Narratives of Desire in Mid-Age Women With and Without Arousal Difficulties

TLDR

The nature of women's sexual desire is controversial. The study aimed to explore how mid‑aged women describe sexual desire and whether these narratives differ between those with and without female sexual arousal disorder. Researchers conducted in‑depth interviews and administered the Brief Index of Sexual Functioning and FSFI to 22 mid‑aged women (12 without FSAD, 10 with FSAD). Both groups described desire in genital, non‑genital, and cognitive‑emotional terms; FSAD participants had low FSFI desire scores yet recalled desire comparable to controls, with triggers such as touch, memories, and partner responses, while controls more often conflated desire and arousal and all women emphasized emotional connection as most important.

Abstract

There is controversy about the nature of women's sexual desire. The aim was to explore narrative descriptions of sexual desire among mid-aged women in hopes of clarifying how women define and experience sexual desire, and how these might differ among women with and without female sexual arousal disorder (FSAD). Mid-aged women without (age: M = 45, n = 12) and with (age: M = 55, n = 10) FSAD took part in in-depth interviews that invited them to share personal stories of sexual desire. Women also completed the Brief Index of Sexual Functioning and the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). Women in both groups described sexual desire in genital, non-genital physical, and in cognitive-emotional terms. Although women with FSAD had low ratings of sexual desire on the FSFI, they could recall recent experiences of desire that did not differ from the control group. Women identified a number of triggers of desire including touch, memories, and partner's responses--the latter of which acted as both a trigger and an inhibitor. Women in the control group were more likely to express conflation about the distinction between desire and arousal. Among the different "objects" of women's desire, most women acknowledged emotional connection as most important.