In the latest issue of Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, a quarterly journal pubished by the Guttmacher Institute, there are two articles that focus on the role of pleasure and arousal in safer sex behaviors.
One, “Women’s Experiences with Anal Sex: Motivations and Implications for STD Prevention,” found that women in the study often engaged in anal sex out of a desire to pleasure their partners or increase intimacy in their relationships. When women perceived condoms as decreasing pleasure, they were much less likely to use them for anal sex. The authors conclude that more work should be done to find ways of promoting safe and pleasurable sex.