How Masturbation Trends Have Changed Over Time

If you’re a dedicated reader or listener of Sex and Psychology, you probably already know that we love talking about masturbation, including its history, its common misconceptions, and its many health benefits. We know that masturbation is common and something that most people do, but less is known about how this behavior has changed over the years. For example, are people today masturbating more or less than they were in the past?

For the answer to this question, we’re going to dive into the latest analysis from the British National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles (or Natsal, for short) [1]. The study, published recently in the Journal of Sex Research, tracks how solo sex habits have shifted over more than a decade and explores the factors that influence who masturbates and why.

What did the study examine?

The researchers analyzed data from two waves of the Natsal survey (1999-2001 and 2010-2012), involving tens of thousands of participants reporting on their sexual experiences. Their goal was to track changes in masturbation over time and to explore which factors influence rates of self-pleasure in men and women.

Rates of masturbation are in increasing

When comparing the two survey waves, the researchers found that masturbation rates increased over time. In the first survey (1999–2001), 37% of women reported masturbating in the past month, rising to just over 40% in the second (2010–2012). For men, the rate went from about 73% to about 78%, respectively. Although the increases aren’t massive, they are statistically significant, which may reflect gradual cultural shifts in the perceived acceptability of masturbation. The authors speculate that greater access to image-based pornography online, which was much more available in the 2010s than in 1999–2001, could help explain part of this rise. However, it could also reflect a shift in people simply feeling more comfortable reporting their engagement in this activity.

Partnered sexual activity may impact masturbation

Interestingly, partnered sex had different associations with masturbation for men versus women. Men who reported very frequent sex with a partner were less likely to report masturbating, whereas women who had sex often were more likely to masturbate. This pattern is consistent with the old “complementary vs. compensatory” stereotype, or the idea that women tend to masturbate more when they already have an active sex life, while men tend to masturbate more when they aren’t having much sex.

However, when the researchers took into account desired frequency of partnered sex (which is different from actual sexual frequency), the gender difference disappeared. Regardless of gender, people who reported desiring more sex than they typically have reported engaging in more masturbation. So basically everyone masturbates more when they aren’t having as much sex as they’d like to be having.

Other important factors

Beyond actual (and desired) sexual frequency, the researchers found that both men and women who had sexual difficulties in their relationships (e.g., anxiety about performance or trouble reaching orgasm) also tended to report engaging in more solo masturbation. In other words, when people have more partnered sex problems, they seem to turn to masturbation more often for sexual fulfillment.

The study also looked at a variety of other sociodemographic factors. For example, stronger religious beliefs and certain health issues tended to reduce the likelihood of masturbation, whereas being single or identifying as LGBTQ+ was associated with increased masturbation reports.

Although this blog doesn’t cover all of the factors included in this study, you can read the full article here if you want to learn more.

Takeaways

It seems that masturbation is becoming more common for men and women alike in recent years. This makes sense because masturbation plays a key role in our sexual wellbeing, but it can also be an adaptive behavior in cases of mismatched sexual desire and sexual difficulties.

To learn more about masturbation, check out our podcast episodes below:

• The Weird History of Masturbation
• What We Get Wrong About Masturbation
• Masturbation and the Science of Self-Pleasure

If you have a sex question of your own, record a voicemail at speakpipe.com/sexandpsychology to have it answered on the blog or the podcast. 

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References:

Fischer, N., Kozák, M., Graham, C. A., Clifton, S., Mercer, C. H., & Mitchell, K. R. (2025). Trends in masturbation prevalence and associated factors: Findings from the British national surveys of sexual attitudes and lifestyles. The Journal of Sex Research, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2025.2555053