Sexting Among Married Couples: Who Is Doing It, and Are They More Satisfied?
This study examined the prevalence and correlates of sexting (i.e., sending sexual messages via mobile phones) within a sample of married/cohabiting couples (180 wives and 175 husbands). Married adults do sext each other, but it is much less common than within young adult relationships, and consists mainly of sexy or intimate talk (29% reported engaging in sexy talk with partners) rather than sexually explicit photos or videos (12% reported sending nude or nearly-nude photos). Sending sexy talk messages was positively related to relationship satisfaction only among those with high levels of avoidance, and sending sexually explicit pictures was related to satisfaction for men, and for women with high levels of attachment anxiety. Additionally, sending sexually explicit pictures was related to greater ambivalence among both men and women. These findings support and extend previous research with young adults.
1 Human Development and Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, Pennsylvania.
Brandon T
BT
McDaniel
2 Department of Psychology, Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne , Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Michelle
M
Drouin
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage / Q000523:psychology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012725:Sexual Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D060145:Text Messaging; D055815:Young Adult