Survey Finds Televised Sports Inhibit Intimacy

Survey Finds Televised Sports Inhibit Intimacy

PITTSBURGH, March 30 /PRNewswire/ -- With over 100 hours of televised college basketball during March, following the Olympics, NFL playoffs and the Super Bowl, what's the impact of all this sports watching on relationships? Turns out there can be a significant effect on intimacy when both partners don't share the sports passion.

National advertising agency MARC USA commissioned a survey to see what happens when one spouse/partner watches a lot more TV sports than the other. The survey was conducted by OpinionZone.com, the agency's independent online research panel, and reached a representative sample of nearly 800 households nationwide.

Analysis identified two key groups among respondents -- Sports Fans and Sufferers. Sports Fans are those who watch televised sports heavily while their partners seldom or never watch. Sufferers are those who seldom or never watch while their partners watch heavily.

Nearly one in four (24%) Sufferers report a short-term negative impact on their relationship from their partner watching TV sports. Only half as many Sports Fans (12%) perceive short-term negative effects. The differing perceptions appear to continue with 18% Sufferers seeing a long-term negative effect compared to only 12% Sports Fans. Perhaps, they need to turn off the TV and start talking or some could end up watching TV in different homes.

So what's the cause of the negative relationship effects of televised sports? Respondents were asked to identify what gets inhibited by watching sports on TV. Communication heads the list for both Sufferers (43%) and Sports Fans (39%). There's also little disagreement about the reduction in quality family time reported by 32% Sufferers and 35% Sports Fans.

Agreement breaks down when it comes to intimacy with 29% Sufferers citing a negative effect from TV sports, but only 19% Sports Fans seeing any inhibition in intimacy. On the flipside, Sports Fans report a greater inhibition of sleep (SF-27%, S-18%) and proper eating (SF-29%, S-20%), plus a trend toward getting less exercise (SF-32%, S-27%) and doing fewer household chores (SF-34%, S-28%) than do their partners.

Maybe Sports Fans don't realize that reduced sleep, junk food, little exercise and not doing chores -- all combined with hours in front of the TV -- are taking a toll on their sex lives, but their partners seem to be noticing.

So what do Sufferers do while their partners are glued to the game ... and what do their watching partners think they're doing? Both Sufferers (41%) and Sports Fans (40%) agree the non-watching partner "gets stuff accomplished." Of course, if there's resentment from the one getting stuff done, this could be another reason for a negative effect on the relationship.

Sports Fans appear more likely to report their non-watching spouse/partner is doing personal shopping (SF-30%, S-25%), while Sufferers seem more likely to report spending time with friends or family (S-32%, SF-26%). There's also disparity when it comes to nagging and guilt. Sufferers appear to see themselves as nagging more than their partners think they do (S-26%, SF-21%). Maybe Sports Fans don't feel the nagging as much because they're already feeling guilty (SF-22%, S-15%) or just not paying attention.

So, what are the implications with NBA and NHL playoffs, baseball, golf, tennis, and NASCAR all revving up? "The relationship component most impacted by televised sports is communication," points out Karen Leitze, SVP/Director of Strategic Planning and Research at MARC USA. "Our survey seems to indicate that paying more attention to communication is key for couples that include a Sports Fan and a Sufferer. Maybe, it's also time for Sports Fans to invite the suffering spouse/partner to get into the game."

Source: MARC USA

CONTACT: Cheryl Sills of MARC USA, +1-412-562-2024, or
csills@marcusa.com

Web site: http://www.opinionzone.com/
http://www.marcusa.com/

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