Evaluating the effectiveness of mindfulness-based sexual therapy for women with sexual dysfunction: A systematic literature review

Authors

  • Grace Eka Faculty of Psychology, Universitas Surabaya, Surabaya, Indonesia
  • Marselius Sampe Tondok Faculty of Psychology, Universitas Surabaya, Surabaya, Indonesia

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22219/jipt.v12i2.29232

Keywords:

Literature review, mindfulness-based therapy, sexuality, sexual dysfunction, women

Abstract

This study aimed to explore and synthesize the effectiveness of mindfulness-based therapy in addressing sexual dysfunction that adversely impacts the quality of women sexual relationships with the partners. Systematic Literature Review (SLR) methodology was used based on Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. In this study, a systematic literature search was conducted on integrated databases, namely SagePub, Science Direct, Springer, and PubMed, for articles published between 2014 and 2023. The search terms used were "mindfulness sexual therapy" and a total of eight articles were selected based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The results showed that mindfulness-based therapy could be a valuable and promising intervention for enhancing sexual function in women with sexual dysfunction and low relationship quality. Future studies should conduct similar analyses with male subjects.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed., text rev.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425787

Apostolou, M. (2016). Understanding the prevalence of sexual dysfunctions in women: An evolutionary perspective. Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology, 2(1), 26–43. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40750-015-0029-1

Basson, R., & Gilks, T. (2018). Women’s sexual dysfunction associated with psychiatric disorders and their therapy. Women’s Health, 14. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745506518762664

Bhugra, D., & Colombini, G. (2013). Sexual dysfunction: Classification and assessment. Advances in Psychiatric Therapy, 19(1), 48–55. https://doi.org/10.1192/apt.bp.112.010884

Brotto, L. A., Chivers, M. L., Millman, R. D., & Albert, A. (2016). Mindfulness-based sex therapy improves genital-subjective arousal concordance in women with sexual desire/arousal difficulties. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 45(8), 1907–1921. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-015-0689-8

Brotto, L. A., Stephenson, K. R., & Zippan, N. (2022). Feasibility of an online mindfulness-based intervention for women with sexual interest/arousal disorder. Mindfulness, 13(3), 647–659. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-021-01820-4

Chang, Y.-C., Lin, G.-M., Yeh, T.-L., Chang, Y.-M., Yang, C.-H., Lo, C., Yeh, C.-Y., & Hu, W.-Y. (2022). Impact of mindfulness-based stress reduction on female sexual function and mental health in patients with breast cancer. Supportive Care in Cancer, 30(1), 4315-4325. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-021-06540-y/Published

Fathi, A. (2013). A comparison of sexual desire and self-esteem among monolinguals and bilinguals. European Online Journal of Natural and Social Sciences, 2(2). http://www.european-science.com434

Gunst, A., Ventus, D., Arver, S., Dhejne, C., Görts-Öberg, K., Zamore-Söderström, E., & Jern, P. (2019). A randomized, waiting-list-controlled study shows that brief, mindfulness-based psychological interventions are effective for therapy of women’s low sexual desire. Journal of Sex Research, 56(7), 913–929. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2018.1539463

Guyon, R., Fernet, M., Girard, M., Cousineau, M. M., Tardif, M., & Godbout, N. (2023). Who am i as a sexual being? The role of sexual self-concept between dispositional mindfulness and sexual satisfaction among child sexual abuse survivors. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 38(7–8), 5591–5612. https://doi.org/10.1177/08862605221123290

Hucker, A., & McCabe, M. P. (2014). An online, mindfulness-based, cognitive-behavioral therapy for female sexual difficulties: Impact on relationship functioning. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, 40(6), 561–576. https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2013.796578

Jaderek, I., Obarska, K., & Lew-Starowicz, M. (2023). Assessment of the effect of mindfulness monotherapy on sexual dysfunction symptoms and sex-related quality of life in women. Sexual Medicine, 11(3). https://doi.org/10.1093/sexmed/qfad022

Krieger, J. F., Kristensen, E., Marquardsen, M., Ofer, S., Mortensen, E. L., & Giraldi, A. (2023). Mindfulness in sex therapy and intimate relationships: feasibility and randomized controlled pilot study in a cross-diagnostic group. Sexual Medicine, 11(3). https://doi.org/10.1093/sexmed/qfad033

Lawrance, K.-A., & Byers, E. S. (1995). Sexual satisfaction in long-term heterosexual relationships: The interpersonal exchange model of sexual satisfaction. Personal Relationships, 2(4), 267–285. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6811.1995.tb00092.x

Lin, C. Y., Potenza, M. N., Broström, A., Blycker, G. R., & Pakpour, A. H. (2019). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for sexuality (MBCT-S) improves sexual functioning and intimacy among older women with epilepsy: A multicenter randomized controlled trial. Seizure, 73, 64–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.seizure.2019.10.010

Manurung, M. A., & Rahardjo, H. E. (2023). Association of perceived male sexual dysfunction and sexually transmitted disease to female sexual function among Indonesian women. Medical Journal of Indonesia, 32(1), 52–57. https://doi.org/10.13181/mji.oa.236696

Mize, S. J. S. (2015). A review of mindfulness-based sex therapy interventions for sexual desire and arousal difficulties: From research to practice. Current Sexual Health Reports, 7(2), 89–97. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-015-0048-8

Page, M. J., McKenzie, J. E., Bossuyt, P. M., Boutron, I., Hoffmann, T., Mulrow, C. D., … & Moher, D. (2021). The prisma 2020 statement: An updated guideline for reporting systematic reviews. BMJ, n71. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.n71

Paterson, L. Q. P., Handy, A. B., & Brotto, L. A. (2017). A pilot study of eight-session mindfulness-based cognitive therapy adapted for women’s sexual interest/arousal disorder. Journal of Sex Research, 54(7), 850–861. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2016.1208800

Peixoto, M. M. (2023). Mindfulness, self-compassion, and acceptance as predictors of sexual satisfaction in cisgender heterosexual men and women. Healthcare (Switzerland), 11(13). https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare11131839

Rojiani, R., Santoyo, J. F., Rahrig, H., Roth, H. D., & Britton, W. B. (2017). Women benefit more than men in response to college-based meditation training. Frontiers in Psychology, 8(APR). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00551

Ramadhani, H. S., Sutyarso, S., & Susianti, S. (2018). Perbandingan domain disfungsi seksual pada wanita akseptor kontrasepsi hormonal di Puskesmas Gisting Kabupaten Tanggamus. Jurnal Majoritiy, 7(3), 62-67. http://juke.kedokteran.unila.ac.id/index.php/majority/article/view/2054/2022

Sipe, W. E., & Eisendrath, S. J. (2012). Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy: theory and practice. Canadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie, 57(2), 63–69. https://doi.org/10.1177/070674371205700202

Sood, R., Kuhle, C. L., Thielen, J. M., Kapoor, E., Vencill, J. A., Mara, K. C., & Faubion, S. S. (2022). Association of mindfulness with female sexual dysfunction. Maturitas, 161, 27–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.maturitas.2022.02.002

Stephenson, K. R., & Kerth, J. (2017). Effects of mindfulness-based therapies for female sexual dysfunction: A meta-analytic review. Journal of Sex Research, 54(7), 832–849. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2017.1331199

Strassberg, D. S., & Paleman, M.A. (2017). Sexual Dysfunction in Males. In L.R. Grossman & S. Walfish (Eds.), Translating psychological research into practice (pp. 435-442). Springer. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261510502

Tang, Y. Y., Hölzel, B. K., & Posner, M. I. (2015). The neuroscience of mindfulness meditation. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 16(4), 213–225. https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3916

Thirumaran, M., Vijayaraman, M., Irfan, M., Khaja Moinuddin, S., & Shafaque, N. (2020). Influence of age and gender on mindfulness-cognitive science. Indian Journal of Public Health Research & Development, 11(3). https://doi.org/10.37506/ijphrd.v11i3.1442

Uppot, A., Raposo, S., Rosen, N. O., Corsini-Munt, S., Balzarini, R., & Muise, A. (2024). Responsiveness in the face of sexual challenges: The role of sexual growth and destiny beliefs. Journal of Sex Research, 61(2), 228–245. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2023.2175194

Ventegodt, S. (2008). Theory of sexuality and psychological causes of sexual problems. In Caroll J.M., Alena M.K. (eds.), Psychological sexual dysfunctions (pp. 21-146). Nova Science. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/289476137

World Health Organization. (2011). International statistical classification of diseases and related health problems. World Health Organization.

Downloads

Published

2024-08-09

How to Cite

Eka, G., & Tondok, M. S. (2024). Evaluating the effectiveness of mindfulness-based sexual therapy for women with sexual dysfunction: A systematic literature review. Jurnal Ilmiah Psikologi Terapan, 12(2), 140–149. https://doi.org/10.22219/jipt.v12i2.29232

Issue

Section

Articles