Article Figures & Data
Figures
- Figure 1
Partner status, sexual activity, and sexual satisfaction of women in MIDUS II (The Survey of Midlife Development in the United States).
Note: Of 31 women who had missing data regarding partner status, 23 were not sexually active, and 8 were sexually active. Satisfaction is based on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 indicates the lowest level of sexual satisfaction.
a Partnered = married or living together in a marriage-like relationship.
b Any sexual activity with a partner in the prior 6 months.
c Weighted mean estimate, based on a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 indicating the least amount of satisfaction.
- Figure 2
Frequency of sexual activity among sexually active women in the Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS II), by age (n = 1,345).
Tables
- Table 1
Characteristics of Sexually Inactive and Sexually Active Women in MIDUS II (n = 2,116)
Variable Sexually Inactive Sexually Active P Valueb No. Weighted %a No. Weighted %a All women in MIDUS II 771 38.2 1,345 61.8 — Age, mean (SD), y 62.0 (11.8) 51.8 (10.9) <.001 Sexual orientation .002 Heterosexual 771 95.2 1,313 97.5 Homosexual or bisexual 28 4.9 22 2.5 Race .20 White 692 87.6 1,240 88.9 Black and/or African American 38 8.9 49 7.4 Other 36 3.6 51 3.7 Hispanic .60 No 748 96.8 1,298 95.7 Yes 21 3.2 42 4.3 Total annual household income, mean (SD), $c 42,749 (44,753) 79,874 (61,201) <.001 Highest education completed <.001 Some high school or less 65 17.9 55 7.9 Completed high school or GED 257 34.9 370 38.0 Some college 167 19.7 306 20.1 Completed college degree 155 15.9 386 20.2 Graduate or postgraduate professional school 125 11.6 226 13.8 Married or cohabitating <.001 No 480 67.5 135 12.9 Yes 268 32.5 1,202 87.1 Romantic partner age, mean (SD), y 66.3 (11.9) 54.7 (11.8) <.001 Chronic conditions, mean (SD), No. 3.3 (3.1) 2.3 (2.2) <.001 Menopausal status <.001 Premenopausal 58 8.3 331 29.6 Perimenopausal 40 6.9 213 18.4 Postmenopausal 347 41.8 352 24.2 Hysterectomy, one or both ovaries intact 116 19.8 161 13.9 Bilateral oophorectomy 169 23.2 208 13.9 GED = General Educational Development test completion; MIDUS = Survey of Midlife Development in the United States.
Note: There were 531 women in MIDUS II who did not answer the questions regarding sexual activity.
↵a Weighted percentages use information regarding age, race, and education to estimates for the general US population.
↵b For sexually inactive vs active women, using the t test, χ2, or Fisher exact test, as appropriate.
↵c Assessed in 2004–2006.
- Table 2
Proportion of Women in MIDUS II Who Were Sexually Active in the Previous 6 Months, by Age
Age, Years All Women in MIDUS II Women Who Are Married or Cohabitating No. Raw % Weighted % No. Raw % Weighted % ≤39 190 88.8 89.7 157 97.5 95.7 40–49 429 80.8 74.6 397 92.3 89.9 50–59 396 67.6 64.9 356 86.4 86.8 60–69 240 51.4 48.6 212 70.7 68.4 70–79 79 30.6 21.1 69 48.6 41.3 ≥80 11 18.3 14.6 11 44.0 36.8 MIDUS = Survey of Midlife Development in the United States.
- Table 3
Factors Associated With Being Sexually Active in the Previous 6 Months (vs Not) Among Women in MIDUS II, Multivariate Model (n = 2,116)
Variable OR (95% CI) P Value Overall P Value Married or cohabitating (yes) 7.91 (4.16–15.04) <.001 Importance of sex <.001 A lot 1.00 [Referent] Some 1.10 (0.52–2.33) .81 A little 0.38 (0.17–0.81) .012 Not at all 0.06 (0.03–0.14) <.001 Age 0.95 (0.92, 0.99) .002 Previous sexual satisfactiona .007 0–2 1.00 [Referent] 3–5 1.61 (0.67–3.87) .29 6–8 2.88 (1.22–6.51) .016 9–10 2.89 (1.21–6.51) .034 Body mass index 0.96 (0.92–0.99) .027 Depression (yes)b 0.36 (0.18–0.73) .005 Menopausal status .65 Premenopausal 1.00 [Referent] Perimenopausal 1.50 (0.57–3.93) .41 Postmenopausal 0.90(0.35–2.30) .83 Hysterectomy, one or both ovaries intact 1.04 (0.36–3.00) .94 Bilateral oophorectomy 1.39 (0.46–4.14) .56 BMI = body mass index; MIDUS = Survey of Midlife Development in the United States; OR = odds ratio.
Note: Adjusted for income, sexual orientation, education level, physical health, antidepressant use, and history of sexual assault.
↵a Based on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 indicates the lowest level of sexual satisfaction.
↵b Depression in the prior 12 months, based on validated scale developed by Wang et al.19
- Table 4
Factors Associated With Current Sexual Satisfaction Among Sexually Active Women in MIDUS II, Multivariate Model (n = 1,334)
Variable OR (95% CI) P Value Overall P Value Age, y 1.00 (0.98–1.03) .79 Relationship with romantic partner <.001 Excellent 1.00 [Referent] Very good 0.38 (0.23–0.61) <.001 Good 0.22 (0.11–0.44) <.001 Fair or poor 0.16 (0.05–0.48) .001 How much can you open up to romantic partner .011 A lot 1.00 [Referent] Some 1.07 (0.68–1.69) .78 A little 0.88 (0.38–2.02) .76 Not at all 0.01 (0.00–0.15) .001 Importance of sex .040 A lot 1.00 [Referent] Some 0.67 (0.41–1.11) .124 A little 0.43 (0.22–0.84) .013 Not at all 0.22 (0.06–0.83) .025 Frequency of sex .040 Two or more times a week 2.93 (1.63–5.27) <.001 Once a week 1.30 (0.78–2.17) .32 Two or three times a month 1.00 [Referent] Once a month 0.29 (0.14–0.59) .001 Less often than once a month 0.13 (0.06–0.27) <.001 Previous sexual satisfaction <.001 0–3 1.00 [Referent] 4–7 1.00 (0.49–2.01) .99 8–10 2.25 (1.11–4.54) .024 Pain with intercourse (yes) 0.53 (0.36–0.78) .001 Antidepressant use (yes) 0.57 (0.35–0.92) .021 Menopausal status .44 Premenopausal 1.00 [Referent] Perimenopausal 0.64 (0.35–1.16) .138 Postmenopausal 1.08 (0.55–2.14) .82 Hysterectomy, one or both ovaries intact 0.77 (0.38–1.56) .47 Hysterectomy and bilateral oophorectomy 1.05 (0.51–2.17) .89 OR = odds ratio; MIDUS = Survey of Midlife Development in the United States.
Note: MIDUS II adjusted for history of sexual assault, respondent physical and mental health, body mass index, romantic partner’s physical and mental health.
a Based on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 indicates the lowest level of sexual satisfaction.
The Article in Brief
Correlates of Sexual Activity and Satisfaction in Midlife and Older Women
Holly N. Thomas , and colleagues
Background There is a strong link between a healthy sex life and higher quality of life as individuals age. This study of midlife development in women aged 28 to 84 years estimates sexual activity and identifies factors associated with sexual activity and sexual satisfaction.
What This Study Found A considerable proportion of midlife and older women remain sexually active if they have a partner available. Among older women who are sexually active, sexual satisfaction is related not to age or menopausal status, but to higher relationship satisfaction, better communication and higher importance placed on sex. Among women aged 60 and older who are married and cohabitating, 59 percent are sexually active. Overall, 62 percent of respondents report being sexually active in the previous six months, however, the proportion decreases with advancing age. Women who are cohabitating have approximately eight times higher odds of being sexually active; about 13 percent of sexually active women surveyed are not married or cohabitating.
Implications
- Many women maintain or want to maintain a satisfying sex life into middle age and beyond. The authors advise clinicians to ask women about sexual activity and sexual satisfaction and help them to maintain a satisfying sex life with aging.
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