How Do Men Who Have Sex with Men Define Sexual Desirability?

We investigated how men who have sex with men define sexual desirability. Sexual desire occurs in response to sexually relevant (i.e. desirable) stimuli, yet what attributes constitute sexually desirability, and why some and not others are seen as sexually desirable, remains unclear. We interviewed 24 men who have sex with men living in Australia (aged 21 to 64) between May and July 2023. We analyzed how interviewees defined sexual desirability using reflexive thematic analysis drawing upon sexual field theory. Interviewees defined sexual desirability as multidimensional, composed of appearance, affect, and behavior. Who and what were seen as desirable was dynamic, changing across time, place, and social interaction. Sexual desirability was described as shaped by systems of power. Hegemonic forms of sexual desirability influenced who was seen as sexy through systemic oppression, institutional and interpersonal discrimination, and their effect on individual men's attitudes, behaviors, and cognitions. Interviewees identified the White, muscular, and masculine cis man as the primary beneficiary of hegemonic desirability. Future work should investigate how hegemonic forms of desirability are resisted, and how otherwise sexually marginalized bodies become sexually desired.