Sex And Feminism

A newspaper article recently published the results of a five-year study conducted by researchers at the University of Texas on the reasons why men and women have sex. What was surprising about the study’s results, according to the study’s co-author, University of Texas clinical psychology professor Cindy Meston, was that they “refuted a lot of gender stereotypes,” particularly “that men only want sex for physical pleasure and women want love.” The study showed that men’s and women’s motivations to have sex are essentially the same; both engage in sex more due to lust than to love.

Based on the answers supplied by 444 men and women to certain questions, Meston and colleague David Buss came up with a list of 237 distinct reasons to have sex. They then asked 1,549 college students taking psychology classes to rank these reasons on a one-to-five scale, based on how these reasons applied to their experiences. The top 10 reasons to have sex for men were remarkably similar to those for women.

The top ten reasons for men are: 1. I was attracted to the person. 2. It feels good. 3. I wanted to experience physical pleasure. 4. It’s fun. 5. I wanted to show my affection to the person. 6. I was sexually aroused and wanted the release. 7. I was “horny.” 8. I wanted to express my love for the person. 9. I wanted to achieve an orgasm. 10. I wanted to please my partner.

The top ten reasons for women are: 1. I was attracted to the person. 2. I wanted to experience physical pleasure. 3. It feels good. 4. I wanted to show my affection to the person. 5. I wanted to express my love for the person. 6. I was sexually aroused and wanted the release. 7. I was “horny.” 8. It’s fun. 9. I realized I was in love. 10. I was “in the heat of the moment.”

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