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How each individual within a relationship views their body may play a role in how they experience their sexual interactions. Previous research found associations between body image and sexual well-being at an individual level, but very little research has examined a dyadic association between body image and sexual and relational well-being. Using a nationally representative sample of 2,177 newlywed couples, this study used an Actor-Partner Interdependence Mediation Model (APIMeM) to estimate actor and partner associations between body esteem and relationship satisfaction, using sexual styles - inhibited, obsessed, or harmonious - as potential mediators. Findings showed both actor and partner effects. Body esteem was positively associated with own and partner's sexual harmony. Both men's and women's body esteem were negatively associated with women's sexual inhibition. A positive association between body esteem and own relationship satisfaction remained even when accounting for sexual mediators. Additional findings are discussed. These findings indicate that an individual's comfort with the body may be associated with sexual and relational well-being for both partners.

Although not all couples achieve high levels of sexual satisfaction during pregnancy, evidence of variability in couple sexual satisfaction during pregnancy indicates that sexual dissatisfaction in pregnancy does not apply to all. Subsequently, the current study examined whether a nationally representative U.S. sample of wives and husbands ( N = 523 couples) fell into subgroups in terms of their sexual satisfaction during pregnancy and to what degree biopsychosocial factors distinguish potential subgroups. Latent profile analyses, adjusted for pregnancy-related biological factors, indicated that couples could be classified into two subsets - a larger subset of couples where wives and husbands were satisfied with sex overall (79%) and a smaller subset where wives and husbands were neutral about satisfaction with sex (21%). Lower depressive symptoms among wives was associated with a greater likelihood of being in the more satisfied subset over the less satisfied subset - the only significant group membership predictor among a variety of other factors. Implications include notions that couples and practitioners should consider women's depressive symptoms throughout pregnancy in addition to the perinatal period, and that most U.S. newly married pregnant couples do well navigating sexual satisfaction challenges during pregnancy.