Vasectomy, ovulation suppressors, and sexual behavior∗

41 couples who decided to use vasectomy as a contraceptive means (V group) and 23 couples who decided to use contraceptive pills (P group) were extensively interviewed and completed questionnaires about their sexual behavior before and after adopting these contraceptive means. Participants were predominantly middle and upper-middle class young to middle-aged white Americans. Wives and husbands were interviewed separately. The V group was somewhat older (p less than .05 for ages of husbands ages of wives and years married) and had more children (p less than .01). Noncoital contraception tended to reduce the inverse relation between age and frequency of intercourse especially in the V group. The data infer that effective contraception can result in more frequent sexual experiences in couples markedly fearful of pregnancy but the data show no dramatic increase in coitus frequency. The P groups data indicates noncoital contraception brings with it no inevitable dissatisfaction with rate of intercourse. The V group experienced the greatest reaction to change of contraceptive procedure though these favorable and unfavorable changes could have resulted from differences in personality from the P group. In both P and V groups noncoital orgastic techniques were reported at least as frequently after the new procedure as before. Both of the methods could have contributed to increased incidences of male impotence but the number of respondents was too small for even tentative conclusions. The methods seemed to have no effect on female frigidity. Extramarital sexual activity showed no increase with either method.