Gender equality = better sex
Gender equality leads to better sex lives among people 40 and over
Older couples who live in Western countries and who enjoy more equality between men and women are most likely to report being satisfied with their sex lives, according to a new study on sexual well-being, aging and health that was conducted in 29 countries by a University of Chicago research team.
In contrast, older people reported less satisfaction with the physical and emotional quality of their sex lives in countries where men have a dominant status over women, such as nations in East Asia, and to a lesser extent, the Middle East, according to the results of the Global Study of Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors.
The study involved surveying about 27,500 people between the ages of 40 and 80, including equal numbers of men and women. The study is the first of its kind to document and compare sexual behavior and related satisfaction among middle-aged and older people worldwide. Across most of the countries surveyed, substantial majorities of people with partners remain sexually active throughout the second half of their lives.
The study found that people reported the greatest sexual satisfaction in five countries, led by Austria, and followed by Spain, Canada, Belgium and the United States. At the low end of satisfaction were Japan and Taiwan. Countries such as Turkey, Egypt and Algeria were in the middle.
An article on the survey, titled“A Cross-National Study of Subjective Sexual Well-Being Among Older Women and Men: Findings from the Global Study of Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors,” is published in the April issue of the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior.
In relationships based on equality, couples tend to develop sexual habits that are more in keeping with both partners’ interests, said lead author, Edward Laumann, the George Herbert Meade Distinguished Service Professor in Sociology at the University of Chicago. “Male-centered cultures where sexual behavior is more oriented toward procreation tend to discount the importance of sexual pleasure for women,” he said.
The study, which was intended to draw out people’s subjective evaluation of the role of sex in their relationships with partners, included questions about how physically or emotionally satisfying their relationships are and how important sex is to them. They also were asked about their overall happiness; physical and mental health circumstances, including sexual dysfunction; their attitudes toward sex; and their attitudes toward various social and demographic factors, including age, education, income and religious affiliation.
This is the first large-scale international study to include large numbers of respondents from diverse religious traditions, including Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist and other Asian religions, and atheists. A particular focus is on the impact of aging, health conditions and socio-cultural context on sexual well-being.
At the beginning of the interview, respondents were asked if they were happy with their lives as a whole. The study found that subjective feelings of sexual well-being are strongly correlated with overall happiness for both men and women across all of the countries studied. Other findings of the study include:
Across all of the countries studied, there are large gender differences in sexual well-being. On average, men reported at least 10 percentage points to their sexual health and well-being above the percentages that women reported.
* In Western nations, two-thirds of men and women reported their sexual relationships were satisfying, and 80 percent said they were satisfied with their ability to have sex. About half of the men and one third of the women said sex was extremely or very important in their lives.
* In Middle Eastern nations, 50 percent of men and 38 percent of women found their sex lives satisfying. About 70 percent said they were satisfied with their ability to have sex. Sixty percent of men and 37 percent of women said sex is an important part of their overall lives.
* In East Asian countries, only about one quarter of men and women reported physical and emotional pleasure with sex, while two thirds of the men and half of the women reported satisfaction with their ability to have sex. Among men, 28 percent said sex was important to them, while only 12 percent of the women did.Pfizer Inc. funded the Global Study of Sexual Attitudes and Behaviors. Other authors of the paper are Anthony Paik, a sociologist at the University of Iowa; Dale Glasser, a public health epidemiologist for Pfizer Inc.; Joeng-Han Kang, a methodologist at Chicago; Tianfu Wang, a sociologist at Tsinghua University, Beijing, China; Bernard Levinson, a psychiatrist in Johannesburg, South Africa; Edson Moreira, a medical public health epidemiologist at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation in Bhaia, Brazil; Alfredo Nicolosi, a physician and epidemiologist at the National Research Council, Milan, Italy; and Clive Gingell, a urologist at Southmead Hospital, Bristol, England.
Read a blurb about this in Woman’s Day magazine while I was waiting for Annie at the dentist this morning. It makes sense to me, but I’m wondering how they defined and measured gender equality in the relationship. The whole study is here:, but I really don’t have time to read through it right now 
Last day of vacation days in this batch of days that I took off, then back to work on Monday. 
Going to see They Might Be Giants tonight at Lincoln Park Zoo. When we bought the tix, we figured it would be an early evening kids-oriented kind of show. We knew it started at 7p, but didn’t think it would run too late. Now, they’ve added 2 bands & TMBG aren’t even starting until 9p. It’s going to be a late night for all of us!
Tomorrow - Manville Bash in West Chicago - community party. Red Woody is playing. My nephew is the temporary replacement drummer for them, but I don’t know if the regular drummer is back in the band, yet (was out for new baby reasons).
My BIL, David, has been staying with us for a few days. Makes things kind of complicated around here, trying to find beds for everyone, get everyone up for work/school (he needs to be awakened at 5:30a & tends to fall back to sleep sometimes). He’s only supposed to be staying for a few days, but I’m not sure when he’ll be moving into Uncle Bob’s house. He got married a year ago in June to a woman in Maryland (has been living there for a couple years). Couldn’t get/keep a steady job there, so he decided to come back here to see what he could find. Started a part-time job in food service at a high school 2 train stops away from us on Wednesday. His wife is supposed to be following out here to Illinois some time in Sept or Oct (maybe - nothing is really set, yet) & they are staying (temporarily/permanently?) with Uncle Bob. Not sure if they are taking him up on his offer to help him fix up the house in exchange for ‘buying’ the house from him by paying off his equity loan. Sweet deal, if you ask me.
Off to try to get some stuff together to sell on E-Bay. Jim & I are trying to economize, find ways to pay off credit card debt for good (I really mean it this time) & bring in a couple hundred extra dollars a month so that we can keep on living our current lifestyle (comfortably buying stuff that we want, going to movies, eating out every once in a while, etc). We’re selling what we can. We’re looking at extra ways to bring in cash - part-time jobs? babysitting? Closing off an extra insurance policy? Borrowing against 401(k)? Withdrawing (with penalty) early from 401(k)? Just want to get to a point where Jim’s not worrying all the time. That’s no way to live.
