Implicit motives and sexual motivation and behavior

Measures of implicit power and affiliation motivation, libido, and sexual intercourse were administered three times to 36 women and 18 men (mean age: 22.17 years, SD = 2.25) and then aggregated. Reports of sexual intercourse correlated positively with the power motive (r = .28, p < .05) and negatively with the affiliation motive (r = -.47, p < .0005). These correlations tended to be stronger in participants engaged in a close relationship than in singles, but were not substantially affected by women's use of oral contraceptives, participants' gender, or social desirability. Although libido was positively correlated with sexual intercourse, it was not significantly associated with implicit motives. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science (USA). All rights reserved.