Women and Men’s Perspectives on the Factors Related to Women’s Dyadic Sexual Desire, and on the Treatment of Hypoactive Sexual Desire Disorder
Open accessAbstract
Sexuality is a basic human need, which is expressed in the context of intimate personal relations. However, in studies of women's sexuality, men's attitudes are often overlooked. Health care providers can benefit from the examination of how both women and men perceive women's sexual desire and what are the most acceptable avenues for treatment for women's hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD). This research aimed to explore differences between women and men on the factors affecting women's sexual desire and the appropriate avenues for treatment. Data were collected using an online questionnaire from 233 heterosexual adults who had a dyadic, steady intimate relationship over most of the previous year. A theory-based questionnaire of 28 items was developed to explore the factors associated with women's sexual desire. One quarter (7/28) of the items affecting women's sexual desire were ranked significantly differently between women and men. Among women, interpersonal issues and physical attraction, and among men, physical attraction and daily hassles were the significant predictors of women's sexual desire. Women more than men endorsed psychological help such as a sex therapist or psychologist as a more appropriate treatment for HSDD, while both men and women viewed the internet as a reasonable way to gain treatment information. Both women and men viewed gynecologists as a more acceptable source of treatment than a family doctor. Religious authorities were the least likely source of treatment advice for both women and men. The results support a multi-dimensional model of women's sexual desire and suggest that psychological interventions to treat HSDD may be preferred by women more than men.
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Women's sexual desire has been significantly predicted by relationship issues.
“The expression of sexuality, a fundamental human desire, occurs in the context of intimate relationships, and women's sexual desire has been significantly predicted by relationship issues (Birnbaum et al., 2016;Friedmann & Cwikel, 2021).”
From “Your Addiction, her Sexual Suffering”—A Qualitative Inquiry into the Effects of Compulsive Sexual Behaviors on Intimate Female Partners (2025) · cites this paper as Friedmann & Cwikel, 2021
The Results report that an interpersonal–physical attractiveness factor significantly predicted women’s sexual desire in the women’s regression analysis. The study assessed respondents’ perceptions of influences on desire, however, and did not establish that relationship issues alone significantly predicted women’s measured desire. (LLM, conf=0.85)
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- Authors
- Friedmann, E., & Cwikel, J.
- Affiliations
- Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (IL)
- Corresponding author
- Cwikel, Julie
- Venue
- Journal of Clinical Medicine
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2021-11-15
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 22
- Pages
- 5321
- ISSN
- 2077-0383 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8623679
- OpenAlex
- W3212285639
- Cited by
- 7
- References
- 52
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 2
- FWCI
- 1.08
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Clinical Medicine (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Sexual function and dysfunction studies
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Marriage and Sexual Relationships
- Keywords
- hypoactive sexual desire disorder, female desire, dyadic sexual desire, gender differences, physical attraction, interpersonal factors, daily hassles, treatment acceptability, sex therapy, female sexuality
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