How Well Do Measurement Scales Reflect the Actual Experience of Sexuality in Mid-Life and Beyond?

Abstract

There is limited evidence that current sexuality measures accurately reflect the experience of sexuality among older people. This review investigates whether sexuality scales that examine aspects of sexuality for heterosexual men and women in mid-life and beyond accurately reflect the experiences of these individuals as discussed within qualitative studies. Online databases and reference lists were searched for articles from 1997 that investigated experiences of sexuality, aging, and validated sexuality scales. Articles describing scales were included if they reported on a statistically validated measurement scale that was used to measure 1 or more aspects of sexuality for heterosexual adults aged 45 years and above. Qualitative articles were included if they discussed the sexuality experiences of this population. 19 Qualitative articles and 11 sexuality scales were located. Aspects of sexuality identified in the qualitative studies were sexual thoughts and fantasies, sexual desire, sexual beliefs, sexual attitudes, sexual values, sexual behaviors and practices, sexual roles, and thoughts and/or feelings about intimacy and relationships. Aspects assessed in the sexuality scales were sexual desire, sexual beliefs, sexual attitudes, sexual behaviors and practices, sexual roles, and thoughts and/or feelings about intimacy and relationships. Gaps between how sexuality at mid-life and later life is experienced and how it is measured in existing scales were found. Existing validated measurement tools fail to provide a nuanced picture of the sexual experiences of adults in mid-life and beyond, which may impact the success of clinical interventions. This article demonstrated the need for more comprehensive sexuality measurement scales. However, it focused exclusively on the experiences of heterosexual adults aged 45 years and above. To validly evaluate the sexual expression of older people, new measurement scales are needed that assess multiple aspects of sexuality within a single scale. Macleod A, McCabe MP. How Well Do Measurement Scales Reflect the Actual Experience of Sexuality in Mid-Life and Beyond? Sex Med Rev 2019;7:29-45.