Comments on: 43% of US Women Have “Sexual Dysfunction”

By: Ms Naughty

Ms Naughty — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 23:22:32 +0000

Great post. This “half of all women have sexual dysfunction” thing isn’t new. It’s like this study seeks to entrench the idea, most likely due to the sponsor, as you said. Leonore Tiefer (http://leonoretiefer.com/) has been writing about this issue for some time, fighting against the medicalisation of female sexuality.

It’s definitely an issue of where you put the yardstick. “Low levels of desire” compared to what? It’s perhaps telling if you were to apply similar inverse statements to men: “55% of all men reported excessive levels of desire.” You could easily argue that women’s sexual experience is the normative one and overly horny men are the problem.

Hope you’re enjoying your new job

By: Audacia Ray

Audacia Ray — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:23:51 +0000

@Valatan – yep, absolutely, there are different conclusions that can be reached from the study; yours is a good one. That’s the beauty/ugliness of statistics I suppose.

By: Valatan

Valatan — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 18:38:16 +0000

Can’t you interpret the study differently, though? The conclusion could just as easily be that, society wide, education about female sexuality sucks, and that the result is that women end up being unsatisfied with their sex lives? That it is difficult for women to find partners willing to put in the half hour of work?

It’s problematic terming it as ‘disfunction’, and there is a special place in hell, too, for people who identify ‘sexuality’ with ‘the production of orgasms,’ but there are other places that could be gone to with the conclusion of the study, ya?

By: marisa

marisa — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:54:35 +0000

well, the study sponsor speaks volumes doesnt it?

By: Amber Rhea

Amber Rhea — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:31:07 +0000

Wow. Shades of 1950. Only nowadays they don't use the term "frigidity."