On the Relationship Among Social Anxiety, Intimacy, Sexual Communication, and Sexual Satisfaction in Young Couples

Abstract

This study was conducted to better understand why socially anxious individuals experience less sexual satisfaction in their intimate partnerships than nonanxious individuals, a relationship that has been well documented in previous research. Effective communication between partners is an important predictor of relationship satisfaction. Sexual communication, an important aspect of communication between romantic partners, is especially sensitive for couples given the vulnerability inherent in being open about sexual issues. Because socially anxious individuals characteristically report fear of evaluation or scrutiny by others, we hypothesized that the process of building intimacy by sharing personal information about oneself with one's partner, including when this information relates to one's sexuality and/or the sexual domain of the relationship, would be particularly difficult for socially anxious individuals. The present study examined fear of intimacy and sexual communication as potential mediators of the relationship between higher social anxiety and lower sexual satisfaction. Self-report data were collected from 115 undergraduate students and their partners in monogamous, heterosexual, committed relationships of at least 3 months duration. Multilevel path modeling revealed that higher social anxiety predicted higher fear of intimacy, which predicted lower satisfaction with open sexual communication, which, in turn, predicted lower sexual satisfaction. Additionally, there was evidence of mediation as there were significant indirect effects of the antecedent variables on sexual satisfaction. The path model had excellent fit. Implications for social anxiety, intimate relationships, and couples therapy are discussed.

Relationship between General Health Indices and Sexual Dysfunction in Women Experiencing Spousal Abuse

“…Anxiety has been reported as an effective factor in sexual dysfunction. In this respect, a large number of studies have indicated that, when such individuals are faced with sexual stimulants, they get worried about their sexual performance and are distracted from sexual stimulants, which could lead to a decrease in their sexual arousal (Montesi et al, 2013). The present study's results showed no significant relationships between sexual dysfunction dimensions and depression and social function.…”

“…8, No. 10;2016 with sexual desire (P=-0.008), orgasm (P=-0.050), and overall sexual dysfunction (P=-0.041), but not with other dimensions (Table 4). All of these relationships were negative and reverse; i.e.…”

“…Besides, a negative relationship was found between anxiety and sexual desire; i.e. as the level of anxiety increased, sexual desire decreased in both men and women (Montesi et al, 2013). Other studies have also demonstrated a significant relationship between mental health and sexual dysfunction (Berek, 2012;Lin, Juang, Wen, Liu, & Hung, 2012;Kalmbach, Pillai, Kingsberg, & Ciesla, 2015).…”

“…Fabre et al (2012) also investigated mental health and proposed that sexual and mental disorders resulted from low mental health levels in a large number of women (Fabre & Smith, 2012). Moreover, Montesi et al (2013) examined the effects of anger and anxiety on men's and women's sexual desire and came to the conclusion that increased anger level led to decreased sexual desire in both men and women. Besides, a negative relationship was found between anxiety and sexual desire; i.e.…”

La frecuencia de las actividades sexuales como variable mediadora de la satisfacción sexual en mujeres jóvenes. (Frequency of sexual activities as a mediator of sexual satisfaction among young women.)

“…Numerous studies have demonstrated the relationship between a satisfactory sexual life and higher ability to love, satisfaction and adjustment in intimate relationships, selfesteem, physical and mental health, quality of life, emotional satisfaction, happiness, and satisfaction with life (e.g., Stephenson & Sullivan, 2009;Carrobles, Gámez-Guadix & Almendros, 2011). The impact that sexual satisfaction has on all these well-being-related variables justifies research aimed at establishing its determinants, such as communication with the partner (Babin, 2012;Montesi et al, 2013), attachment styles and/or insecurity (Brassard, Dupuy, Bergeron & Shaver, 2015;Stephenson & Sullivan, 2009), and sexual frequency (Muise, Giang & Impett, 2014;Schoenfeld, Loving, Pope, Huston & Štulhofer, 2016), among others.…”