We hear it all the time don’t we. Good regular sex in a relationship leads to increased happiness, doesn’t it. Doesn’t it? Not according to new research from the Carnegie Mellon University who conducted a study to examine the connection between sexual frequency and happiness.
The study involved one hundred and twenty eight male and female individuals between the ages of 35-65 who were in relationship or married. The researchers then assigned the couples to one of two groups; the first group receiving no instructions on how often to have sex while the second group were asked to double their weekly sexual activity over a three month period.
Each member of the participating couples then completed three different types of surveys and answered questions online to measure happiness levels and how much they enjoyed sex.
At the end of the study it was found that the couples instructed to have more sex did have more sex but found this had lead to a small decrease in happiness. Furthermore, the researchers found that the couples instructed to have more sex also reported a lower sexual desire and a decrease in sexual enjoyment, possibly down to the fact they were asked to increase the sex rather than initiating it themselves, or because the ‘enforced’ extra sex felt like a chore.
But one of the study’s designers, Tamar Krishnamurti, suggested that the study’s findings may actually help couples to improve their sex lives and their happiness.
“The desire to have sex decreases much more quickly than the enjoyment of sex once it’s been initiated. Instead of focusing on increasing sexual frequency to the levels they experienced at the beginning of a relationship, couples should want to work on creating an environment that sparks desire and makes the sex even more fun,”
Despite the study’s results, George Loewenstein, the study’s lead investigator and the Herbert A. Simon University Professor of Economics and Psychology, continues to believe that most couples have too little sex and thinks that increasing sexual frequency in the right ways can be beneficial.
Here at Lovestruck, we think it doesn’t matter how frequently or infrequently a couple has sex – as long as both individuals in the relationship are happy with their sexual quota, that’s all that matters!
What do you think? Tell us @Lovestruck
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Image Credit: © Sergey Nivens / Fotolia
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