The Ideas of Russians at a Young Age About Good Sex

In recent years, there has been an increase in public interest in the topic of sexuality in Russia. At the same time, not all information about sex available to a wide range of people on the Internet and the media is true: often the porn industry and popular culture form unrealistic expectations from intimacy among Russians, which can lead to dissatisfaction with sexual relations. This study reveals exactly what young Russians mean by the concept of "good sex". This study is qualitative. Data collection was carried out through a semi-structured interview. 20 interviews were conducted with Russians aged 23 to 30 years inclusive. The data obtained were processed using a thematic analysis. As a result, 15 main topics have been developed that characterize the ideas of Russians at a young age about good sex: involvement in a partner, his subjectivity; exciting stimuli; safety; physicality, attitude to one's body; psychological state; emotional coloring of sex; pre-contact; level of claims to a partner; orgasmocentricity; the ability to verbalize; aftertaste, feeling of oneself after; motive to have sex; performance; life context; creativity, state of flow, transcendence. Some of these topics have previously been described in related studies, while others have been highlighted for the first time. Based on the results of the study, the existing ideas about sex and sexual satisfaction in the scientific psychological literature can be supplemented. It is assumed that this study will introduce the concept of "good sex" into the Russian-speaking psychological field. The results of the work will help expand the understanding of helping specialists working with sexological queries about what kind of sexual interaction can be considered good for Russians aged 23 to 30 years. The study can also become the basis for educational activities in the field of sexual education of the population.