Citation

Bigras N, Popova N, Pedneault L, Brassard A, Bergeron S. Sex. Med. Rev. 2024; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2024, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1093/sxmrev/qeae037

PMID

38824393

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Although society still holds age-related stereotypes dismissing the sexuality of aging individuals, older adults remain sexually active and find sexuality to be an important part of their quality of life. Primarily oriented toward a biomedical and dysfunctional lens, prior research neglected the subjective well-being of elderly individuals, especially partnered adults and couples aged 60 years or more. Shedding a more positive light on this area of life could promote older individuals' and couples' sexual well-being.

OBJECTIVES: This scoping review aimed to synthetize the studies including community samples of partnered adults or couples over 60 who reported on various indicators of subjective sexual well-being including sexual satisfaction, distress, and function using validated measures.

METHODS: Adhering to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMAScR), the electronic literature search was conducted using PubMed, PsycINFO, Medline, and CINAHL for peer-reviewed journal articles published before July 2023.

RESULTS: Results showed how relational variables such as relationship satisfaction and intimacy emerge as important correlates of older adults' sexual well-being.

CONCLUSION: Avenues for future research arising from gaps in the studies identified thorough this scoping review, including the underrepresentation of sexual/gender diverse individuals and the use of single and/or non-validated items to assess sexual well-being, are discussed.

Language: en

Keywords

aging; sexuality; couple relationships; sexual wellbeing