The Effectiveness of Sex Therapy on Sexual Self-Efficacy and Marital Intimacy in Couples with Sexual Dysfunction

Subject Areas : Journal of Excellence in counseling and psychotherapy

Sepideh Karimpoor ¹ , Faezeh Tourani ² , Javad Khalatbari ³

1 - Ph.D, Department of Psychology, Shahroud Branch, Islamic Azad University, Semnan, Iran.
2 - PhD, Department of Psychology, Shahroud Branch, Islamic Azad University, Semnan, Iran.
3 - Associate Professor, Department of Consulting, Tonkabon Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tonkabon, Iran.

Received: 2022-05-09 Accepted : 2022-11-26 Published : 2023-02-20

Keywords: Marital Intimacy, Sexual Self-Efficacy, Sexual Perversion, Sex Therapy,

Abstract :

Purpose: Appropriate sexual activity plays a significant role in the health and well-being of couples. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of sex therapy on sexual self-efficacy and marital intimacy in couples with sexual dysfunction.Methodoogy: The research method was semi-experimental, with a pre-test and post-test design with the control group. The statistical population consisted of all couples with sexual deviance disorder who referred to counseling clinics and psychological services in the eighth district of Tehran in the summer of 2016, 30 couples (60 people) were randomly selected in two experimental groups (15 couples) and control group ( 15 pairs) were replaced. The experimental group underwent 10 sessions of 60 minutes of sex therapy; but during this period, the control group did not receive any intervention. The research tools were Vaziri and Kashani's sexual self-efficacy questionnaire (1999), Vondenbroek and Bertman's marital intimacy questionnaire (1995) and Rosen et al.'s sexual performance questionnaire (2000). The data were analyzed by univariate analysis of covariance in SPSS software version 21.Findings: The results of comparing demographic information showed that there was no significant difference between the research groups in terms of age, gender and education level (p>0.05). Sex therapy intervention significantly increased sexual self-efficacy (F=10.622, P=0.003) and marital intimacy (F=14.959, P=0.001) in couples with sexual dysfunction.Conclusion: The results of the study showed the effect of sex therapy training on increasing sexual self-efficacy and marital intimacy in couples with sexual dysfunction. Counselors and family therapists can use this method of treatment along with other treatment methods to solve marital problems of couples.

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