Who reports absence of sexual attraction in Britain? Evidence from national probability surveys

Aicken, Catherine; Mercer, Catherine H; Cassell, Jackie

doi:10.1080/19419899.2013.774161

Cited by 65 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 21 publications

(63 reference statements)

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“…Studies have reported that a sizeable minority of the population lacks sexual attraction toward others. The prevalence of asexuality has been placed between 0.4% (Aicken, Mercer & Cassell, 2013) and 1% (Bogaert, 2004) of the population, with one study finding as high as 1.5% of men and 3.3% of women, though this only addressed sexual attraction experienced in the preceding 12 months (Hšglund, Jern, Sandnabba & Santtila, 2014). …”

Section: Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Sex And Romance In Asmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Sex and Romance in Asexuals

Bulmer

Izuma

2017

The Journal of Sex Research

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Despite the recent surge of interest in sexuality, asexuality has remained relatively under researched. Distinct from abstinence or chastity, asexuality refers to a lack of sexual attraction toward others. Past research suggests asexuals have negative attitudes toward sex, though no research has examined implicit attitudes. While preliminary evidence suggests that many asexuals are interested in engaging in romantic relationships, theseattitudes have yet to be examined thoroughly, implicitly, or compared with a control group. This study investigated explicit and implicit attitudes toward sex and romance in a group of asexuals (N = 18, age M = 21.11) and a group of controls (N = 27, age M = 21.81), using the Asexuality Identification Scale, the Triangular Love Scale, semantic differentials, an Implicit Association Task (IAT) and two Single Category IATs. It was found that asexuals exhibited more negative explicit and implicit attitudes toward sex, as well as more negative explicit attitudes toward romance relative to controls. There was no significant difference between groups on implicit romantic attitudes. Moreover, aromantic asexuals demonstrated significantly more negative explicit attitudes toward romance than romantic asexuals, though there was no significant difference between groups on implicit measures. Explanations and implications of these findings are discussed.3

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Section: Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Sex And Romance In Asmentioning

confidence: 99%

Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Sex and Romance in Asexuals

Bulmer

Izuma

2017

The Journal of Sex Research

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“…Also, quantitative approaches that allow for parsimonious, single-item measurement are more feasible in large sample, random surveys which normally do not have the room necessary to capture the full variety of asexual manifestations, and for which smaller categories associated with lack of sexual attraction can’t be meaningfully measured nor relationships tested due to sample size and power constraints when using a random, non-convenience sample (Aicken, Mercer, & Cassell, 2013). However, the alternative, convenience sampling from asexuality organizations, sacrifices representativeness.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Temporal Stability of Lack of Sexual Attraction Across Young Adulthood

Cranney

2015

Arch Sex Behav

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There is a large and growing literature on the stability of sexual orientation across the lifespan. However, virtually no studies have been conducted on the longitudinal stability of any dimension of asexuality. Here, I utilized Kinsey scale-type data from Wave III and Wave IV of the Add Health survey to measure the stability of indicating “not sexually attracted to either males or females” in a forced-choice, Kinsey-type scale during the time participants were moving through early adulthood (18-26 in Wave III and 24-32 in Wave IV). I found that, for the most part, individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave III were not the same individuals who reported no sexual attraction in Wave IV, with only three out of the 25 in Wave III who indicated no sexual attraction going on to do the same in Wave IV. This inter-wave consistency was lower than it was for other sexual minorities. However, indicating no sexual attraction in one wave was still a statistically significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave, as was refusing to answer or indicating the “don’t know” option in the other wave. These findings do not necessarily denote change in sexual attraction across waves; the fact that not answering the question in one wave was a significant predictor of indicating no sexual attraction in the other wave provides quantitative evidence for the ambiguities involved in sexual identities when sexuality is taken for granted in the broader culture. This ambiguity affects the operationalization and quantification of asexuality.

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“…According to Bogaert (), 1.05% of the British population is asexual. More recent prevalence estimates based on a definition of a lifelong absence of sexual attraction among those aged 16–44 suggest asexuality is experienced by 0.3% of men, and 0.5% of women in the United Kingdom (UK; Aicken, Mercer, & Cassell, ). Whilst the work of Bogaert () and Aicken et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whilst the work of Bogaert () and Aicken et al. () rests on problematic definitions of asexuality based on absence of or lack of sexual attraction (Carrigan, ), there is no other UK data regarding prevalence. What is also relevant here is that, as Carrigan () points out defining asexuals as experiencing no sexual attraction, rather than low, may exclude a sizable number of those who embrace an asexual identity.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…

Health providers are increasingly expected to be sensitive to the needs of sexual and gender minorities and to be aware of their barriers to health care. In the UK, prevalence estimates based on a definition of a lifelong absence of sexual attraction among those aged 16–44 suggest asexuality is experienced by 0.3% of men, and 0.5% of women (Aicken et al., ). Romantic differences coupled with sexual indifference, validation of identity through engagement with asexual communities and a diversity of subasexual identities are all features of the asexual identity. …”

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confidence: 99%

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Understanding asexual identity as a means to facilitate culturally competent care: A systematic literature review

Jones

Hayter

Jomeen

2017

Journal of Clinical Nursing

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Anecdotal evidence, taken from one of the largest asexual online forums, suggests that a number of self-identified asexuals choose not to disclose their identity to healthcare professionals through fear of their asexual status being pathologised, problematised or judged. Given that asexuality is a poorly understood concept, this may be due to lack of understanding on behalf of healthcare providers. The review provides health professionals and practitioners working in clinical settings with some insights of the features of an asexual identity to facilitate culturally competent care.

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Who reports absence of sexual attraction in Britain? Evidence from national probability surveys

Cited by 65 publications

References 21 publications

Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Sex and Romance in Asexuals

Implicit and Explicit Attitudes Toward Sex and Romance in Asexuals

The Temporal Stability of Lack of Sexual Attraction Across Young Adulthood

Understanding asexual identity as a means to facilitate culturally competent care: A systematic literature review

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