Coolidge effect

The renewed sexual interest some animals show when introduced to a new mate after mating with a familiar one. It is studied as a pattern of sexual motivation and habituation.

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Habituation: A decline in response to a repeated, non-threatening stimulus. Sexual response to a familiar mate can decline with repeated exposure.
Rat sexual behavior: The courtship, mounting, and copulatory behaviors observed in rats. Classic demonstrations measured male rats’ renewed mating after exposure to a new female.
Calvin Coolidge: The thirtieth president of the United States, serving from 1923 to 1929. A story about Coolidge and his wife inspired the effect’s name.
Mate choice: The process by which individuals select or accept potential reproductive partners. Renewed mating with a new partner is not by itself proof of selective preference.
Sensitization: An increase in responsiveness after repeated or intense stimulation. It contrasts with the declining response to a familiar mate.
Sheep sexual behavior: The courtship and mating behaviors of sheep, including responses to partners and sexual cues. Ram studies have tested changes in sexual response to familiar and novel ewes.
Frank A. Beach: An American psychologist and comparative endocrinologist known for research on animal sexual behavior. Beach helped popularize the name in scientific discussion of sexual behavior.
Monogamy: A mating or pair-bonding system involving one partner at a time or over a defined period. The effect concerns partner novelty, not whether a species forms monogamous bonds.
Mesolimbic pathway: A dopamine-rich neural circuit connecting the ventral tegmental area with limbic and cortical regions. Reward circuitry helps regulate sexual motivation and responses to novelty.
Sexual satiety: A temporary reduction in sexual motivation after mating or prolonged sexual activity. The effect is often described as renewed interest after apparent satiety.