Long married couples see sex rebound post 50 years of relationship

A new study older people, who are still in their first marriages, have sex more often than those who have remarried.

The study conducted at Baylor University suggested that a slight rebound occurs for those whose marriages endure longer than half a century.

Researchers from Louisiana State University, Florida State University and Baylor University said people who remain in their first marriages have sex more frequently than those who remarry but frequency aside, marriage order made no difference when it came to actual physical pleasure and emotional satisfaction.

Researchers analyzed the relationship between marital characteristics and sexual outcomes among 1,656 married adults ages 57-85, using data from the first wave of the National Social Life, Health and Aging Project. They noted that people who survive until their 50th year of marriage among whom the slight rebound occurred are relatively few in number.

Samuel Stroope, Ph.D., now an assistant professor of sociology at Louisiana State University, said that additionally, the study used a snapshot in time and, therefore, cannot prove that length and order of marriage caused sexual frequency.

Stroope continued that growing old as a couple, with the experience and knowledge that come with that, may play a part and one is able to learn about your partner and build on that over time. One may have a higher level of trust when they feel that their spouse was not going to go anywhere. The expectation that the relationship will continue may give one more reason to invest in the relationship including in sexual aspects of the relationship.

Researcher Jeremy Uecker, Ph.D., an assistant professor of sociology at Baylor and also a co-author, noted that they knew a great deal about sexual behavior at younger stages of the life course and this study added to a small but growing body of research on the sexual behavior of older adults.

The study is published in the journal Archives of Sexual Behavior.