Sex dreams: Gender, erotophilia, and sociosexuality as predictors of content, valence, and frequency

Abstract

The continuity hypothesis suggests that dream content is directly related to waking life experiences, personality traits, and gender; however, little is known about sexual dreaming. To address this gap, the current study examined how gender, sociosexuality (one’s willingness to engage in sexual relations outside of committed relationships) and erotophilia (a learned disposition to respond positively to sexual stimuli) related to the content, frequency, and valence of sexual dreams. Participants (n = 482) completed an online survey assessing their sex dream experiences, sociosexuality, and erotophilia and were asked to describe their most recent sexual dream. Men scored higher on sociosexuality and sex dream valence than women, but there were no gender differences in erotophilia or sex dream frequency. Individuals who scored higher on sociosexuality and erotophilia reported experiencing more frequent sex dreams and evaluated them more positively. Hierarchical regression analysis demonstrated that erotophilia and sociosexuality significantly predicted sex dream valence, accounting for 24.3% of the variance. The addition of gender at step 2 was significant, but only accounted for an additional 1.9% of the variance. Participants’ descriptions of their most recent sex dream were analyzed for common themes related to variables such as the partner(s) involved (most common: current partner), location (most common: house/apartment), and types of sexual behaviors involved (most common: kissing). Exploratory analyses, limitations, and future directions are discussed.