Relationship between Sexual Inhibition, Sexual Excitation and Female Sexual Function: Mediating Role of Activated Cognitive Schemas in Sexual Context, Emotion Dysregulation and Negative Mood

The present study aimed to investigate the mediating role of cognitive schemas activated in sexual context, emotion dysregulation and negative mood in the relationship between sexual inhibition, sexual excitation and female sexual function. This study was conducted with a correlational method and structural equation modeling, respectively. The study sample included 665 females serving in the administrative departments of Tehran and Tabriz universities, who were selected by convenience sampling method. The Questionnaire of Cognitive Schema Activation in Sexual Context,Depression, Anxiety and stress Scales (DASS),Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), Sexual Excitation/Sexual Inhibition Inventory for Women, and Female Sexual Functioning Index (FSFI) were used for data collection. Also, SPSS23 and LISREL8.8 softwares were used for data analysis. Results of SEM showed that sexual inhibition and sexual inhibition, both directly and indirectly (through Sexual Context-activated schemas, emotion dysregulation and negative mood), could affect women's sexual function. Evaluating the theoretical model of the study through the fitness indices revealed that the theoretical model fit the measurement model (CFI = 0.97, NFI = 0.96, RMSEA = 0.051). Consistent with the dual control model, the results of this study showed that inhibition and sexual excitation affect the female sexual function. In addition, these findings suggest that in addition to the physiological factors, emotion and cognitive factors are similarly significant in defining the sexual function.