Toward a Framework for Positive Sexual Aging: Introducing the Successful Sexual Aging Model (SSAM)

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Description

In Western societies, individuals are increasingly living into older age and placing greater value on sexuality than previous generations of older adults. Emerging research on sexual aging has begun to document patterns of sexual activity among older adults, highlighting the significance of what is often referred to—though still vaguely defined—as positive sexual aging.

Despite these descriptive advances, there remains a lack of conceptual and theoretical models to organize these findings and provide a coherent framework for understanding how individuals respond to age-related changes in sexuality. Addressing this gap, the present study introduces the Successful Sexual Aging Model (SSAM), a novel conceptualization grounded in the broader paradigm of successful aging and its process-oriented elaborations.

The SSAM is built upon three interrelated psychosocial processes: Acceptance of and Adaptation to aging-related changes in physical appearence and sexual function, and Opportunities for continued sexual expression and intimacy.
Initial empirical support for the SSAM, drawn from recent cross-cultural investigations, suggests its potential to foster more positive societal attitudes toward sexual aging. Furthermore, the model offers valuable insights for sexuality education and clinical interventions aimed at enhancing sexual well-being among older adults.

Bio 

Aleksandar Štulhofer, Ph.D. is professor of sociology and the chair of Sexology Unit at the Department of Sociology, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of Zagreb, Croatia. He has published internationally on the epidemiology of sexual health, pornography and sexual socialization, hypersexuality, sexual satisfaction, emotional intimacy and sexual well-being, HIV risks and sexual risk taking, school-based sexuality education, and sexual aging. In the 2005-2016 period, Dr. Štulhofer served as short-term consultant in behavioral HIV surveillance for the WHO Eastern Mediterranean office. Dr. Štulhofer serves on the editorial board of the journals Archives of Sexual Behavior, Journal of Sex Research, and Sexuality and Culture. In 2016, he was awarded the European Federation of Sexology Gold Medal. His most recent research projects focus on the concept and measurement of successful sexual aging in a cross-cultural perspective.

Date limite pour s'inscrire : 1er octobre 2025