Exploring the relationship between gender identity and sexual functioning

This study examined the hypotheses that individuals who are sexually functional and/or highly satisfied with their sexual relations exhibit an androgynous gender identity as well as high levels of congruence among their gender identity, sex-role expectations, and sex-role performance. Conversely, it was hypothesized that sexually dysfunctional and/or dissatisfied people display a polarized gender identity and low levels of congruence among their gender identity, sex-role expectations, and sex-role performance. A total of 61 married or intimate heterosexual couples served as subjects. Each subject completed a Bem Sex-Role Inventory three times, the instructions differing each time in order to provide measures of gender identity, sex-role expectations, and sex-role performance. Subjects also completed specially designed questionnaires which gauged their sexual functioning and sexual satisfaction. The results did not support the hypotheses. Instead, the evidence suggested that sexual functioning and satisfaction for both men and women are associated with the perception that the actor possesses significantly more masculine traits than the typical same-sex person, whereas dysfunctioning and lower levels of satisfaction are associated with the perception that the actor exhibits more feminine traits than the typical member of one's sex group. The implications of these findings are discussed.