Symptomatology and psychological aspects of male sexual inadequacy: results of an experimental study

Abstract

Forty-two male patients and their sexual partners were studied. Sixteen of the patients had psychogenic erectile failure (eight each with the primary and secondary forms), 16 were premature ejaculators, and 10 had diabetes-related impotence. Because of the higher mean age of the diabetics, two control groups were used, an age-matched older group (eight healthy males and their partners) and an age-matched younger group (16 healthy males and their partners). The results for the various groups on a semi-standardized interview about sexual behavior and on five psychological assessment scales were compared. Of the 88 questions on the semi-standardized interview, 11 permitted assignment of the patients to the correct group. The diabetics suffered from "prevailing erectile impotence." They viewed themselves as being less disturbed sexually than the other patients did, although on the basis of their symptoms their impotence was actually more severe. The patients with psychogenic erectile impotence had a "situational" sexual disorder in which sexual anxiety played an important role. They viewed themselves as more insecure than the diabetics and the controls and they overidealized their partners and mothers. There appear to be two subgroups of premature ejaculators: The E1 group of patients seemed to be less "neurotic" than the E2 group. On the psychological measures the latter was quite similar to the group of patients with psychogenic erectile impotence. All patient groups except E1 were significantly more depressed than the control groups.