Objectives: Sexual relationship is a mutual interaction, which its promotion requires appropriate contribution of both  partners. Given the complaints of lack of female contribution in sexual relationships where the male is the initiator, this article aims at exploring the roots of not being responsive toward male sexual request in married women.

Methods: This was a qualitative study with content analysis approach for exploring the concept of sexual behavior in married women of reproductive age. In-depth interviews and focus group discussions were conducted with 52 Iranian women in Rafsanjan and Isfahan. Fifty-two subjects from target group were in Rafsanjan and Isfahan cities that voluntarily took part in 4 individual deep interviews and 8 focused group consisted of 48 participants. All sessions and discussions were recorded and transcripted verbatim. Inspired by the Graneheim approach, content analysis was adopted to extract the meanings and perceptions.

Results: From study data, we extracted three main themes: “attention and affection prerequisite,” “deviation from sexual script” and “individual wishes.”

Conclusions: With respect to sexual and marital life quality promotion in women, it is essential for caregivers to take care of women expectations and sexual authority. We suggest these contents be mentioned in premarital consult.