Sex Differences in Sexual Motivation Among U.S. Residents 57–85 Years of Age

Abstract

Sexual motivation includes proceptivity (mental or physical pursuit of sexual gratification) and receptivity (openness to having sex initiated by someone else). The roles of these two components are not well understood in older adults past reproductive age. We quantify these components and their associations with sexual activity along with differences in sex, age, partner status, health, reproductive steroids and other demographic variables collected during home interviews for the National Social Life, Health, and Aging Project’s nationally representative sample of 3005, 57–85 years old community-dwelling U.S. residents. The majority of older adults had sex and age had only a modest association with their sexual motivation. Proceptive and receptive sexual motivation were independent of each other and each was associated with higher odds of having sex more frequently. Relative to women, men reported higher levels of sexual proceptivity, controlling for demographic and biological variables such as medications, diseases, education, partner status, reproductive steroid levels, and age. Women reported higher sexual receptivity than did men. Although men had higher free salivary testosterone levels, it was associated with higher proceptivity and receptivity within both men and women. DHEA and estradiol were also associated with variations in sexual motivation. Nonetheless, sex differences in each component of sexual motivation remained after controlling for reproductive steroid levels along with demographics and partner status. Having a positive emotional relationship was associated with higher proceptive sexual motivation in women but not in men.