sexuality differently and that others appreciate or reject this, they later learn to behave that way,” Friese explains.

(dpa,ccn)