Men are less likely to wear a condom if the girl they’re having sex with is ATTRACTIVE, research reveals
Meanwhile men who rated their own looks were more likely to try and persuade their partner not to use protection
MEN are less likely to want to use a condom if having sex with an attractive woman, new research has revealed.
The shocking study also found that men who rated themselves as good-looking were more likely to try and persuade their female partner not to use protection, despite the potential risks of doing so.
Meanwhile, the 51 blokes studied said they would expect other lads to also skip using protection with said sexy lady.
The participants were also asked to rate how likely a woman was to have an STI.
Although there was a link between how likely the woman was to have an STI and condom use, the lads said they were no less likely to get down and dirty with a woman just because she had an STI.
The study led by Anastasia Eleftheriou involved 51 straight men, with an average age of 26.4, and was published in the last week (June 17).
The oldest participant was 61 and the youngest just 19.
More than half the blokes reckoned they were satisfied with their sex lives, and all said they were exclusively attracted to women – with the exception of one bi-sexual man.
When it came to their dating lives, 23 (45 per cent) of them were single lads, 21 (41 per cent) in an exclusive relationship, four (8 per cent) in an open relationship, and three (6 per cent) married.
None of them admitted to having an STI at the time of the study, although five (10 per cent) had had one in the past.
Their average number of sexual partners was just under 10, with some participants having slept with up to 60 women and others not yet having lost their virginity.
Related Stories
The average participant lost their virginity at the age of 18.
Over the course of their sexual lifetime, 20 men said they did not use condoms more than half the time.
At the other end of the spectrum, 14 lads said they barely ever had condom-less sex (i.e. less than 10 per cent of the time). This data excluded the virgins.
None of the men could excuse their reluctance to use condoms by allergies to either latex or lubricants.
The researchers concluded: “Participants were more willing to have sex with attractive women, but were less inclined to use condoms when they do so.
“Such men might believe that attractive women take care of themselves more than less attractive women do, and therefore that they are healthier and pose less of a health risk, legitimising their reduced condom use intentions.
“This study also sheds some light on the sexual risk taking of men based on their own perceived attractiveness.
“Men who judged themselves to be more attractive were less likely to intend to use a condom and also estimated higher rates of condom-less sex in men like themselves.
“This is unlikely to be due to these men having had more sexual experiences than men who are less confident of their attractiveness, since reporting a high number of sexual partners was associated with higher condom use intentions.
“Alternatively, attractive men may feel that they can influence their partner not to use a condom to a greater extent than less attractive men, who might be more worried that if their partner does not agree to condom use, they might not have a high chance of success with them or other women.
"Male perceptions of attractiveness influence their condom use intentions – such risk biases could profitably be discussed during sex education sessions and in condom use promotion interventions."
