Sexual Behaviour and Fantasies in a Group of Young Italian Cohort

Abstract

Over the years, sexual behaviour has changed due to the growing interest in everything related to the sexual sphere. The purpose of the study was to collect information on the sexual habits and behaviours of Italian people of all ages, sexes and sexual orientations and to describe the patterns of sexual behaviour, with the aim of gaining a representative picture of sexuality in Italy, before the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants completed a survey with 99 questions about their sexual habits. In our group first sexual experiences occurred on average around the age of 15, whilst the median age of the first sexual intercourse was 17. The fantasies that most stimulated and excited our group (Likert scale ≥ 3) was having sex in public (63.9%), having sex with more than one person at the same time (59.4%), blindfolded sex (64.9%), being tied up (56.3%) and observing a naked person (48.6%). As for pornography, we have shown that 80% of our group watched porn at home, alone or from their smartphones. Our results have several practical implications for the areas of sex education and sexual health. It is necessary to safeguard the health of young people and support them increasing their sexual well-being.