Sexual satisfaction’s link to marital happiness grows stronger with age

A new study has found that the relationship between sexual satisfaction and marital satisfaction strengthens as individuals grow older, contrary to the belief that its importance diminishes over time. Published in Social Psychology, the study found that age, rather than the length of a marriage, plays the dominant role in this trend, suggesting that couples may increasingly value sexual satisfaction as they grow older.

Researchers Yoav Ganzach and Asya Pazy aimed to re-examine prior findings about how sexual satisfaction influences marital satisfaction over time. Previous studies, including one conducted by Lazar in 2017, suggested that sexual satisfaction’s impact on marital satisfaction increases with the length of a marriage. However, Lazar’s study was based on a small, non-representative sample of Israeli women, raising questions about its generalizability.

“My paper responds to a study that argued the importance of sex to relationship satisfaction increases with marital duration. That study was based on a small sample of religious Jewish women. To me, this conclusion did not seem to make sense as a general statement about the role of sex and age in relationship satisfaction. To test this idea further, I used a large, publicly available, and representative sample,” explained Ganzach, a professor at Tel Aviv University.

To investigate, the researchers analyzed data from the Midlife in the United States study (MIDUS), a large longitudinal project examining various aspects of aging. The dataset included participants aged 25 to 74, allowing the researchers to capture a wide range of life stages and marital experiences.

The sample for this analysis included 1,472 women and 1,415 men, all of whom were married or in long-term relationships and had provided information about their sexual and marital satisfaction. Participants rated their sexual satisfaction on questions related to their enjoyment, control, and effort in their sexual lives, using a scale from 0 to 10. Marital satisfaction was assessed through questions about their relationship quality, future expectations, and perceived effort in maintaining the marriage, also on a 0-to-10 scale.

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The researchers accounted for factors such as religiosity, income, and education while controlling for potential interactions between age, marital duration, and sexual satisfaction. They used robust statistical methods to ensure their findings could reliably distinguish between the effects of age and marital duration, which are often highly correlated.

The key finding from the study was the role of age in shaping the link between sexual and marital satisfaction. As individuals grow older, sexual satisfaction appears to play a more substantial role in their overall marital happiness. This may reflect changing priorities in later life, where emotional closeness, intimacy, and shared experiences become more valued. The researchers speculated that aging could lead to a greater appreciation of the sexual aspects of relationships, possibly due to an increased understanding of one’s desires or improved communication with a long-term partner.

Interestingly, the study also highlighted gender differences in these dynamics. For women, the findings showed a clear and consistent pattern: as they aged, the importance of sexual satisfaction in contributing to their overall marital happiness increased. Marital duration, however, did not appear to have a significant impact.

For men, the relationship was more complex. While age played a role similar to that observed in women, marital duration also influenced how sexual satisfaction impacted marital happiness. In particular, sexual satisfaction appeared to have a stronger effect on marital satisfaction for men in shorter marriages compared to those in longer marriages.

This may reflect shifting priorities in relationships over time. In the earlier stages of marriage, men might place greater emphasis on sexual satisfaction as a cornerstone of their marital happiness. As the marriage lengthens, other factors—such as companionship, shared goals, or family responsibilities—might take precedence, reducing the relative weight of sexual satisfaction.

“The importance of sex to relationship satisfaction decreases with marital duration,” Ganzach told PsyPost. “These results align with common sense. What surprised me was the study I critiqued. In psychology, surprising results are often incorrect, though they frequently attract attention.”

Another notable finding involved religiosity, particularly among men. The researchers discovered that sexual satisfaction was a stronger predictor of marital happiness for less religious men, whereas it played a smaller role for men with higher levels of religiosity. This interaction was not observed in women, suggesting that cultural or personal beliefs about sexuality and marriage might shape how sexual satisfaction contributes to overall relationship satisfaction.

But the study, like all research, includes some caveats. “My sample focused on individuals in middle age, so these findings may not generalize to younger people,” Ganzach said. “To build on this work, I aim to expand the age range of participants in future research and include more specific information about sexual activities, such as the frequency of sexual encounters.”

The study, “Does the Importance of Sex to Marital Satisfaction Decrease or Increase With Time?: A Close Replication,” was published October 24, 2024.