Unwanted Sexual Activity among Married Women in Urban China

Abstract

This article examines the prevalence, precursors, and consequences of unwanted marital sex activities in a national sample of 1,127 married urban Chinese women aged 20–64. During the lifetime of their current marriage, 32% reported ever experiencing unwanted spousal intercourse, with about one-fifth reporting that this unwanted intercourse ever involved force. Reports for the past year were 21% unwanted intercourse, 22% unwanted sex act(s), and 72% sex only to please the husband. The major risk factors for these activities were poor relationship quality (hitting, lack of daily intimacy and foreplay, and husband insensitivity to wife's sexual needs); a woman's negative attitudes towards sex, and weak bargaining position (low income share, husband's family of superior economic status, and no additional adults in home). In addition, unwanted activity was more common when women reported sexual dysfunctions (dryness, pain, low arousal, inorgasmia), were more educated, and had more permissive sex attitudes. Net of feedback effects, unwanted sexual activity diminished women's psychological well-being.

Primary funding support was provided by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development grant RO1 HD34157. Additional support was provided by the University of Chicago/NICHD Population Research Center (P30 HD18288). A previous draft was presented at the 2005 Annual Meeting of the Population Association of America, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, March 31–April 2, 2005.

Notes

Note. N = 1,127 currently married, sexually active urban women. ^a Dummy variable, with 1 signifying the presence of the characteristic and 0, its absence

Note. Regression coefficients, weighted and with standard errors adjusted for sample design. N = 1,127 currently married, sexually active urban women. Model I shows results from 19 separate regressions, each including only age and a single covariate. Model II shows results from an ordinary least squares regression with all variables except psychological distress and sexual dysfunction. Model IIIa is the first equation of a simultaneous equations model that includes all variables and the possible endogenous relationship of psychological distress and unwanted sex (see Table 2b for the second half of this model). With correlated error terms of equations IIIa and IIIb, fit statistics for model III are χ² = 16.33, df = 23, p = .84; CFI = 1.00, RMSEA < .001

*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001 (two-tailed test)

Note. Table continued from Table 2a. In model IIIb “unwanted sexual activity” incorporates the possible endogenous relationship of psychological distress and unwanted sexual activity

*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001 (two-tailed test)

Coefficients are weighted and with standard errors adjusted for sample design. N = 1,127 currently married, sexually active urban women. Results are from the first equation of three simultaneous equations models with one model for each unwanted sexual activity measure. ^a probit regression coefficients, ^b ordered probit regression coefficients

*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001 (two-tailed test)

Appendix B continued from Appendix A. Results are from the second equation of three simultaneous equations models with one model for each unwanted sexual activity measure

*p < .05, **p < .01, ***p < .001 (two-tailed test)