Sexual Relationships 
Sexual Health 
Why this matters:
The male penis as depicted in paintings over the past seven centuries has steadily increased in size, especially since the onset of the 21st century (Murat, 2022).
Wylie and Eardley (2007) found men to link penis size to strength, dominance, power, and the capacity to love and be loved. Sadly, perceived failure to meet such standards by men has been associated with depression, impaired social relationships, and low self-esteem (Olivardia et al., 2004). Unsurprisingly, over two-thirds of men feel concern and anxiety over the size of their penis (Tiggermann, Martina, & Churchett, 2008).
Given how many cultures subconsciously instill the idea of the penis as a reflection of a man's manhood, masculinity, and fertility (which, by the way, I think is total bullsh*t; Wylie & Eardly, 2007), I thought it time to shed some statistical light on the subject!
Does penis size really matter during sex as much as men think it does?
Here are the facts:
In 2002, Francken et al. surveyed 170 women and found no correlation between a woman's reported sexual satisfaction with her partner and the girth of her partner's penis. In addition, they found that penis length was "unimportant" or "totally unimportant" to sexual satisfaction in the vast majority (78%) of the women.
In 2006, Lever et al. surveyed over 52,000 heterosexual men and women online and found that men were over three times more likely to find unnecessary fault with their penis compared to their female partners. Statistically, only 14% of women found faults versus nearly half (46%) of men.
In 2014, Johnston and McLellan surveyed 110 heterosexual men and women in their 20s and found women's ideal penis length to be over an inch shorter than the lengths men believed them to prefer. (For example, many men believed that women saw the ideal penis as being seven+ inches long.)
In 2020, Shaeer et al. surveyed 303 sexually active women in steady relationships and found 89% to be satisfied with the size of their partner's penis. Fewer than half reported penis size to be important for sexual satisfaction and over half reported that a bigger penis did not matter for sexual satisfaction.
In 2021, Bhat and Shastry surveyed 230 sexually active females in steady relationships. Only 9% stated that they did not like the look of their partner's penis, and only 22% considered a man's erect penis size to be an important factor to their sexual enjoyment. In addition, when asked how long a penis should be, 61% of women did not specify a size, and of those who did provide a length, only 8% desired a penis larger than six inches.
In 2021, Veale et al. conducted a study restricting a man's penetration depth in his female partner by an inch (2.5 cm), 1.5 inches (2.75 cm), and 2 inches (5 cm) using penile rings. The average erect penile length among male participants prior to using the rings was about six inches. Results showed that two out of three women reported sex to be just as pleasurable or even more pleasurable despite the reduced penetration depth, and in those who reported less pleasure, it was minimal at only 18% less pleasure.
My conclusion: Men tend to overestimate a woman's size expectations and dissatisfaction with their penis.
Therefore, don't worry so much! :)
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Citations
Bhat, G. S., & Shastry, A. (2021). Does Size Matter? Perceptions of Indian Women About the Size of the Penis. Journal of Psychosexual Health, 3(4), 348-353.
Francken, A.B, et al. “What Importance Do Women Attribute to the Size of the Penis?” European Urology, vol. 42, no. 5, 2002, pp. 426–431., https://doi.org/10.1016/s0302-2838(02)00396-2.
Johnston, L., McLellan, T., & McKinlay, A. (2014). (Perceived) size really does matter: Male dissatisfaction with penis size. Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 15(2), 225.
Lever J, Frederick DA, Peplau LA. Does size matter? Men’s and women’s views on penis size across the lifespan. Psychol Men Masc 2006; 7: 129–43
Murat G. “Depictions of Penises in Historical Paintings Reflect Changing Perceptions of the Ideal Penis Size.” BJU International, 2022, https://doi.org/10.1111/bju.15926.
Olivardia, Roberto, et al. “Biceps and Body Image: The Relationship between Muscularity and Self-Esteem, Depression, and Eating Disorder Symptoms.” Psychology of Men & Masculinity, vol. 5, no. 2, 2004, pp. 112–120., https://doi.org/10.1037/1524-9220.5.2.112.
Shaeer, O, et al. “Female Orgasm and Overall Sexual Function and Habits: A Descriptive Study of a Cohort of U.S. Women.” The Journal of Sexual Medicine, vol. 17, no. 6, 2020, pp. 1133–1143., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2020.01.029.
Tiggemann, Marika, et al. “Beyond Muscles.” Journal of Health Psychology, vol. 13, no. 8, 2008, pp. 1163–1172., https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105308095971.
Veale, D, et al. "A preliminary investigation of a novel method to manipulate penis length to measure female sexual satisfaction: a single‐case experimental design." BJU international 128.3 (2021): 374-385.
Wylie, Kevan R., and Ian Eardley. “Penile Size and the ‘Small Penis Syndrome.’” BJU International, vol. 99, no. 6, 2007, pp. 1449–1455., https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1464-410x.2007.06806.x.
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