Sexual Body Image and Its Correlates: A Population-Based Study of Finnish Women and Men

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Sexual body image was examined in a population-based sample of 9,532 Finnish men and women, age 18 to 49 years. More than one half of women and men were satisfied with their genitals, one half of the women were satisfied with their breasts. Higher levels of genital satisfaction were related to higher frequencies of sexual behavior and better sexual function for both genders. For men, penis size satisfaction was associated with lower levels of premature ejaculation and better erectile function. Sexual body image was related to overall perceived attractiveness, for women a higher body mass index was related to satisfaction with breast size. Having children was negatively related to women's sexual body image, abortions and miscarriages likewise. Limitations of the study and clinical implications of the findings are discussed.

What is a Good Looking Penis? How Women Rate the Penile Appearance of Men with Surgically Corrected Hypospadias

“…Possibly, women develop a more realistic body image with increasing sexual experience at a higher age. In line with our results, a positive association between better genital perception and increasing age [20] and a correlation between a positive genital perception and higher sexual interest (or sexual desire) was also found in studies on the genital self‐perception of women [21,22].…”

Internet Pornography use and Sexual Body Image in a Dutch Sample

“…In general, sexual body image has been shown to be associated with a variety of sexual outcomes. These early reports find that female genital appearance satisfaction (Berman, Berman, Miles, Pollets, & Powell, 2003; Morrison, 2005), breast size satisfaction (Ålgars et al, 2011; Stofman, Neavin, Ramineni, & Alford, 2006), and penis size satisfaction (Ålgars et al, 2011; Davis, Paterson, & Binik, 2012; Lever, Frederick, & Peplau, 2006; Morrison, 2005; Wylie & Eardley, 2007) are positively associated with sexual outcomes such as sexual confidence, satisfaction, and frequency. In their construction of a beliefs about penis size scale, Veale et al, (2013) find that belief that one has a small penis is associated with a scale about overall shame about penis size that includes a number of factors such as feeling self conscious in sexual situations, being embarrassed to be naked in front of men or women, believing that they will not be able to have children, or simply feeling abnormal.…”

A Structured Review and Critical Analysis of Male Perceptions of the Penis: A Comparison between Heterosexual Men and Men Who Have Sex with Men (MSM)

“…Mind the gap: Ideal penile size versus perceived reality. Ten studies provided quantitative data on male perceptions of ideal penis size versus perceived reality (Mondaini et al 2002;Lever, Frederick, and Peplau 2006;Martins, Tiggemann, and Churchett 2008;Tiggemann, Martins, and Churchett 2008;Grov, Parsons, and Bimbi 2010;Algars et al 2011;Ferreira dos Reis et al 2013;Herbenick et al 2013;Cranney 2015;Johnston, McLellan, and McKinlay 2014). Of these ten studies, only two utilized a sample of gay men (Martins, Tiggemann, and Churchett 2008;Grov, Parsons, and Bimbi 2010).…”

“…Men and Masculinities 22(4) Relative importance of specific body part dissatisfaction. Seven quantitative and two qualitative studies addressed the related issues of genital satisfaction, the relative importance of component genital parts, and the importance of these in relation to other body image concerns (Lever, Frederick, and Peplau 2006;Morrison et al 2005;Drummond and Filiault 2007;Khan et al 2008;Martins, Tiggemann, and Churchett 2008;Tiggemann, Martins, and Churchett 2008;Algars et al 2011;Davis et al 2013;Veale et al 2014). Three out of the seven studies contained gay or bisexual samples (Drummond and Filiault 2007;Martins, Tiggemann, and Churchett 2008;Veale et al 2014).…”