So is a successful and driven career woman more likely to have a high sex drive than her lesser-achieving sisters?
That was the conclusion drawn from research published this week which showed that women with high levels of testosterone are more likely to be risk-takers - and to have stronger sexual appetites.
It's just the latest piece in the jigsaw of the female libido, an enigma that now feeds a multi-million pound industry, with battalions of 'sexperts' racing to uncover the magic formula that will deliver the gift of better sex for all.
Baffling: A female sex drive is a complicated, multi-layered thing. Understanding desire may turn out to be as tough as understanding women
But it's also a battleground, with experts at war with each other over whether 'sexy' for a woman begins in her body or her brain.
Over the past decade - ironically, since the launch of Viagra for men had the unexpected side-effect of making drug treatments for sex a hot new market for both genders - millions of pounds have been poured into researching the female libido.
It has uncovered some big surprises and some baffling dead-ends. While male desire tends to be straightforward, a woman's sex drive is a complicated, multi-layered thing.
That said, some women, just like some men, do seem to have a naturally higher sex drive than others. The research just published in the U.S. would seem to back that up, showing that this may well be linked to hormones, and to testosterone in particular.
Women with high levels of testosterone are much more likely to be ambitious and assertive and to choose traditionally male careers in business and finance. They're also likely to want more sex (low levels of testosterone have been shown to produce the opposite effect).
Sex researchers have started to talk about the importance of just doing it whether you feel like it or not, to maintain your desire levels
'Eureka!' shout the biologists. This shows that female desire, like male, is rooted in body chemistry.
Simplistic rubbish, respond the psychotherapists.
They believe that female desire is made up of physical, emotional, social and relationship factors. If you have poor body image, an uptight family background, bad early sexual experiences or a partner who is insensitive, lazy or just not that nice, then your sex drive very likely would take a nose-dive.
Who's right, then? Let's just consider the subject these experts are spending so much time and money to argue about, using real examples from a group of women who agreed to talk honestly about their sex lives.
Susan, is 48, slim and attractive and happily married. Well, quite happily.
'To be honest. I don't care if I never have sex again,' she admits. 'I only do it to keep Gary happy'.
Monica is 35 and also uninterested in sex with her long-time partner, but feels ' overwhelming feelings of desire' for a colleague at work with whom she is having an affair.
Lucy is 54 and has the opposite problem to Susan. 'Since my late 40s, I've had the wonderful experience of a late-blossoming sex drive, and I absolutely love it.'
Claire is 24 and in a new relationship with Tom: 'We spend days at a time in bed. It makes me feel very close to him, but I also like the feeling of sexual power it gives me.'
Helen, who is 32, isn't interested in sexual power. 'I've got a full-time job and two children under five. I don't even think about sex.'
It's clear from just this handful of examples that female sexual desire is as various and unique as women themselves.
But, nonetheless, there are some inescapable biological factors. The study of hormones and their effect on everything from our personalities and behaviour to the functioning of our bodies has been the focus in recent sex research.
'Hormone treatments are an important development,' says Dr John Moran, a sexual dysfunction expert with the Holistic Medical Clinic in London. 'It has been very positive in the past decade or so to see that women's sexuality is being properly acknowledged and served by medical research'.
Man's world: A woman working in a male dominated environment could produce more testosterone, resulting in a higher sex drive
Some researchers have gone so far as to claim that the new wave of drug therapies being developed to boost libido and solve sexual problems represent 'the final frontier of women's liberation'.
The biologists do have a point - and the high-testosterone woman is an interesting part of the research.
Dr Moran says that after more than 20 years' experience as an expert in female sexuality, high-testosterone females are not difficult for him to spot
'Though I'd never make a diagnosis without a proper examination, the male hormone does produce visual and behavioural clues in women. The ring finger is often as long as the index finger, for example. She may also have a wider waist and have more facial or body hair than low-testosterone women.'
The link with high-risk behaviour is also true, he says. 'I hate generalising, but yes, it wouldn't be unusual for a woman with high levels of testosterone to indulge in high-risk behaviour - to drive a fast sports car or motorbike, for example.'
'The male hormone does produce visual and behavioural clues in women. She may have a wider waist and more facial or body hair than low-testosterone women'
But, insist the psychologists, these signs do not necessarily mean a woman has a high sex drive. Our hormone levels are dictated partly by genetics, partly by lifestyle and life stages, and partly by our experiences.
The problem, says Dr Chris Simpson - a fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists - is that nobody knows yet whether our behaviour and personalities are created by our hormones, or whether our hormones are created by our behaviour and personality.
'It's probably both,' he adds.
'If you have a woman working in a competitive environment, like banking or business, she may well become more assertive, competitive and aggressive, which will cause her testosterone levels to rise. Did she go into banking because she had high testosterone levels, or did she develop high testosterone levels because she went into banking?'
The same question can be applied to sex itself, says Dr Simpson. It's well known that the more sex you have, the stronger your sexual desire becomes. If you have a 'dry spell', your desire to have sex dies down and you can get into a downward spiral of not doing it and subsequently not feeling like it.
'Hormones are interesting, but they're just a small part of the mix,' he says. 'A woman with high testosterone who is in a lousy relationship may go off sex completely.'
Dr Moran agrees: 'To understand a woman's sex drive, we need to look at a mixture of physical, psychological, social and relationship factors.
'It's not just about body parts. There's lust, there's love, there's intimacy - then there's how tired, busy, angry or happy a woman is. All of these things affect how sexy you feel.'
Rekindling: Remembering what attracted you to your partner in the first place is a good way of getting in the mood
Yes, he says, sometimes giving a woman a hormone shot will boost her libido. But, more often, giving her a compliment will have the same affect.
Female desire also changes over time, though in a different way to men's. Males are at their sexual peak, in terms of desire, when they're still adolescents. Women don't reach theirs until much later - estimates vary from mid-30s upwards - which is why women's sex drives often improve with age.
When we're young, our sex drive is strongly influenced by finding the best male mate to reproduce with, which is why biologists believe we're programmed to desire 'high-status' men - that is, men who are physically fit, attractive and good providers.
Psychologists agree that our sex drive is linked to reproduction, but believe that it leads us to men with 'good genes' who we sense will make good fathers and remain loyal to us.
Ten or 20 years on, of course, the original reason for our desire may have evaporated, and the rich man or the good man is now as familiar as an old sweater. The very closeness of a good long-term relationship may be a desire-killer.
'We know that for men and women, sexual desire dies down after the first year of a relationship,' says the evolutionary psychologist Christopher Ryan.
'Eroticism is fuelled by difference, not sameness. Long-term couples can become so close they're like siblings, and nobody wants to make love with their sibling.'
It also explains why women such as Monica can feel no sexual feelings towards their partners, but are very sexy when they're with their lovers.
Therapists describe desire, for women especially, as a 'choice', and talk about the importance of prioritising sex so that your marriage doesn't turn into a 'sibling bond'.
Monica could re-ignite her relationship. She could remember what attracted her to her partner in the first place and use fantasy as a way to get herself in the mood. Auto-eroticism - turning yourself on - is a key part of a woman's sex drive, according to Dr Pamela Connolly, wife of comedian Billy and a sex therapist.
Sex researchers have also started to talk about the importance of just doing it whether you feel like it or not, to maintain your desire levels.
A landmark research project by Dr Rosemary Basson from the University of British Columbia found that while men feel desire and so want to have sex, many women have sex as a way to kick-start desire.
'Women can often begin sexual liaisons feeling sexually neutral,' she says, 'but as things get more passionate, so do they. It's a "use it or lose it" strategy - the very act of making love seems to restore desire in women.'
Research into female sexuality is still controversial, contradictory and incomplete. The researchers may not agree with each other, but they do agree that understanding female desire may turn out to be as tough as understanding women.
