covid-19 may have poured a pail of cold water on libidos across the land, but a new study has found that those who viewed sex as a leisure activity were more likely to enjoy a satisfying sex life during the pandemic those who did not.
the research,
published in the journal leisure studies
, is the first to probe the way people viewed sex before and after the pandemic and how these attitudes affected the quantity and quality of sex in their lives. the poll of 675 adults from the us, the uk and canada defined “sex as leisure” as engaging in sexual activity for purposes such as recreation, relaxation, self-gratification or personal development.
“when sexual activity is pleasurable, freely chosen and intrinsically motivated, it aligns with most definitions of leisure activity,”
said liza berdychevsky
, a professor of recreation, sport and tourism at the university of illinois urbana-champaign. “the sex-as-leisure mindset affects sexual inhibitions, attitudes and practices and it is congruent with the view of sexual health as key to our overall wellbeing and quality of life.”
the researcher found that people who had a strong view of sex as a leisure activity had more resilient sex lives, reporting greater frequency, variety and quality of sex compared to those who did not view the activity the same way. “viewing sex as leisure minimized the negative effects of the pandemic on people’s sex lives and was linked with greater ability to reach orgasm, heightened sexual intimacy and more touching and caressing,” she said.