To Do It or Not to Do It? The Role of Communal Motivation in Sexual Decision Making

In long-term romantic relationships, sexual satisfaction and sexual frequency are key to maintaining relationship satisfaction and stability. However, very little research has investigated how couples actually make decisions about whether or not to engage in sex on a day-to-day basis. Across two studies, a hypothetical scenario study and a daily experience study, we found that sexual communal strength ¬¬¬̶ the degree to which one is motivated to meet their partner’s sexual needs ¬¬¬̶ predicts decreased motivation to avoid the costs to the self of engaging in sex, as well as increased motivation to accrue benefits to the partner of engaging in sex. In turn, this predicts greater willingness to engage in sex, as well as greater sexual and relationship satisfaction for both partners. Greater sexual communal strength influences the sexual decision making process, with positive consequences for both partners in the domain of sexuality, and in relationships more generally.MAS