Biopsychosocial predictors of sexual desire level in men

Literature showed a close relationship between desire and arousal on women, leading to relevant changes in DSM-5 classification. On the contrary, male sexual response has historically been considered simple and mechanistic. Aim of this study was to evaluate the role of some biopsychosocial variables affecting male sexual desire such as Quality of Life (QoL), sexual function, distress, satisfaction, psychological symptoms, emotions, alexithymia, couple adjustment, sexism, cognitive schema, beliefs, and scripts. A wide self-administered web-survey reached 238 heterosexual male subjects (age 32.01±10.27) from the general population. 13 questionnaires exploring biopsychosocial elements involved in sexual response were administrated: SF36, BDI II, STAI-Y, SCL-90-R, TAS-20, IIEF, PESI, SSS-M, SDS-M, DAS, SMQ, SDBQ, and QCSASC. Results of the study showed “Lack of erotic thoughts” as the main predictor of low level of sexual desire in men (β=-.28). “Energy/fatigue”, “Depression”, “Premature ejaculation severity”, “Sexual Distress”, “Subjective sexual response triggered by automatic thoughts on sexuality”, “Sexual conservativism”, and “Desire of having a baby” are strictly connected to level of sexual desire. Variables highlighted are key factors that should be considered in clinical practice of desire problems, both in assessment and therapy phases. In the same study is analyzed the influence of many biopsychosocial factors on the male sexual desire. The sampling method used does not allow a results’ generalization, but some crucial points for future researches and clinical work are underlined. Male sexual desire is characterized by a complex interaction between biological, psychological, and cultural elements. The analysis of these predictors seems to suggest that current models are not sufficient to explain the complexity of male sexual desire.