Sexuella fantasier tros ha att göra med hur hjärnans belöningssystem fungerar, i kombination med lusten. Den som får en extra kraftig biokemisk belöning av att ha sex kommer så klart att ägna mer energi åt att tänka på och skaffa den belöningen. Höga dopaminnivåer är också kopplade till kreativitet, vilket kan förklara att man har fler nya idéer om allt möjligt, inte bara sex.
"In his book, The Molecule of More, Daniel Lieberman argues that dopamine plays a crucial role in the brain's reward system and can be associated with feelings of pleasure and satisfaction experienced during sexual activity. He suggests that dopamine influences the seeking of new sexual encounters; however, after achieving them, other neurotransmitters and their related neural circuits, such as serotonin, oxytocin, and the endocannabinoid system, drive sexual activity, and the mission of dopamine ends. Then dopamine arises again and motivates us to seek new pleasures.
Lieberman also explores the connection between dopamine and creativity, as well as how an imbalance in dopamine levels can lead to conditions such as schizophrenia. Lieberman discusses that dopamine plays an essential role in driving our desires and motivations and that an excess or deficiency of dopamine can result in both creative genius and mental illness. He discusses how dopamine influences our dreams and how an excessive increase in dopamine can impair the discrimination of reality and dreams, a phenomenon known as schizophrenia."
www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-behavioral-microbiome/202404/dopamine-intelligence-and-sex-drive-an-intriguing-nexus