Sexuality and the Older Adult. Catherine Adams University of Massachusetts Amherst
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University of Massachusetts Amherst ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 1-1-1980 Sexuality and the older adult. Catherine Adams University of Massachusetts Amherst Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1 Recommended Citation Adams, Catherine, "Sexuality and the older adult." (1980). Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014. 3549. https://scholarworks.umass.edu/dissertations_1/3549 This Open Access Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations 1896 - February 2014 by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UMass Amherst. For more information, please contact [email protected]. SEXUALITY AND THE OLDER ADULT A Dissertation Presented By CATHERINE ADAMS Submitted to the Graduate School of the University of Massachusetts in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF EDUCATION September, 1980 Education Catherine Adams 1980 (c) All Rights Reserved ii SEXUALITY AND THE OLDER ADULT A Dissertation Presented BY CATHERINE ADAMS Approved as to style and content by: Barbara F. Turner, Chairperson of Committee John W. Wideman, Member - Dee G. Appley,Member JL YV^ P *4 Mario Fantini, Dean School of Education iii Acknowledgements To my mother, Ruth, who was instru- mental in soliciting the pilot sample and to my daughter, Phoebe, who helped substantially with editing and formating on the computer. To my committee Bar- bara Turner, John Wideman, and Dee Appley for their patience, forbearance, and assistance. Barbara deserves spe- cial thanks for the many hours spent working directly with me. I also wish to thank those who helped during the data collection pro- cess and all the respondents who shared their personal lives for the purpose of this study, especially interviewees and those who added marginal comments which so enriched the research. A special thanks to Julie McCarthy for helping me keep things in perspec- tive Table of Contents Paqe List of Tables vii Abstract xi Chapter I - Introduction 1 Statement of Problem 1 Purpose of Study 2 Variables to be Examined 3 Significance 7 Chapter II - Review of the Literature 9 The Aging Man 12 The Aging Woman 17 Attitudes 22 Patterns of Sexuality 27 Impotence 29 Current Trends 33 Chapter III - Method 35 Subjects 35 Procedure 39 Measures 40 Independent Variables 46 Analyses 47 Chapter IV - Results 53 Type of Sexual Acts 53 Patterns of Change in Sexuality 62 Incidence 65 Qualitative Aspects 68 Respondents'* Explanations for Changes 78 Life Satisfaction 89 v Table of Contents Page Chapter V - Discussion 93 Types of Sexual Acts 94 Patterns of Change in Sexuality 96 Incidence 98 Quality of Sexual Experience (Interest, Pleasure, and Satisfaction) 99 Life Satisfaction 104 Conclusions 105 Bibliography 107 Appendix A Letter to Respondents 115 Appendix B Questionnaire 118 Appendix C Voluntary Consent Form 131 Appendix D Significant Pearson Product Moment Coefficients of Sexual Measures 133 Appendix E: Significant F Ratios of Interaction Effects of Independent Variables on Now Sex Variables 135 Appendix F: The Relationship of Current to Past Masturbation by Gender 137 Appendix G: The Relationship of Religion to Masturbation by Gender 139 Appendix H: The Relationship of Gender to Pleasure by Partner Status 141 Appendix I: The Relationship of Masturbation to Partner Status by Gender 143 List of Tables Paqe Table 1: Source of Sample Table 2: Percentages of Respondents Reporting Participation in Specific Sexual Activities 55 Table 3: Percentages of Reported Predominant Sexual Acts, New and Past 56 Table 4: Percentages of Reported Favored Sexual Acts, Now and Past 56 Table 5: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Foreplav by Partner Status 57 Table 6: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Intercourse by Partner Status 57 Table 7: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Masturbation by Partner Status 58 Table 8: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Daydreaming as a Present Sexual Act by Religion 58 Table 9: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Masturbation by Religion 59 Table 10: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Foreplay by Religion 59 Table 11: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Foreplay by Age 59 Table 12: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Intercourse by Age 60 Table 13: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Youthful Daydreams by Gender 60 Table 14: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Youthful Nocturnal Dreams by Gender 61 Table 15: Numbers of Subjects Reporting Youthful Masturbation by Gender 61 Table 16: Percentage of Subjects Reporting Changes in Incidence, Interest, Enjoyment, Satisfcation, and Satisfaction with Variety of Sexual Activity 63 vii paqe Table 17: Changes in Mean Scores of Reported Incidence , Interest, Pleasure, Satisfaction and Satisfaction with Variety in Sexual Life 65 Table 18: Changes in Reported Incidence of Sexual Acts 66 Table 19: F Ratios for all Main Effects Resulting from Analysis of Varience of the Five Sex Variables 67 Table 20: Percentages of Reported Interest in Sexuality 68 Table 21: T-Test Comparisons of Gender-Health, Age-Health, and Health-Religion Groups on Present Sexual Interest 70 Table 22: Change Patterns in Sex Interest by Health 72 Table 23: Percentages of Respondants Reporting Degree of Sexual Pleasure in Youth and Old Age 73 Table 24: T-Test Comparisons of Health-Gender Groups on Present Sexual Pleasure 74 Table 25: Change Patterns of Pleasure by Gender 74 Table 26: Percentages Reporting Degree of Sexual Satisfaction in Youth and Old Age 75 Table 27: Change Pattern of Satisfaction by Partner Status 76 Table 28: Change Pattern of Satisfaction by Religion 77 Table 29: Percentages Satisfied with Variety of Sexual Acts in Youth and Old Age 77 Table 30:T-Test Comparisons of Age-Religion Groups on Present Satisfaction with Sexual Variety 78 Table 31: Change Pattern in Satisfacton with Variety by Religion 78 viii page Table 32: Mean Life Satisfaction Scores (LSR) Related to the Practice of Foreplay and Intercourse 90 Table 33: Mean LSR Scores Related to Health and Partner Status 91 Table 34: T-Test Comparisons of Age and Gender on Mean LSR Scores 91 Table 35: Mean LSR Scores Related to Incidence, Interest, Pleasure, Satisfaction, and Satisfaction with Variety of Sex 92 Table 36 Significant Pearson Product Moment Correlations of the Sexual Measures 134 Table 37: F Ratios of Significant Interaction Effects of Independent Variables on Now Sex Variables 136 Table 38: The Relationship of Current to Past Masturbation by Gender 138 Table 39: Hie Relationship of Religion to Masturbation by Gender 140 Table 40: The Relationship of Gender to Pleasure by Partner Status 142 Table 41: The Relationship of Masturbation to Partner Status by Gender 144 ABSTRACT Sexuality and the Older Adult September, 1980 Catherine Adams, B.S., University of Connecticut, M.S., Boston University, Ed.D., University of Massachusetts Directed by: Professor Barbara F. Turner The purpose of this cross-sectional study is to con- tribute to the sparse literature on sexuality among the aged by examining quantitative and qualitative aspects of sexual activity among persons aged 60 and over. Data were col- lected from a volunteer sample of 102 women and men aged 60 to 85 by means of a self-administered questionnaire. Self- ratings of sexual activities and attitudes toward sexual experience at the present time were contrasted with retro- spective reports of respondents' activities and attitudes between the ages of 20 and 30. Change patterns between these two time periods were also examined. The quantitative aspects of sexuality explored in the present study are inci- dence and type of sexual activity; the qualitative aspects include pleasure, overall satisfaction, interest in sexual activity, and degree of satisfaction with variety in types of sexual acts. Relationships of the sexual var- iables (Type, Incidence, Interest, Pleasure, Satisfaction, xi Satisfaction with Variety) to the independent variables of Gender Age, , Partner Status, Health, Church Attendance, and SES were then explored. Finally, the independent variables and ratings of the sexual variables for the present (old- age) time period were related to a standard measure of life satisfaction. When reports of participation in specific sexual activ- ities were examined, respondents were found to be less likely to participate in most activities in old age as com- pared to young adulthood. Exceptions include increased reports of no sexual activity whatever (from 0% to 11%) and masturbation (from 19% to 26%) . Women are considerably more likely to masturbate in old age than in young adulthood. In old age no gender differences appeared in reports of parti- cipation in masturbation. Masturbation is less likely among those with partners, respondents with lower educational and occupational status, and among women who attend church serv- ices. Reports of heterosexual intercourse and petting, stroking, fondling, kissing, and cuddling in old age were more common among those with partners and those under 71. When patterns of change in sexuality from young adult- hood were examined, the most common patterns were found to be (1) remaining high or (2) decreasing in Incidence, Interest, and Satisfaction; remaining high in Satisfaction with Variety, but declining in Pleasure. Eleven percent, however, increased in Satisfaction; respondents attributed xii incr 63S6S in Satisfaction to a wide variety of factors. The change patterns indicate at least as much or more maintain— ance than decline from young adulthood to