Does penis size REALLY matter? It depends where you live: Britons are the most realistic while Poles have the highest expectations (and 20% of women don't care)

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It's the age old question that worries men the world over - does size matter?

Now, a new survey has aimed to answer the question once and for all and concludes - well, sort of - and it depends where you live. 

Online sexual health site DrEd quizzed women and men across the world about how big they believe the average penis really is - and what size they'd like it to be.

Unsurprisingly, men's perception of the average was longer than women's.

Men perceived the average to be 14.1 cm (5.6 inches), while women thought it was 13.8 cm (5.4 inches).

When asked about their ideal length, men idolised 16.6 cm (6.5 inches), while women were content with 15.8 cm (6.2 inches). 

And our perception of size varies vastly by which country we come from, the survey revealed.

Poles, Austrians and Italians had the highest expectations, while the Portugese, French and British were the most modest in their estimations.

Men perceived the average penis length to be 14.1 cm (5.6 inches), while women thought it was 13.8 cm (5.4 inches). When asked about their ideal length, men idolised 16.6 cm (6.5 inches), while women were content with 15.8 cm (6.2 inches)

Commenting on the study's conclusions, a spokesperson from DrEd said: 'When it comes to perceptions of average size, men and women have very similar ideas.

'Women estimated the average penis length to be 13.8 cm [5.4 inches], and for men, this was only 0.3 cm [0.1 inch] greater. 

'We compared this to the results of a 2015 review of studies on penis size that included over 15,000 men from around the world.

'The average penis length when erect was found to be 13.12 cm [5.2 inches] – almost one whole centimeter less than the average estimate given by men in our study.

He continued: 'When considering notions of an ideal length, it becomes clear that expectations don't always match up with reality. 

'Women's perception of an ideal penis length was 2 cm [0.8 inches] greater than the average length. 

'While it's concerning that even an average penis size is seen as less than ideal, it's unclear whether a difference of only 2 cm would have a meaningful effect on sexual satisfaction for a man or his partner. 

'Yet men may be evaluating themselves even more harshly. Despite having an estimate of average size that's similar to women's, they believe the ideal penis is 2.5 cm longer.'

The survey quizzed people from nine European countries as well as the US - and revealed massive variations in ideas of average and optimal penis size around the world.

Out of the nations studied:

* Poland had the highest estimate of average length at 15.7 cm (6.2 inches), and the second-highest ideal length of 17.3 cm (6.8 inches).

* Austria took second for estimates of average length (15.6 cm or 6.1 inches) but held the top spot for estimates of ideal size (17.6 cm or 6.9 inches). 

* The UK had both the lowest estimate of average size, 12.4 cm (4.8 inches), and the lowest ideal length, 14.2 cm (5.6 inches).

Across all countries, ideal length outpaced perceptions of typical size - showing many people believe that even average genitals may not be 'big enough.'

WHAT WOMEN THINK 

The study also asked women how much they value penis size as an important aspect of a man's body. 

About two-thirds of women, 67.4 per cent, said that size is somewhat important – not of overriding significance or major concern to them. 

A further 21.4 per cent, more than 1 in 5, felt that penis size simply wasn't important.

Only 11.2 per cent of women said that size was very important to them. Clearly, plenty of women don't place a heavy emphasis on the importance of size.

And when asking if size matters, women have good reason to say: not nearly as much as many men think. 

The survey also looked at average penis size across 50 US states and several European countries

* West Virginia offered the lowest figure, estimating an average length of 12.8 cm (5 inches)

* Arizona and Nebraska were close runners-up with an estimate of 13.4 cm (5.3 inches) each

* At the other end, Maine had the highest estimate in the nation: an average length of 16.5 cm [6.5 inches), almost 4 cm (1.6 inches) greater than West Virginia. 

* Idaho offered the second-highest estimate at 15.9 cm (6.3 inches), and Hawaii was third with 15.7 cm (6.2 inches). 

WHAT MEN THINK 

Dr Ed asked men from four age groups about their level of satisfaction with the size of their genitals.

Overall, very few men reported dissatisfaction with their size – only 10.3 per cent said they were dissatisfied, and a mere 1.7 per cent said they were very dissatisfied.

29.5 per cent had neutral feelings about their size, being neither particularly satisfied nor dissatisfied.

A majority of men were content - 44.5 per cent reported that they were satisfied with their size, and an additional 14 per cent noted that they were very satisfied.

'In light of the widely varying expectations of average penis length that we found across several countries, all of which regarded the perceived average penis length as less than ideal, it's a pleasant surprise to see that a majority of men remain personally satisfied with their bodies, and only a small number experience dissatisfaction.'

Satisfaction also varied by age group:

* While 39.4 per cent of men aged 18–24 reported being satisfied, this increased to 51 per cent among men aged 45 and over.

* The proportion who were very satisfied showed little change overall, starting at 15.7 per cent of those aged 18–24 and growing to 16.9 per cent of men aged 35–44, before slightly declining to 13.5 per cent of men aged 45 and over.

Meanwhile, levels of dissatisfaction appeared to decline more significantly with age:

* 13.1 per cent of men aged 18–24 were unhappy, but only 7.7 per cent of men aged 45 and over, reported being dissatisfied with their size.

* And while 3 per cent of men aged 18–24 noted that they were very dissatisfied, no men aged 45 and over felt that way.

'It's possible that young men may have plenty of exposure to popular misconceptions about penis size and its relevance to sex, and less life experience that would indicate otherwise,' a DrEd spokespersno explained.

'As they age they may acquire experience and have more opportunities to learn that size may be less important than they once believed,' he added.

Sexual capability

As the majority of men were satisfied or very satisfied with the size of their penis, 59.4 per cent also said size did not affect their sexual confidence.

And a further 24.7 per cent said their size actually increased their confidence.

Just 15.8 per cent said the size of their penis had decreased their sexual confidence.

When confidence impacts performance

It has been shown that anxiety and worries can reduce a man's abilities to get and keep an erection. 

Erectile dysfunction (ED) can affect men regardless of their penis size, and is not caused by having a smaller penis.

Intimacy is a moment of intense vulnerability and exposure, and for a man who feels uncomfortable about his size - regardless of the reality - anxieties about his penis being seen and about sexual performance can contribute to ED. 

For all men, the occurrence of ED can create even more anxiety and reduce sexual confidence – a vicious cycle. 

This may be more noticeable in younger men, who showed less satisfaction about their size and said the length of their penis had more of an impact on their sexual confidence.

In fact, a recent study showed that 1 in 4 cases of newly diagnosed ED was in men under 40.

In the survey:

* While 70.2 per cent of men aged 18–24 reported never having ED, a surprising 29.8 per cent did sometimes experience these symptoms.

* More than 10 per cent experienced ED during half of sexual encounters or even more frequently.

* As men age, ED can become more common, due to many factors caused by medical problems more common in older men, such as heart disease. 

*In the study, 57.7 per cent of men aged 45 and over had suffered ED.