Cognitive Schemas Associated with Negative Sexual Events: A Comparison of Men and Women with and Without Sexual Dysfunction

Abstract

The association between cognitive schemas activated during sexual events and sexual functioning was studied. A total of 376 participants (47 women and 49 men with a DSM-IV diagnosis of sexual dysfunction and 160 women and 120 men from a control group) answered the Questionnaire of Cognitive Schema Activation in Sexual Context, the International Index of Erectile Function, and the Female Sexual Function Index. Results showed that participants with sexual dysfunction activated significantly more negative schemas when exposed to sexually unsuccessful situations compared to sexually healthy individuals (after controlling for the frequency of negative sexual events experienced by both groups). Most men and women with sexual difficulties interpreted negative sexual events according to an incompetence self-schema (I'm powerless, I'm incompetent, I'm a failure). These findings were congruent with recent research indicating the tendency shown by individuals with sexual dysfunction to give attributions of an internal, stable, and global nature to negative sexual experiences. Overall, results suggest specific faulty cognitive constructions underlying sexual dysfunctions and encourage the development of models and treatment approaches based on cognitive theory.