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Couples having more sex not necessarily happier

Couples having more sex not necessarily happier

Too much sex leads to a decrease in desire for sex which in turn hampers a couple's enjoyment.

Written by Editorial Team |Published : May 9, 2015 2:04 PM IST

There is no doubt about the fact that sex is one of the most enjoyable experiences known to mankind. You would think that couples who had more sex were happier, but a study conducted by researchers from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) suggested otherwise.

Too much sex leads to a decrease in desire for sex which in turn hampers a couple s enjoyment.

Instead of focusing on increasing sexual frequency, couples may want to work on creating an environment that sparks their desire and makes the sex that they do have even more fun, said research scientist Tamar Krishnamurti from CMU's department of engineering and public policy.

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How was the study conducted?

In the first study to examine the causal connection between sexual frequency and happiness, researchers experimentally assigned 128 couples to have more sex than others.

They observed both group's happiness over a three-month period. The couples instructed to increase sexual frequency did have more sex. However, it did not lead to increased, but instead to a small decrease, in happiness. Read 8 healthy reasons to have more sex.

Looking further, the researchers found that couples instructed to have more sex reported lower sexual desire and a decrease in sexual enjoyment.

It was not that actually having more sex led to decreased wanting and liking for sex.

Instead, it seemed to be just the fact that they were asked to do it, rather than initiating on their own, Krishnamurti noted.

That does not mean that couples should reduce their frequency. The authors believe that most couples had lesser sex than they should. However, they should initiate sex in the right ways, rather than just doing it for the sake of it. Read if men really want more sex in the winter.

The findings may actually help couples to improve their sex lives and their happiness, Krishnamurti pointed out.

If we ran the study again, we would try to encourage subjects into initiating more sex in ways that put them in a sexy frame of mind rather than directing them to do so, added George Loewenstein, the study's lead investigator.

The paper was published in the Journal of Economic Behaviour & Organization.

With inputs from IANS

Image source: Getty Images


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