New research links positive body image with increased pleasure during hookup sex.
On the flip side, negatively perceived body image is correlated to sexual malfunction for people engaging in hookups.
“One of the things that I like about this study is that when researchers talk about sexual health and sexual function, they’re almost always talking about negative sexual health and sexual dysfunction,” says Virginia Ramseyer Winter, director of the University of Missouri Center for Body Image Research & Policy.
“This study certainly addresses that. However, it also talks about pleasure, and I think that’s also important because we don’t just want to reduce the negative outcomes, we actually want to improve the positive ones, too.
“It’s vital that people, no matter their age or relationship status, feel as comfortable as possible during sexual encounters to reduce self-consciousness and improve mental well-being.”
Hookups and body image
In a new study in Body Image: An International Journal of Research, Ramseyer Winter, assistant professor in the University of Missouri School of Social Work, analyzes the relationship between body image and sexual function in sexual encounters between two strangers or brief acquaintances. These encounters that include intimate behavior ranging from cuddling and heavy petting to sexual intercourse are known as “hookups.”
The study specifically focused on hookups by talking to both male and female volunteers identifying as varying sexualities. Of the study participants, 62% of the women identified as heterosexual and 43% of the men identified as heterosexual. Other participants were listed as lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, queer, and other. Ramseyer Winter says the study pushes the bounds of what has been studied before.
“This is the first study that we know of to look at men as well as women, and it is certainly the first study to look at hookup culture in relation to body image,” Ramseyer Winter says. “We don’t know much about folks who are hooking up in terms of body image and sexual function.”
On campus
The researchers found the participants through a variety of different online forums in an effort to gather a diverse group. To participate in the study, volunteers must have used online apps like Tinder, Bumble, and/or Grindr to hook up with someone in the past 30 days.
Researchers then conducted surveys using several validated scales determining sexual function, pleasure, and body image. Ramseyer Winter says that the research can particularly help young adults who are often relatively new to sexual activities.
“Many of those who are hooking up are likely to be more traditionally college student-aged, so I think this information can be used on college campuses,” Ramseyer Winter says. “We may be able to use it to develop interventions that improve body image among anyone that is hooking up to help improve their sexual function, and this research could be used as a guide to conducting future studies that help us understand these relationships among other demographics.”
Source: University of Missouri
