How people interpret physical signs of arousal, such as a racing heartbeat, relates to their sexual functioning in distinct ways for men and women. A recent study published in the Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy found that viewing these physical sensations positively correlates with higher sexual desire, while fearing them is associated with lower sexual satisfaction in women and physical sexual difficulties in men. These results suggest that treating sexual problems might benefit from addressing how individuals perceive their body’s automatic responses.
When a person feels anxious or sexually aroused, the body responds in similar ways. The sympathetic nervous system activates to prepare the body for action. This activation causes the heart to race, breathing to quicken, and blood to flow to core organs.
Because the physical signs of anxiety and sexual arousal overlap, the way an individual interprets a pounding chest can shape their emotional and physical experience. Some people experience a trait known as anxiety sensitivity. This refers to a persistent belief that bodily sensations are dangerous or inherently negative.
Someone with high anxiety sensitivity might assume a racing heart means they are having a medical emergency. They might also worry that their physical signs of anxiety are noticeable and will cause social embarrassment.
Don’t miss the next big psychology finding
Every morning, PsyPost sends a short briefing on the most interesting new peer-reviewed research in psychology and neuroscience.
On the other hand, a person can hold positive beliefs about these exact same physical sensations. They might interpret a fast pulse or rapid breathing as a sign of excitement, energy, or positive anticipation.
Researchers led by Andrea R. Ashbaugh at the University of Ottawa wanted to understand how these different interpretations relate to sexual functioning. Previous research had shown a complicated relationship between anxiety and sexual response.
Clinical anxiety often correlates with sexual problems. However, some laboratory studies have shown that anxiety can occasionally enhance physical arousal. For example, past experiments pairing erotic images with the threat of a mild electric shock have produced mixed results, sometimes inhibiting arousal in women but failing to do the same in men.
Ashbaugh and her team suspected that underlying beliefs about bodily sensations might explain these mixed results. In cognitive behavioral models, the meaning a person assigns to a physical feeling dictates how they respond to it.
If a person views a flushed face and quickened pulse as a sign of sexual excitement, they might lean into the experience. If they view those same signs as a panic attack, they will likely pull away. The researchers wanted to see if these beliefs operate differently for men and women.
The researchers recruited 909 undergraduate students to complete a series of online questionnaires. The group included 491 women, 417 men, and one person who identified as genderfluid. The average age of the participants was roughly 20 years old.
To measure how participants viewed physical arousal, the team used two distinct scales. The first was an 18-item questionnaire that assessed anxiety sensitivity. It asked participants if they feared sensations like a rapidly beating heart or shortness of breath.
The second questionnaire measured positive interpretations of bodily sensations. It asked if participants felt alive or excited when they experienced physical signs like a racing mind or being out of breath from exertion.
Participants also completed standardized surveys about their sexual functioning over the previous four weeks. The surveys asked for ratings on a scale ranging from almost never to almost always.
Women answered questions evaluating their sexual desire, physical arousal, lubrication, orgasm, pain, and overall satisfaction. Men answered questions evaluating their sexual desire, physical arousal, erectile function, orgasm, and satisfaction.
The researchers then used structural equation modeling to look for relationships between the participants’ beliefs about their bodies and their reported sexual functioning. They analyzed the data for men and women separately.
The researchers found that men generally reported more positive interpretations of their physical arousal than women did. In contrast, women scored higher on the measure of anxiety sensitivity, indicating a greater baseline fear of these physical sensations.
When looking at positive interpretations of bodily sensations, the researchers found a consistent pattern across both groups. For both men and women, viewing physical arousal as exciting was associated with higher levels of sexual desire.
The researchers suggest that interpreting physical arousal positively might help people notice or cultivate sexual desire. This positive appraisal may encourage people to initiate or seek out sexual experiences.
However, negative interpretations of arousal related to sexual functioning differently depending on the group. For women, higher anxiety sensitivity was associated only with lower sexual satisfaction.
Anxiety sensitivity in women did not show a mathematical relationship with physical aspects of sex like arousal, lubrication, or orgasm. The researchers noted that for women, anxiety sensitivity appears to impact the later, more evaluative stages of a sexual experience, such as how satisfied one feels afterward.
For men, the fear of physical arousal was linked to specific physical challenges. Higher anxiety sensitivity correlated with lower levels of sexual arousal, worse erectile function, and more difficulty reaching orgasm.
The researchers suspect that in men, the cognitive worries associated with anxiety sensitivity have a more observable impact on physical performance. Worrying about being distracted or about others noticing their anxiety might directly interfere with a man’s ability to maintain an erection or reach orgasm.
The study relies on self-reported data collected at a single point in time. This type of research design identifies correlations but cannot prove that specific beliefs cause changes in sexual functioning.
It remains possible that experiencing sexual difficulties causes people to worry more about their physical responses, rather than the other way around. The measures used in the study also assessed general personality traits rather than how people felt during a specific sexual encounter.
Additionally, the sample primarily consisted of young, white, heterosexual university students. The patterns observed here might differ in older adults, varied ethnic groups, or people diagnosed with clinical sexual dysfunctions.
Future research will need to follow participants over time to track how beliefs and sexual functioning influence each other. Experimental studies could also test whether clinical therapies that train people to view their physical arousal more positively actually improve their sexual desire and physical response.
The study, “What is This Feeling? Examining How Interpretation of Arousal Sensations Are Associated with Anxiety and Sexual Functioning,” was authored by Andrea R. Ashbaugh, Serena Corsini-Munt, Lucas Walters, Leanne Kane, Allison J. Ouimet, Elke Reissing, and Krystelle Shaughnessy.
