Abstract

HUMBOLDT, Sofia von; LOW, Gail  and  LEAL, Isabel. Sexual intimacy and the mental health among older adults during COVID-19 pandemic. Psic., Saúde & Doenças [online]. 2024, vol.25, n.1, pp.78-88.  Epub Mar 31, 2024. ISSN 1645-0086.  https://doi.org/10.15309/24psd250108.

The recent Covid-19 pandemic has had a strong impact on relationships between older adults, particularly in terms of sexual intimacy and the consequent mental health of older people. The research question was: How has the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the sexual intimacy and mental health of the elderly, and the objectives of the study were: (1) To analyze the effect of the pandemic on the sexual intimacy of older adults and (2) To investigate the influence of sexual intimacy on the mental health of older people during the pandemic. Method: The qualitative study, with snowball convenience sampling, involved 456 participants aged between 65 and 87. For the first objective, five themes emerged: (1) Lower sexual satisfaction (68%); (2) Lower sexual desire (67%); (3) Stronger emotional relationships (34%); (4) Fear of contracting physical diseases (29%); and (5) Lower attractiveness (23%). Three themes were mentioned for the second theme: (1) Less anxiety and stress (78%); (2) Greater attention to negative emotional states (55%); and (3) Less emotional tension (41%). The pandemic contributed negatively to the sexual intimacy of older adults, while sexual intimacy had a positive effect on their mental health.

Keywords : Sexual well-being; Older adults; Sexual intimacy; Sexual satisfaction; Mental health; Covid-19 pandemic.

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