Now all that locker room machismo makes perfect sense. It turns out men are more insecure about their penis sizes in front of other male competitors than their sexual partners.
A recent study from Victoria University in Melbourne shows that men who experienced locker room syndrome" mostly reported they were in fact happy with their size when it came to personal satisfaction and that of their sexual partners'.
Or you could read the findings another way: "The size of a man’s genitalia might matter when it comes to sex, just not for men themselves. They’re more concerned with what the guy next to them has," notes the National Post.
"Men’s preoccupation with size was rarely to do with pleasing sexual partners or even appearing as a better sexual partner, says the study's author, clinical psychology graduate Dr. Annabel Chan Feng Yi, in a release. “It was often more about competition with other men. Many felt most insecure about their size in environments where other men might see them, such as gym change rooms.”
The study surveyed 738 men online and found an obsession with weight and being muscular was also common among the respondents, especially among gay men.
“The research demonstrates that societal pressures on body image are certainly not unique to women and that while men share similar body image concerns they often don’t have the appropriate forum to discuss them or adequate professional support to deal with them,” added Dr. Chan Feng Yi.
The sizable findings come on the heels of a similar Canadian study, which concluded that penis length does in fact sway females evaluating potential sexual partners.
A University of Ottawa researcher determined that men with larger penises were rated relatively more attractive. "Flaccid penis size had a significant influence on male attractiveness," said the report, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science.
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