Subjective Orgasm Experience in Different-Sex and Same-Sex Couples

What is it about?

The subjective orgasm experience is an essential construct of sexual functioning, referring to the perception/evaluation of orgasm from a psychological point of view, whether it occurs in the context of sexual relationships or in the context of solitary masturbation. The scientific study of orgasm has tended to focus on aspects related to its presence or absence, orgasmic frequency and the difficulties associated with orgasm, so focusing on the interpretation that people make of this facet of sexuality is a novel approach and still little explored in individuals or couples who are outside the traditional heterosexual schema. In addition, most studies that examine the subjective orgasmic experience do so by considering isolated individuals, not taking the couple as the unit of analysis. This study dyadically analyzed the subjective orgasm experience in the contexts of sexual relationships and solitary masturbation in 179 Spanish different-sex and same-sex couples. The authors found that the intensity of the orgasmic experience in such an individual practice as solitary masturbation influences the intensity of the orgasmic experience in the context of sexual relationships in couples, although with differential nuances depending on the configuration of the couple's relationship (i.e., male-female, male-male, female-female). Specifically, in couples that include a woman (i.e., male-female and female-female), it was found that the more the partners differed in how they valued their orgasms in one context, the more they did so in the other. This could be due to differences in how men and women live and experience sexuality. Thus, men might be focusing more on their sexual experience, while women might attend more to their partner's experience. In addition, the association between both subjective orgasmic experiences in the three types of couples was confirmed. Female couples showed a greater influence between their own orgasmic experiences (actor effects), whereas male couples were the only ones in which one partner's experience directly affected the other's (partner effect).

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Photo by Cesar Wild on Unsplash

Photo by Cesar Wild on Unsplash

Why is it important?

These findings help to better understand how the subjective orgasm experiences varies in the contexts of solitary masturbation and sexual relationships, depending on the type of couple, which could be useful in sex therapy and couple relationship research.

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