Love during lockdown: findings from an online survey examining the impact of COVID-19 on the sexual practices of people living in Australia

Introduction

Australia recorded its first case of COVID-19 in late January 2020. On 22^ndMarch 2020, amid increasing daily case numbers, the Australian Government implemented lockdown restrictions to help ‘flatten the curve’. Our study aimed to understand the impact of lockdown restrictions on sexual and reproductive health. Here we focus on sexual practices.

Methods

An online survey was open from the 23^rdApril 2020 to the 11^thMay 2020. Participants were recruited online via social media and other networks and were asked to report on their sexual practices in 2019 and during lockdown. Logistic regression was used to calculate the difference (including 95% confidence intervals) in the proportion of sex practices between time periods.

Results

Of the 1187 who commenced the survey, 965 (81.3%) completed it. Overall 70% were female and 66.3% were aged 18 to 29 years. Most (53.5%) reported less sex during lockdown than in 2019. Compared with 2019, participants were more likely to report sex with a spouse (35.3% vs 41.7%; difference=6.4%; 95%CI: 3.6, 9.2) and less likely to report sex with a girl/boyfriend (45.1% vs 41.8%; diff=-3.3%; 95%CI: -7.0, -0.4) or with casual hook-up (31.4% vs 7.8%; 95%CI:-26.9, -19.8). Solo sex activities increased, 14.6% (123/840) reported using sex toys more often and 26.0% (218/838) reported masturbating more often. Dating app use decreased during lockdown compared with 2019 (42.1% vs 27.3%; difference= -14.8%; 95%CI: -17.6, -11.9). Using dating apps for chatting/texting (89.8% vs 94.5%; diff=4.7%; 95%CI:1.0, 8.5) and for setting up virtual dates (2.6% vs 17.2%; diff=14.6%; 95%CI:10.1, 19.2) increased during lockdown.

Conclusion

Although significant declines in sexual activity during lockdown were reported, people did not completely stop engaging in sexual activities during the pandemic, highlighting the importance of ensuring availability of normal sexual and reproductive health services during global emergencies.

KEY MESSAGES

• Sexual activity declined among our participants during the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in Australia, with more than half reporting having less sex than in 2019

• Sexual practices also changed during lockdown, with more people reporting solo sex activities like masturbating alone or using a sex toy.

• Use of dating apps also declined among our participants. Of those still using apps, we saw increased use for chatting/texting and setting up virtual dates.