If one of your grandparents were to die, would you want the surviving grandparent to become ...

There is a common misconception that older people lose their sexual drive. Sexual capacities, particularly in women, show little evidence of declining with age, and a large percentage of both older men and older women are capable of sexual relations. If sexual behavior does decline, it probably is due more to social reasons than to physical reasons. According to William Masters and Virginia Johnson, the major deterrents to sexual activity when one is older are the lack of a partner, overindulgence in drinking or eating, boredom with one's partner, attitudes toward sex (such as the erroneous belief that sex is inappropriate for older adults), poor physical or mental health, attitudes toward menopause, and fear of poor performance.

The attitudes of the younger generations frequently create problems for older adults. A widow or widower may face strong opposition to remarrying from other family members. Negative attitudes are often strongest when an older person becomes interested in someone younger who will become an heir if the older person dies. Older adults are sometimes informed that they should not be interested in members of the opposite sex and that they should not establish new sexual relationships when they have lost a mate.

Fortunately, attitudes toward sexuality in later adulthood are changing. Merlin Taber notes: With the changing attitudes of younger people to alternatives to the traditional family, some older people are finding informal arrangements for living together attractive. The couple who do not have a marriage ceremony can share all the companionship and sexual satisfactions without upsetting inheritance rights and retirement benefits. When they become aware of it, their children may accept such a pattern because they find it preferable to remarriage. We have no idea of the numbers that are involved, but the old as well as the young have new options as societal norms change. The popularity of living together without marriage will probably increase.