Factors Associated with Common Sexual Concerns in Women: New Findings from the Canadian Contraception Study
Leanne Gruszecki, Cheryl Forchuk, and William A. Fisher, University of Western Ontario

The 2002 Canadian Contraception Study, a national survey of 1,528 women aged 15-44, reported that 55% of respondents had experienced one or more of three sexual concerns in the past year including lower sexual desire (40%), infrequent coital orgasm (23%), and pain during intercourse (14%). The present secondary analysis of these data explores the association of these three sexual concerns with other factors measured in the study including age, body weight, number of children, education level, marital status, sexual concerns experienced by a partner, and method of contraception. Each of these factors was shown to be associated with one or more of the three sexual health concerns. This study is the first to use a large national sample of Canadian women to identify the correlates of female sexual function concerns (The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 2005; 14: 1-13).

The Role of Sexual Functioning in the Sexual Desire Adjustment and Psychological Adaptation of Women with Hypoactive Sexual Desire
David Farley Hurlbert, U.S. Department of Human Services, Evan R. Fertel, Devendra Singh, Ferdinand Fernandez, D.A. Menendez and Camila Salgado

The associations among sexual functioning and two categorical constraints, psychosocial adaptation and sexual desire adjustment, were examined in a sample of women (N=66) with hypoactive sexual desire. The findings suggest that sexual functioning, especially sexual distress, contributes an independent source of variance above and beyond that contributed by demographic characteristics, physical characteristics, and relationship dynamic variables in predicting the women’s desire adjustment and psychosocial functioning. High sexual compatibility and high sexual satisfaction contributed independently unique variance in predicting positive self-motivation in women with hypoactive sexual desire. Acquired type hypoactive sexual desire and sexual stress in the relationships contributed independently to depression in the study sample. Sexual stress also contributed unique variance to the women’s self-esteem and the husband’s perception of problem impact. Additionally, social class and body weight served as unique predictors of female subjects’ self-esteem. The findings suggest that husband-wife relationships and female sexual functioning represent interrelated and independent subsystems within the marital relationship, and both subsystems may influence the sexual desire adjustment and psychosocial functioning of women with hypoactive sexual desire (The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 2005; 14: 15-30).

Sexual Compatibility and Sexual Functioning in Intimate Relationships
Alia Offman and Kimberly Matheson, Carlton University

Sexual compatibility is an important element shaping the sexual functioning of an intimate relationship. In this study we expected that levels of sexual compatibility between partners would be related to differential levels of sexual functioning in intimate relationships, but that this relation might differ for men and women. Fifty-eight heterosexual couples responded to self-report measures of sexual functioning (satisfaction, depression, and anxiety), and perceived sexual compatibility. The results indicate that the relationship between an individual’s perception of their compatibility with their partner and sexual depression and anxiety was stronger for women than men. In addition, the partner’s perception of compatibility predicted sexual depression and anxiety for men but not women. For both men and women, an individual’s perception and their partner’s perception of compatibility were predictive of sexual satisfaction. This pattern of association between sexual compatibility and sexual functioning has implications for couples presenting with sexual concerns in therapy (The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 2005; 14: 31-39).