Empirical review
Keith’s (2008) review of the National Health and Social Life Survey
found that 32% of women and 15% of men, between the ages of 18 and 59
years, lacked sexual interest for several months within the last year. A
study was conducted by Roger and David (1999) on the relationship
between worry, sexual aversion, and low sexual desire among college
undergraduates. Using a quantitative approach, 138 participants were
sampled with age range of 19-22 years, of which 56% were females.
Results from the sexual aversion scale and the Penn State Worry Question
(PSWQ, to test for one’s proneness to worry) indicated that higher
scores on the PSWQ showed extreme anxiety positively correlated with
refusal to engage in sexual activity. There was a statistically
significant relationship between generalized anxiety and sexual
intimacy. Another study conducted by Bradford and Meston (2006) revealed
that there is an association between a high level of anxiety in a
non-clinical sample of women and their sexual arousal. They demonstrated
that the impact of anxiety on sexual function may be more cognitive than
physiological; and that the anxiety may be towards a specific thing and
not the activity itself. Some experimental studies have shown a positive
correlation between specific types of anxiety disorders and sexual
arousal. Findings from studies using clinically diagnosed women with
obsessive-compulsive disorders, generalized anxiety disorders, panic
attacks, among others have revealed that they have poor sexual intimacy
with their partners (Leiblum, Seehuus & Goldmeier, 2007; Van Minnen &
Kampman, 2000). Even though there are methodological differences in the
studies reviewed, there seems to be a statistically significant
correlation between anxiety and sexual relations. However, the level of
significance at which this is likely to occur is unclear. Adopting a
qualitative approach, this report therefore seeks to throw more light on
the phenomenon, as in relation to the Ghanaian context.