353 - Thematic Session. Aging and Sexuality

Session Submission Type: Invited Session

Abstract

Although most research on sexuality focuses on adolescents, young adults and those in the childbearing years, a substantial majority of those in middle age and older ages are sexually active.  Both the probability of and the behaviors included in sex change with age, as older adults—especially women—often outlive their partners and rarely report sex outside marriage or cohabitation.  But even among married and cohabiting adults, the chances of being sexually active decline with age and the health of the partners.  The development of chronic diseases, such as hypertension or cardiovascular disease, affects sexuality in ways that we are just beginning to understand.  And aging sexuality can be especially fraught for gay men and lesbians.  This session will address sexuality in middle and older ages, with a focus on recent perspectives and findings and some international comparisons.

Sub Unit

• Thematic Sessions

Session Organizer

• Linda J. Waite, University of Chicago

Presider

• Amelia W. Karraker, Iowa State University

Individual Presentations

• Sexuality in Older Couples: Interest, Functioning, and the Relationship - Linda J. Waite, University of Chicago

• Older Women and Sexuality in the AIDS Era - Bronwen Lichtenstein, University of Alabama

• Sexual Health and Satisfaction among Older People in the United States and England: A Cross-National Comparison - David Lee, Manchester University

• Sex for Silvers: Internet Dating, Playfairs and Erotic Capital - Catherine Hakim, Civitas