Sexual desire and intimate relationships
However, the development of various ways of measuring the construct allows for extensive research to be conducted that facilitates the investigation of influences of sexual desire.
As there is no single understanding of sexual desire, it is important to explore beliefs about the nature of the construct to reveal the different ways that it is characterized.
[7] Through the use of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) brain imaging techniques, hormonal assessment and self-report questionnaires such as the Passionate Love Scale (PLS) various cognitive and behavioural characteristics have been found to reliably identify sexual desire across cultures[7] and distinguish it from other feelings of love and attachment.
It is believed by many that sexual desire plays an important role in romantic love and that it may be an extremely important factor in strengthening the interpersonal dynamic of romantic relationships;[1] recent studies have supported these theories and have also provided further insight into the various neurobiological substrates that influence the development of various types of relationships.
[9] By motivating proximity seeking behaviour, sexual desire promotes contact, and this may eventually foster commitment.
This is one explanation for why sexual desire tends to be so strong at the beginning of relationships and may account for why its presence or absence can reflect the strength of commitment between partners.
[7] Love, sexual desire and attachment are each described as separate constructs, and each is aptly associated with particular behaviours, hormonal influences and brain regions.
[4][10] Other forms of physiological arousal associated with enhanced levels of dopamine include increased energy, exhilaration, euphoria, sleeplessness, loss of appetite, trembling, pounding heartbeat, and accelerated breathing.
[10] Feelings of anxiety, panic and fear in the presence of a beloved may also occur, as well as susceptibility to abrupt mood swings.
When sexual desire is experienced in the context of a passionate romantic relationship, the brain is also affected such that chemical changes lead to the activation and shut down of various areas.
Sufficient time spent together, and forms of touch allow for the development of this pair-bonding, and though sexual desire may promote closeness, alone it does not characterize romantic love.
[1] It has not only been suggested that oxytocin is responsible for increased pair-bonding between individuals who are generally in close proximity and contact, but it may also be associated with the desire to affiliate,[9] as previously mentioned with love and happiness.
[13] Studies have shown that women specifically not only show greater sensitivity to the release of oxytocin during sexual activity than men, but it has been suggested a correlation exists between oxytocin release and orgasm intensity,[7] which may explain why women generally associate stronger interconnectivity between love and sexual desire.
[13] Endogenous opioids, catecholamines, and neuropeptides (such as oxytocin and vasopressin) are responsible for the reward circuitry of the mammalian brain;[10] through conditioned associations and reinforcement these neurochemicals regulate the biological processes that facilitate bonding.
Evolutionary theories suggest that the human dopaminergic reward system may also serve a primarily reproductive purpose, whereby it works in concert with the corticostriate system that combines the reward signals associated with attraction with cortical information, to regulate the complex relationship between romantic love and mate choice.
[10] Evolutionary theories suggest that reproductive mating is responsible for sexual desire while pair bonding underlies the mechanisms of romantic love.
Though evolutionary theory suggests that the biobehavioural mechanisms responsible for affectional bonding may have evolved as a means to assist in reproductive mating, this may not be true.
[16] Both forms of attachment in infancy and adulthood are centered on a desire for increased proximity, resistance to separation and use of partner as their preferred source of comfort and security.
[4][10] Evolutionary theorists suggest that passionate love and sexual desire have played important practical and genetic roles for various animal species.
Helen Fisher, who has conducted extensive research on the biobehavioural mechanisms responsible for mate-choice and reproduction, suggests that historically, our ancestors were primed to fall passionately in love for about four years.
Fisher proposes this explanation for why love is fleeting, and for why throughout the world and cross-culturally, couples most commonly divorce after their fourth year of marriage.
She suggests that serial monogamy is the best way to ensure genetic variation, and that the combination of these factors may be useful explanations for the modern cultural patterns of marriage, divorce and remarriage.
[1][10] As previously discussed, though distinct from one another, sexual desire and romantic love are often experienced together, and various theories propose explanations for why this may be, generally within the context of promoting reproduction and pair-bonding.
Responsiveness in women has been shown to be strongly influenced by "her emotional intimacy with her partner and her desire to enhance it".
Androgens, dopamine, oxytocin and centrally acting noradrenaline all influence spontaneous desire by motivating the pursuit of sexual stimuli and promoting increased arousability.
Discussions regarding the development of sexual identities as reinforced through environmental factors emphasize the impacts of socialization through media and other forms of educations.
[13] Along with findings that women are more susceptible to the release of oxytocin, which may be partially responsible for greater female sexual fluidity, other patterns differ significantly between men and women, such as male sex drive being more responsive to visual stimuli, whereas the female sexual desire is more driven by romantic, interpersonal material.
