Sex in lasting marriages: A longitudinal study

In 1955 data were collected from 161 couples who had been married for approximately 20 years and who had been participants in a longitudinal study of marriage during the 20-year period. The data concerned the expectations, perceptions, and experiences of the couples in their sexual relationships. Results indicated that both men and women had held positive anticipations about sex from the outset of the marriage and currently received significant pleasure from their sexual relations, although men were significantly higher on both measures. A majority felt they had changed their early ideas and expectations, at least to some extent. Frequency of intercourse had dropped. Husbands continued to prefer intercourse more frequently than wives. About 70% of the wives were at least usually orgasmic and 36% of the husbands were occasionally impotent. Most individuals reporting that their opinions about sex were at least somewhat different from those of their spouse felt that these differences had produced negative effects in the marriage.