Examining the association between gratitude and sexual communal strength

UNCG Author/Contributor (non-UNCG co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
Ashlyn Brady (Creator)
Institution
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG )
Web Site: http://library.uncg.edu/
Advisor
Levi Baker

Abstract: Maintaining sexual satisfaction is a critical, yet challenging, aspect of most romantic relationships. Sexual communal strength (SCS)—i.e., the extent to which people are motivated to be non-contingently responsive to their partners’ sexual needs—accounts for why some couples are able to maintain sexual and relationship satisfaction despite such challenges. However, research has yet to identify what factors promote SCS. Given that feeling and expressing gratitude function to motivate intimates to maintain valuable relationships, expressing gratitude should increase intimates’ motivation to meet their partners’ sexual needs. Further, given that receiving expressions of gratitude should increase liking, and people are motivated to maintain relationships with others they like, receiving gratitude should similarly increase intimates’ motivation to meet their partners’ sexual needs. Two studies of romantic partners demonstrated that both expressing and receiving gratitude is associated with SCS. A third experiment of couples failed to successfully manipulate gratitude and thus was unable to test the causal association between gratitude and SCS. Results from Studies 1-2 further understanding about what qualities or behaviors promote SCS. Future research would benefit by developing a more successful manipulation of gratitude to better understand the causal association between gratitude and SCS.

Additional Information

Publication
Thesis
Language: English
Date: 2019
Keywords
Gratitude, Romantic Relationships, Sexual communal strength, Sexuality
Subjects
Interpersonal relations
Sex (Psychology)
Gratitude

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