Gender differences and similarities in sex and love

Abstract

One's attitudes toward love and sexuality are influenced by many factors, including gender. To explore the role of gender (and other variables) in participants' attitudinal orientations toward love and sexuality, data were collected in the United States at three time points (1988, 1992, 1993), resulting in a total sample of 1,090 participants. Data analyses showed gender differences in both sexual attitudes and love. Men were more sexually permissive than women (consistent with previous research), although women and men similarly endorsed other aspects of sexuality, including sex as an emotional experience. Men and women differed on several relationship variables (e.g., women were more oriented to friendship‐based love, and men to game‐playing love). However, correlational analyses showed many similar patterns for women and men. These findings underline the need to consider both gender differences and similarities in sex and love within intimate relationships. Copyright © 1995, Wiley Blackwell. All rights reserved