Women In Long-term Relationships Research Articles

Counseling and cryopreservation: evaluation of patient-reported counseling and choice on method of cancer-related fertility preservation.

Prior to cancer treatment, patients make decisions on whether to undergo fertility preservation (FP) and the method of FP. We sought to learn more about counseling and decision-making on the method of cancer-related FP. A cross-sectional 26-item online survey was administered to patients with ovaries who underwent cancer-related FP. Associations between demographics and the FP method were made through estimates of risk difference, with a 95% confidence interval. Open-ended responses were analyzed using the constant comparative method. A total of 240 respondents completed the survey: 52% underwent oocyte cryopreservation (OC), 29% underwent embryo cryopreservation (EC), and 19% underwent both oocyte and embryo cryopreservation (OC/EC). Most respondents agreed that if they were to go through the process again, they would make the same decision about FP (80% EC, 72% OC, 59% OC/EC). Women ≥ 35years reported being counseled more that embryos were superior compared to younger women (risk difference 46%, CI 32.8, 59.1), however were not more likely to freeze embryos (risk difference 6.2%, CI - 9.8, 22.2). Women in long-term relationships reported they were counseled more that embryos were superior compared to those single/dating (risk difference 27%, CI 18.1, 35.9). All women in long-term relationships reported undergoing EC, while the majority of single/dating women reported undergoing OC (74.6%). Most women who have undergone cancer-related FP reported they would choose the same FP method again. Women in long-term relationships or ≥ 35years reported they were more likely to be counseled that EC is superior; however, only women in long-term relationships were more likely to freeze embryos.

Sexual exchanges explain the association between attachment insecurities and sexual satisfaction in long-term couples.

Although attachment insecurity has been linked to sexual dissatisfaction in cross-sectional research, little is known about the mechanisms by which attachment is associated with sexual satisfaction over time. This study examined the role of attachment insecurities in sexual satisfaction over time using the Interpersonal Exchange Model of Sexual Satisfaction (IEMSS) as a theoretical framework. Participants were 151 Canadian mixed-gender couples in a long-term relationship (M = 9.7years) who completed questionnaires at two time points. The results demonstrate that sexual exchanges explained the associations between attachment insecurities (anxiety and avoidance) and sexual satisfaction in both men and women in long-term relationships, although the specific pathways differed by gender. These results are discussed in the context of the IEMSS and attachment theory.

(055) Sexual Boredom and Sexual Desire in Men and Women in Long-term Relationships: A Latent Profile Analysis

Abstract Introduction Research suggests a linkage between sexual boredom and sexual desire but without a detailed understanding how these are intertwined. Individuals in long-term monogamous relationships seem especially affected by low sexual desire and might present with varying degrees of sexual boredom. Objective This study aimed to identify different groups of women and men in long-term, monogamous, and cohabiting relationships based on their levels of sexual boredom and sexual desire and to verify if they differed in sexual orientation, relationship duration, sexual satisfaction, and relationship satisfaction. Methods A latent profile analysis (LPA) was conducted using online self-reported data from a sample of 1223 Portuguese participants aged 18-66 years (M = 32.75, SD = 6.11) on sexual boredom, and sexual desire (partner related, attractive other related, and solitary). Regression analyses were conducted to explore predictors and correlates of the latent profile classification. Results LPA indicated three distinct profiles in women and two profiles in men. Two of the women’s profiles and one the men’s profile were characterized with above-average sexual boredom. Among women, above average sexual boredom was paired with below-average sexual desire for partner in two profiles. Women in the profile with the highest level of sexual boredom also presented the highest levels of solitary and of attractive-other sexual desire and had substantially lower odds of reporting been strictly heterosexual. In men with high sexual boredom, levels of attractive-other and solitary sexual desire were higher than among men who reported below-average sexual boredom. Both groups of men presented similar above average levels of sexual desire for their partners. Latent profiles characterized by below-average sexual boredom had higher sexual (both men and women) and relationship satisfaction (women only) compared to other participants. Relationship duration did not predict profile membership. Conclusions These results indicate that lower levels of sexual boredom are related with better sexual outcomes in long-term relationships and suggest and that higher levels of sexual boredom might be linked to low sexual desire and to high sexual desire. Women’s dyadic sexual desire seems to vary according to the level of sexual boredom, as in higher sexual boredom is linked to lower sexual desire for partner. Men’s level of sexual desire for partner does not differ between men with different levels of sexual boredom, but higher sexual boredom seems to be accounting for higher levels of the men’s solitary and attractive-other sexual desire. Results potentially mean that women prone to sexual boredom might require active implementation of novelty in their sexual relationships to manage low sexual desire for familiar partners and that autoeroticism and fantasizing about attractive others might contribute to higher overall sexual desire, but not necessarily to higher satisfaction. In addition, men highly prone to sexual boredom might be seeking solitary sexual activities and/or sexual activities with attractive others to manage problematic high sexual desire. This study adds evidence that sexual boredom and relationship characteristics are better predictors of sexual desire in long-term relationships than relationship length and that sexual boredom might be particularly relevant for the understanding of low sexual desire and of hypersexuality. Disclosure No

CortiLove: A pilot study on hair steroids in the context of being in love and separation

While romantic infatuation and separation influence psychological and physiological functioning, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis with its biomarkers cortisol, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), and progesterone central for coping and distress has been scarcely researched in this context. In particular, endocrine hair analyses assumed to be more valid than saliva or blood assessments for studying long-term processes have not yet been conducted in the context of romantic love. Thus, 101 female subjects in phases of infatuation (n = 16), separation (n = 14), long-term relationships (n = 40), and singlehood (n = 31) reported psychological distress and provided 1 cm hair samples for the assessment of long-term integrated cortisol, DHEA, and progesterone over the last month. Separated, infatuated, and single women exhibited higher cortisol levels than those in a long-term relationship (all ps ≤ .031), while self-reported distress was only evident in separated individuals. Further, no group differences for progesterone (p = .602), but higher DHEA levels in the separation (p = .009) and single group (p = .016) compared to the long-term relationship group were detected. This is the first study showing that compared to women in long-term relationships, infatuation, separation, and single groups exhibit higher levels of physiological, but not necessarily self-reported indicators of distress. These findings, albeit on a very small and preliminary sample, are discussed in the context of the stress-buffering effect of relationships, and provide important starting points for bigger, more balanced studies combining multimodal self-report and biological markers in psychological research of romantic love.

The Sexual Experience of Married Middle-Aged Women as a Source of Mental Wellbeing: Perceptions, Challenges and Coping Mechanisms

The impact of sexuality on mental wellbeing in women in long-term relationships has only been partially investigated. Emphasis has been on quantitative research studies that do not capture the breadth of the field. The present study looked at how and to what extent women maintain sexual desire in long-term relationships, and how sexuality affects their mental wellbeing. The study used a qualitative narrative approach and included semi-structured interviews with approximately 20 Israeli women aged 40–55 from similar socioeconomic backgrounds and in longstanding, permanent relationships. The findings indicate significant development over the years in the perception of the role of sexuality and its impact on mental wellbeing. The path to good sexuality can and should follow women’s leadership and initiative. Such women have the desire to make an impact, willingness to make an effort, and even an actual ability to exert influence. The interviewees’ tools, strategies, insights and ways of coping can serve as models for other women seeking better sexuality in a long-term relationship.

Positive Deviance for Promoting Dual-Method Contraceptive Use Among Women in Uganda: A Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial

Background: Dual-method use, or using condoms with highly effective contraceptives, is effective at preventing both pregnancies and HIV infections. Although it remains uncommon among women in long-term relationships in sub-Saharan Africa, some do practice it. The positive deviance approach aims to promulgate practices of such individuals to other members in the community. We examined the effects of a positive deviance intervention on dual-method use among married or in-union women. Methods: We conducted a cluster randomized controlled trial in 20 health facilities in Mbarara District, Uganda, with 960 women aged 18–49 years. The intervention was a combination of clinic- and phone-based counseling and a participatory workshop, which was developed based on the qualitative study of women using dual-method in the study area and delivered by them. The control group received regular clinic-based counseling and health-related messages via phone. We assessed dual-method use at the last sexual intercourse and consistent dual-method use at two, four, six and eight months after enrollment. Findings: More women in the intervention group reported dual-method use at the last sexual intercourse at two months (AOR = 4·29; 95% CI: 2·12–8·69; p < 0·001) and at eight months (AOR = 2·19; 95% CI: 1·07–4·48; p = 0·032). Consistent dual-method use was also more prevalent in the intervention group at two months (AOR = 13·71; 95% CI: 3·59–52·43; p < 0·001), and the intervention effect remained at four, six, and eight months. Interpretation: The intervention can be a potential option for promoting dual-method use among women in long-term relationships in Uganda. Trial Registration: The protocol was registered at UMIN-CTR Clinical Trial under identifier number UMI37065. Funding: Scholarship grant from Foundation for Advanced Studies on International Development (FASID), Tokyo, Japan. Declaration of Interests: The authors declare no conflict of interest. S.M. works at UNICEF Uganda, but the information in this article represents S.M.’s personal views and opinions and does not necessarily represent UNICEF Uganda’s position. Ethics Approval Statement: The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo (2019085NI), Institutional Research and Ethics Committee of Mbarara University of Science and Technology (IRB15/06-19), and Uganda National Council of Science and Technology (HS439ES). Participation was voluntary, and the participants provided written informed consent.

A Typology of Women with Low Sexual Desire.

Low sexual desire is the most common sexual issue reported by women and research suggests that the presentation and experience of low sexual desire may vary considerably between women. This study explored whether women with low desire differ qualitatively from one another based on several key contextual factors theoretically associated with low desire. We collected data from women in long-term relationships (N = 508) using an online platform. Using latent profile analysis, we explored whether women could be distinguished from one another based on several contextual variables (sexual and relationship satisfaction, life stress, sexual communication). Results supported a 3-profile solution, with two distinct profiles emerging for women with low sexual desire. The first profile consisted of women with low desire who were dissatisfied with the sexual and nonsexual aspects of their relationships (Globally Distressed Group: 8%). The second profile consisted of women with low desire who were sexually, but not relationally, dissatisfied (Sexually Dissatisfied Group: 24%). In addition, a third profile emerged that consisted of generally satisfied women with average desire (Average Desire Group: 67%). t-tests revealed that the two low desire groups shared similar mean levels of sexual desire, but that their overall presentations were conceptually distinct. This research supports a categorical conceptualization of low sexual desire in women and suggests that evaluating category membership for women with low desire can provide valuable information about women's sexual experiences beyond assessing mean levels of sexual desire alone.

Heteronormativity and women’s psychosocial functioning in heterosexual and same-sex couples

ABSTRACTHeteronormativity has been implicated as afoundational contributor to both heterosexism and sexism. While exposure to sexism and heterosexism consistently predict negative psychosocial outcomes among women and sexual minorities, respectively, direct relationships between heteronormative attitudes and psychosocial functioning remain largely unexplored. The present study fills this gap by examining psychosocial functioning correlates of heteronormativity among sexual minority and heterosexual women in long-term relationships, via actor-partner independence modelling. Findings differed by sexual orientation and across subscales of heteronormativity. In particular, we foundnegative associations for sexual minority women between their own heteronormative behavioural attitudes and eudaimonic outcomes of autonomy, personal growth, and life purpose. We also observed some contradictory results, which reinforceconceptualizations of heteronormativity and heterosexual privilege as complex, multi-faceted aspects of everyday life for women. Results support recommendations that clinicians and researchers assess sexual minority women’s heteronormative attitudes and beliefs, and that prejudice-reduction efforts attend to the ways in which heteronormativity may be experienced as protective or reassuring when individuals conform to its expectations. Future research is recommended to increase understanding of the relevance of heteronormativity in women’s lives, and to explore whether interventions that reduce internalised heteronormativity may yield improvement in eudaimonic wellbeing among sexual minority women.

036 Sexual Desire and Modulation of Desire Discrepancy in a Sample of Bisexual Women in Long-term Relationships with Men

036 Sexual Desire and Modulation of Desire Discrepancy in a Sample of Bisexual Women in Long-term Relationships with Men

HPV primary cervical screening in England: Women's awareness and attitudes.

Primary human papillomavirus (HPV) cervical screening is due to be implemented in England within the next 2years; however, the acceptability of HPV testing as the primary screening test is unclear. This study explores women's awareness and attitudes toward HPV testing/screening. Qualitative interviews (semistructured and focus group) were conducted with 46 women (aged 25-65years) from community and secondary care settings. Data were analyzed by using the inductive-framework method. Women were unaware that cervical screening currently includes HPV testing and lacked HPV-related knowledge. Emotions of shock, fear, and anxiety were reported upon receiving a positive HPV result. For women in long-term relationships, the realization that HPV is a sexually transmitted infection was seen as a barrier to primary HPV testing. Knowledge that HPV testing is a screening test to prevent cervical cancer did not change their attitudes. Women debated the need for continued screening following a negative result. Women feared judgment by the community if they participated with primary HPV screening because they were being tested for a sexually transmitted infection, with the possible attendant perception that they had adopted a high-risk lifestyle in comparison to nonattenders. The acceptability of HPV testing may be a limiting factor in encouraging participation with screening in the future.

Mate Value Discrepancy and Mate Retention Behaviors of Self and Partner.

This study investigated the relationship between perceived mate value discrepancy (i.e., the difference between an individual's mate value and their partner's mate value) and perceived frequency of mate retention performed by an individual relative to his or her partner. In two studies, participants in long-term, exclusive, sexual, heterosexual relationships reported their own, and their partner's, mate value and mate retention. Samples included 899 community members (Study 1) and 941 students and community members (Study 2). In Study 1, we documented that individuals with higher self-perceived short-term mate value, and who perceive their partner to have lower (vs. higher) short-term mate value, perform less frequent Benefit-Provisioning mate retention, controlling for the partner's Benefit-Provisioning mate retention. In Study 2, we documented that individuals who perceive that they could less easily replace their partner, and who perceive their partner could more (vs. less) easily replace them, perform more frequent mate retention (Benefit-Provisioning and Cost-Inflicting), controlling for the partner's mate retention. These results highlight the importance of assessing perceived discrepancies in mate value (notably, regarding the replaceability of self and partner with another long-term mate) and perceived mate retention behaviors of self, relative to partner, between men and women in long-term relationships.

Desires, Expectations and the Sexual Practices of Married and Cohabiting Heterosexual Women

This article draws on qualitative interviews in order to analyse the ways in which heterosexual women reconcile their everyday lived sexual practices, expectations and desires. Focusing on the accounts of twenty women in long-term relationships, analysis suggests that the sexual practices of the women interviewed continue to be largely conducted within a dominant heteronormative framework. This runs contrary to claims about the democratisation or queering of sexual relations ( Giddens 1992 ; Roseneil 2000 ). I argue that participants’ sexual desires and expectations are undermined by essentialist understandings of masculinity and femininity, with shifts in the outward forms of heterosexuality having a limited impact upon sexual practices which continue to be entrenched in heteronormative ideals.

Sexuality and affection among elderly German men and women in long-term relationships: results of a prospective population-based study.

Satisfaction with sexual activity i.e. sexual satisfaction and the importance of sexuality and affection were analysed using data from the German “Interdisciplinary Longitudinal Study of Adult Development” (ILSE). At three measurement points, 1993–1995, 1997–1998, and 2004–2006 i.e. subjects' ages of 63, 67, and 74 years, participants' reports about their affection and sexual activity were collected. The sample of completed records used for this study consisted of 194 urban non-institutionalised participants, 68% male, all living with partners. Median levels of sexual satisfaction were reported, fluctuating between the measurement points of ages 63 to 74. Between baseline, first and second follow-up no differences were found in levels of sexual satisfaction, though at measurement points age 63 and 67 women were more satisfied than men. When measured at age 74, affection was given a higher priority than sexual activity. Although men and women reported similar priorities, sexual activity and affection were more important for men than for women. Satisfaction within the relationship can be predicted by the importance of affection, but not by that of sexual activity. Our results confirm the thesis of the ‘second language of sexuality’: for humans in their later years affection seems to be more important than for younger individuals.

Young women's descriptions of sexual desire in long-term relationships

The aim of this study was to gain a greater understanding of how women in emerging adulthood describe and make sense of their experience of sexual desire in long-term relationships. Twenty semi-structured interviews were conducted with women in long-term relationships (2.5 years or longer) in emerging adulthood (ages 18–29) regarding their experiences of sexual desire. In order to ensure a range of experiences, we recruited two groups of women: those who were “wondering where the passion has gone” and those who felt “the passion was stillalive”. Data were analyzed using grounded theory methodology. Women provided various explanations for why they continued to experience high desire orexperience a decrease in desire. Similarities and differences between the two groups of women are explored and implications of this study's results are discussed.

The Queer Newspaperwoman in Edith Eaton's “The Success of a Mistake”

The Queer Newspaperwoman in Edith Eaton's "The Success of a Mistake" Jean M. Lutes When is a mistake not a mistake? Edith Eaton/Sui Sin Far's "The Success of a Mistake" promises, in its very title, to reward error with triumph—a paradox that will not surprise scholars familiar with Eaton's fondness for irony and her flair for upending cultural assumptions. The protagonist, Miss Lund, is a white Seattle newspaperwoman who mixes up her facts while reporting on a Chinese betrothal and unexpectedly finds herself in the role of matchmaker.1 The story hinges, then, on the circulation of misinformation, and it begins with a mistake about sex: Miss Lund's article announces that a Chinese mother has gone to San Francisco to find a husband for her daughter, when in fact the mother has gone to find a wife for her son. At least two people, it turns out, are grateful that the reporter got the story wrong, since her misreporting derails the daughter's already-arranged marriage and paves the way for her to marry the man she loves instead. The story casts the newspaperwoman as an assimilationist Cupid who helps to Americanize her Chinese subjects even as she profits from their cultural differences by reporting on them. But it is in the emotional register of Eaton's reporter-heroine that I think this story might push us to see Eaton's work, and perhaps the larger journalistic tradition to which it contributes, in a new way. In this essay I call attention to one dimension of that emotionality: the queer subtext of the plot, which depends upon the reporter-heroine's sympathetic identification with her source and her charged relationship with a female missionary friend. By staging debates between the reporter and the missionary over the nature and source of the reporter's mistakes, Eaton contests the very definition of a thing incorrectly done or thought. As one misconception follows another in this lighthearted tale, she creates a network of relations that function best when they are misunderstood. It is easy to wonder, then, whether the same holds true for the bond between the reporter and her same-sex friend. [End Page 280] Adding "The Success of a Mistake"—originally published in the Seattle promotional monthly the Westerner and recently rediscovered by Mary Chapman—to Eaton's known oeuvre reminds us of the importance and complexity of the author's journalistic background.2 As an authorial figure, the fictional Miss Lund signals the influence and relevance of Eaton's experiences as a professional journalist. She also reminds us that Eaton belonged to the group of realist and modernist writers who launched their literary careers as reporters. In 1908, the year this story was published, Eaton listed her occupation as "journalist" in the Seattle census (Solberg 36n1). She had been contributing articles to newspapers on a regular basis since the 1890s, including at least one from which "The Success of a Mistake" draws directly, a piece on "Betrothals in Chinatown" published in 1903 in the Los Angeles Express. The reporter-heroine's misreported betrothal story echoes, in both structure and content, Eaton's Los Angeles Express article.3 More broadly, "The Success of a Mistake" calls attention to a vibrant counter-tradition of women's reporting, one that was not necessarily progressive but which was almost always—in one way or another—queer. By associating Progressive Era newspaperwomen with queerness, I do not mean to suggest that they would have identified as or understood themselves to be lesbians (or inverts, a term more common at the time). While some, like Eaton herself, remained single, and some lived with other women in long-term relationships, it is not the manifestation of their specific sexual desires or their self-identified sexual orientation that concerns me here. Rather, it is their participation in a public phenomenon, the newspaperwoman's emergence as a cultural icon in late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century North America, that can itself be understood as queer in its confounding of sex and gender norms. Between 1880 and 1900, women reporters became a highly visible minority in otherwise male-dominated city newsrooms, and fictional newspaperwomen...

Influence of patient's relationship status and HPV history on physicians’ decisions to recommend HPV vaccination

This study asked whether physicians would prioritize HPV vaccination on the basis of a young woman's relationship status and HPV history (i.e., abnormal Pap test, HPV infection or HPV-related disease). Eight hundred physicians identified as HPV vaccinators in a US claims database were surveyed. Prioritization was assessed on a 0–10 rating scale (from extremely low to extremely high priority). Physicians gave lower priority to vaccinating patients who were married or in a long-term monogamous relationship, with mean (SD) scores of 5.76 (2.82) and 6.80 (2.48), respectively, than for patients who were single and either dating or not dating, with mean (SD) scores of 9.8 (0.68) and 9.22 (1.61), respectively; p < .0001 for all pair-wise comparisons. Physicians did not differentially prioritize vaccination on the basis of previous HPV-related disease or abnormal Pap test. Despite epidemiologic evidence that women in long-term relationships remain at risk for HPV infection, physicians gave them lower priority for vaccination.

Risk factors and HIV transmission to midlife and older women: knowledge, options, and the initiation of safer sexual practices.

Despite the increased impact of HIV/AIDS on women in the United States, the HIV-related experience of mature and older women has been largely overlooked by behavior scientists. Appropriate strategies for increasing awareness, assessing personal risk, and implementing safer sex behaviors among women in their 50s or older have not been developed. Relative to knowledge of personal risk and self-protective measures, older women have lower levels of knowledge about HIV/AIDS and the effectiveness of condoms than their younger counterparts. Although a significant portion of postmenopausal women remain sexually active, little is known about how mature women in long-term relationships can initiate self-protective behaviors if they come to recognize a risk or how those who meet new sexual partners can be motivated to use condoms. Investigations regarding safer sexual practices must be conducted in a way that addresses biologic events (e.g., menopause), life course changes, and cohort effects. Rather than trying to generalize findings from studies performed with younger women, it is necessary to integrate risk reduction strategies into models of sexual health and well-being for women across their life course.

Gender-role self-stereotyping and the relationship between equity and satisfaction in close relationships

Gender-role self-stereotyping was investigated as a moderator of the importance of equity to satisfaction within close relationships in a sample of 204 men and women in long-term relationships. For those low in gender-role self-stereotyping, equity strongly predicted satisfaction, whereas for those higher in gender-role self-stereotyping, satisfaction was predicted by the belief that one's own relationship compared favorably with those of same-sex others. The importance of equity was also investigated by asking participants to predict how they would respond if they found themselves in an overbenefiting or underbenefiting relationship. Predicted responses to inequity were influenced by participants' sex, degree of gender-role self-stereotyping, and the type of inequity imagined. These finding are discussed in terms of the system justifying effects of gender-role stereotypes.

Female sexual response: the role of drugs in the management of sexual dysfunction

A large component of women’s sexual desire is responsive rather than spontaneous. Therefore, women’s motivation and ability to find and respond to sexual stimuli to experience sexual arousal and subsequent sexual desire is crucial, but complex. In ongoing relationships, a woman’s motivation appears to be largely influenced by her emotional intimacy with her partner and her wish to enhance it. Drugs (including androgen replacement therapy) aimed at increasing women’s spontaneous sexual wanting (less characteristic of women in long-term relationships) or their arousability may have a role if other psychologic factors affecting arousability are addressed in tandem. A woman’s sexual arousal is composite and complex, correlating well with how mentally exciting she finds the sexual stimulus and its context and poorly with objective genital blood flow changes. Drugs aimed at increasing the latter, including phosphodiesterase inhibitors, may have a role if there is prior careful enquiry as to whether genital engorgement is present but not attended to or is physically absent. Psychophysiologic studies to date suggest the former is common in women presenting with arousal disorder.

Risky heterosexual practices amongst women over 30: gender, power and long term relationships.

Statistics suggest that older and younger people are about equally at risk for HIV infection, yet existing research on heterosexuality and safer sexual practices has tended to focus on people under the age of 25. The present qualitative study investigates risk behaviours and the practice of safer sex in older populations. Group discussions comprising women over the age of 30 (n = 23) targeted two issues: the gendered power dimension of heterosexuality and safer sex in long term relationships. Cohort issues were also discussed. The discussion groups revealed that the imbalance of power between men and women which has been shown by previous research to constrain younger women's choices with regard to safer sex, continues to affect older women's decisions. Many of the group participants still found it difficult to assert themselves in sexual relationships and even those who were able to challenge overt pressures to engage in unsafe sex were still susceptible to internalized social pressures. In addition, it seems that risks for older age groups are increased by difficulties in continuing to use condoms in long term relationships where monogamy cannot be taken for granted. It was also apparent that there are difficulties in changing sexual behaviours which were established before HIV became an issue.