ObjectivesLow sexual desire is a common complaint among women in the reproductive years. There is controversy regarding the relationship between testosterone (T) and female desire, but there is also lack of research on moderators. Lack of awareness of effects of T on emotions and bodily sensations might interfere with the subjective experience of desire. Moreover, T appears to be more important for searching and competing for partners than for long-term pair bonding. Therefore, we examined if interoception, alexithymia, maladaptive psychological defenses, and relationship status, moderated the relationship between salivary T and female desire.MethodsOne hundred sixty eight Portuguese women of reproductive age completed the desire dimension of the Female Sexual Function Index, the Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20), and the Defense Style Questionnaire (DSQ-40). Interoception was determined by a heartbeat detection task. Participants reported if they had a regular sexual partner. Luminescence immunoassays were used to determine salivary T.ResultsThree multiple regressions models revealed that, among unpartnered women, higher desire was predicted by the combinations of 1) higher T and lesser alexithymia, 2) higher T and less use of maladaptive defenses, 3) higher T and greater interoception. For partnered women, neither T nor the interactions of T with indices of emotional and bodily awareness predicted desire.ConclusionsThese findings provide preliminary evidence that T is more important for the desire of unpartnered women, and that lack of conscious awareness of emotions and bodily sensations interferes with the effects of T on the subjective experience of desire.

中文翻译：

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社会心理因素是否会影响睾丸激素与女性性欲之间的关系？互感的作用，Alexithymia，防御机制和关系状况

目的低性欲是育龄妇女普遍的抱怨。关于睾丸激素（T）与女性欲望之间的关系存在争议，但也缺乏有关主持人的研究。缺乏对T对情绪和身体感觉的影响的意识可能会干扰欲望的主观体验。而且，T对于寻找和竞争伙伴比长期配对更重要。因此，我们研究了是否存在避孕，无知觉，适应不良的心理防御和关系状况，调节了唾液T与女性欲望之间的关系。方法168名育龄葡萄牙妇女完成了女性性功能指数的欲望维度，即多伦多性欲规模（TAS-20），和国防风格问卷（DSQ-40）。侦听是由心跳检测任务确定的。参与者报告他们是否有固定的性伴侣。结果三种多元回归模型显示，在无伴侣的女性中，以下因素的组合可预测更高的欲望：1）更高的T和更少的阅读障碍; 2）更高的T和更少使用不良适应症; 3）更高。 T和更大的感觉。对于伴侣妇女，T或T与情绪和身体意识指标的交互作用均不能预测欲望。结论这些发现提供了初步证据，表明T对于无伴侣妇女的欲望更为重要，