Mental Health

Love Enhances Sex For Gay Men

By Christine Hsu | Update Date: Feb 10, 2014 05:19 PM EST

Being in love really does make sex better, according to a study on gay and bisexual men.

New research reveals 92.6 percent of all the men surveyed were in love with the last long-term partner they had sex with.

The survey, which involved almost 25,000 gay and bisexual men in the US, also found that older men were more likely to be certain about their love for their partner. The findings revealed that men between the ages of 30 and 39 were most likely to report being in love with their sexual partner.

Lead researcher Joshua Rosenberger, a professor at George Mason's College of Health and Human Services in Virginia said "these findings highlight the prevalence and value of loving feelings within same-sex relationships," according to the Daily Mail.

"Given the extent to which so much research is focused on the negative aspects of sexual behavior among gay men, particularly as it relates to HIV infection, we were interested in exploring the role of positive affect - in this case, love - during a specific sexual event," Rosenberger added.

"This study is important because of myths and misunderstandings that separate men from love, even though the capacity to love and to want to be loved in return is a human capacity and is not limited by gender or sexual orientation," added Dr. Debby Herbenick of the University of Indiana.

The study also revealed that 91.2 percent of men "matched" when it came to their feelings of love for their partner. The study revealed that older men were less likely to be uncertain about whether they love their partner.

"We found it particularly interesting that the vast majority of men reported sex with someone they felt 'matched' with in terms of love, meaning that most people who were in love had sex with the person they loved, but that there were also a number of men who had sex in the absence of love," Rosenberger added.

"Very few people had sex with someone they loved if that person didn't love them back. This 'matching' aspect of love has not been well explored in previous research, regardless of sexual orientation," he concluded.

© 2023 Counsel & Heal All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

Join the Conversation

Real Time Analytics