Background and Aims
The issue of whether
hypersexual behaviours exist among university students is controversial because
many of these individuals engage in sexual exploration during their time at
university. To date, little is known about the correlates of hypersexual
behaviours among university students in the UK. Therefore, the aims of this
exploratory study were two-fold. Firstly, to explore and establish the
correlates of hypersexual behaviours, and secondly, to investigate whether
hypersexuality among university students can be predicted by variables relating
to negative mood states (i.e., emotional dysregulation, loneliness, shame, and
life satisfaction) and consequences of hypersexual behaviour.
Methods
Survey data from 165
British university students was analysed using regression analyses.
Results
The full regression
model significantly predicted hypersexual behaviours. However, only a small
number of predictor variables (i.e., gender, consequences of hypersexual
behaviours, life satisfaction and emotional dysregulation) accounted for the
significant unique influence on hypersexual behaviours among the sample.
Conclusions
The study empirically
supported the concept of hypersexual disorder. The implications of these
findings are also discussed...
The findings showed that 19.4% of the sample met the
criteria for HD, thus suggesting that hypersexual behaviours have the potential
of becoming problematic for some university students. These figures are much
higher than in the study conducted by Odlaug et al. (2013),
who found that only 2% met the criteria for compulsive sexual behaviours.
There are a number of reasons that may explain the
difference. Firstly, the present study’s sample may be biased because of the
use of purposive and snowball sampling. Secondly, the proportion of gay and
bisexual respondents in the present study was approximately 15%. This
population typically reports a broader repertoire of sexual behaviour and
practices, and usually present with more hypersexual symptoms. Thirdly, the
data were collected in London, and the country’s capital city is often viewed
as a ‘cosmopolitan city’ that has more sexually liberal attitudes than other
parts of the UK. Finally, the instruments used in the present study to measure
hypersexual behaviours differed from that of Odlaug et al. (2013) and
may also account for some of the differences in prevalence estimates.
The present study also found that emotional
(affect) dysregulation significantly predicted hypersexual behaviours. Previous
studies (e.g., Bradley, 2000; Goodman, 1998; Magai, 1999) have examined this relationship.
For example, Magai (1999) found that the association between
addictive and pre-addictive behaviours helps to regulate affect. The use of sex
allows for the distraction or the contraction of negative emotions. This
observation may be applicable to participants that met the criteria for HD in
the present study...
Full article at:
By:
1Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham,
UK
* Corresponding author: Manpreet Dhuffar; Psychology
Division, Nottingham Trent University, Burton Street, Nottingham, NG1 4BU, UK;
E-mail:ku.oc.liamtoh@raffuhd_teerpnam
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