Beyond the Cougar Stereotype: Understanding Middle-Aged Women’s Experiences with Age-Hypogamous Sexual Relationships

• In Event: 460 - Section on Aging and the Life Course Paper Session. Sexuality over the Life Course

Abstract

Aside from the images found in the media, there is currently little empirical data on middle-aged women who choose younger men as their sex partners. In this paper, I explore middle-aged women’s experiences with age hypogamy in the heterosexual dating context. I analyze how they perceive and navigate the sexist and ageist norms regulating women’s sexuality and intimate relationships at midlife, such as those indicating what kind of partners they should have and what kind of intimate relationships they should engage in. Based on 50 interviews with middle-aged Canadian women dating younger men, I explore the following facets of women’s experiences: (a) Women’s perceptions of society’s expectations for older women’s sexuality and relationships; (b) Women’s perceptions of stigma and their stigma management strategies; (c) Women’s identity choices and embodiment with regards to age, gender, and sexuality. More broadly, this study seeks to improve our understanding of women’s sexuality and romantic relationships at midlife.

Author

• Milaine Alarie, McGill University