Women in Command at Home Have Less Sex: Study

A study conducted by the researchers at the John Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, found that women who are in command at home are likely to have less sex.

Researchers, after analyzing the relationship between married women's autonomy and consistency of their sexual relations, have discovered that women who are active at home and are more commanding in decision-making, tend to have sex less often.

Professor Michelle Hindin, lead author of the research, said that a very simple and consistent model was followed during the surveys of all six countries. He said in a statement: "The more decisions a woman reported making on her own, as compared to joint decision making, the less likely she was to have sex and the longer it was since she last had sexual intercourse."

Researchers have conducted the survey in countries like Uganda, Ghana, Mali, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Rawanda, where they questioned the participants to specify the year, month, week and a day they last had sex.

"A very consistent pattern was observed across all six countries we surveyed—as the number of decisions in which a women had the final say increased, the mean and median time since most recent sex also increased by three- to 100-fold," said Hindin, an associate professor at the Bloomberg School's Department of Population, Family and Reproductive Health.

The survey also asked to specify the person who is the final decision-maker with regard to health care, daily household purchases and socializing with families and friends. Researchers also emphasized on socio-demographic and relationship elements like wealth, husband's residence, age, parity and martial duration.

Majority of women participants in the survey reported that they had sex within the last month. However, for men, taking decisions on their own was not linked to the timing of sex.

"Understanding how women's position in the household influences their sexual activity may be an essential piece in protecting the sexual rights of women and helping them to achieve a sexual life that is both safe and pleasurable", said Carie Muntifering, co-author of the study and student at the Bloomberg School.

The study also revealed that Ghanaian and Rwandan women reported having the final say in more decisions than women in the other countries, whereas Zimbabwean women reported the most joint decision-making.