A recent article explored how often couples in a “happy” relationship are having sex each week.
Honestly, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to how often couples should be intimate. What works for one couple might not be the same for another, as happiness in a relationship is unique to each individual.
It’s commonly assumed that, as we age and kids come into the picture, bedroom activity naturally decreases. However, previous research has actually challenged this idea.
Now, a new study has examined how frequently people in “happy” relationships typically have sex, and the findings were quite revealing.
The study, published in the Journal of Family Psychology, involved researchers from the German Family Panel who looked at data from over 2,000 heterosexual couples, most of whom were aged between 20 and 39.
The study provided some interesting results (Getty Stock Photo)
The couples in the study had typically been together for about ten years, with most also married or living together in the same home.
Participants shared data on how frequently they had sex over three months and rated their level of satisfaction with their intimate experiences.
An impressive 86 percent of those surveyed reported being highly satisfied after having sex once a week.
Matt Johnson, a family science professor at the University of Alberta and co-author of the study, commented: “We know that, on average, couples who have sex more often tend to report greater happiness in their relationships (at least when it’s once a week — any more frequent sex doesn’t seem to increase satisfaction), but of course, there must be a variety of factors at play.”
The study involved over 2,000 couples (Getty Stock Photo)
“So, I gathered a fantastic team of collaborators, and we decided to approach this question from a couple-centered perspective to identify different subgroups of couples based on how often they had sex and how satisfied they were with their relationship.”
Johnson further explained to PsyPost: “To me, there are two key takeaways: 1) regular sexual activity is a common trait in highly satisfying relationships for most couples, and 2) these highly satisfied couples reported having sex about once a week.”
“Couples may feel pressured to be intimate multiple times a week to keep their relationship strong, but our findings suggest that wasn’t the case in our sample.”
The study also explored the existence of ‘happy’ sexless couples. While they do exist, researchers found they are relatively uncommon.
