Perceived Vulnerability to Disease and Sexual Satisfaction in Men and Women in Committed Romantic Relationships
Access full-text files
Date
2022
Authors
Mijares, Samantha A.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Department
Description
Previous research indicates that sexual disgust is strongly negatively associated with sexual satisfaction. Less is known, however, about how disgust in general affects sexual satisfaction. The present study examined whether individuals with higher perceived vulnerability to disease (PVD) had lower sexual satisfaction in their committed romantic relationships. I also assessed whether mating strategy (long-term vs. short-term dating interests) moderated the association between PVD and sexual satisfaction. I examined these associations through separate analyses for women and men. To answer these questions, I used secondary data that were part of a broader dissertation project. 530 participants’ data were used in which they answered the PVD scale, a sexual satisfaction measure, and a mating strategy measure. Contrary to expectations, there was no significant association between PVD and sexual satisfaction for either sex. Furthermore, mating strategy did not moderate the association between PVD and sexual satisfaction for either sex. While this study found no association between PVD and sexual satisfaction, the question of whether an association between these two variables exists remains unanswered. This may be because the data used were not designed to explicitly examine my study’s research questions. The data used were not ideal in terms of sample composition, available measures, or historical period due to the emergence of COVID-19. Future research should aim to run a study specifically designed to answer these research questions.