What Is So Appealing About Being Spanked, Flogged, Dominated, or Restrained? Answers from Practitioners of Sexual Masochism/Submission

A growing number of studies have demonstrated that BDSM (Bondage/Discipline-Domination/Submission-Sadism/Masochism) practices are not signs of mental illness. However, the reasons for engaging in such behaviors are not well understood, especially for sexual masochism or submission (m/s). A thorough...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	The Journal of sex research Vol. 58; no. 4; pp. 409 - 423
Main Authors:	Labrecque, Frédérike, Potz, Audrey, Larouche, Émilie, Joyal, Christian C.
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	United States Taylor & Francis 04-05-2021 Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality
Subjects:	Academic disciplines Content analysis Humans Literature reviews Masochism Mental disorders Pain Sadism Sexual arousal Sexual Behavior Surveys and Questionnaires
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	A growing number of studies have demonstrated that BDSM (Bondage/Discipline-Domination/Submission-Sadism/Masochism) practices are not signs of mental illness. However, the reasons for engaging in such behaviors are not well understood, especially for sexual masochism or submission (m/s). A thorough review of the literature was conducted, as well as a search in Internet forums and an online survey to obtain testimonies that provide information on the origins of interest in m/s and the reasons for engaging in it. A qualitative content analysis was performed on narratives from 227 m/s practitioners. Sixteen themes emerged from this analysis, eight related to the origins of interest in m/s and eight to the reasons for engaging in m/s. The origins described were seen as either intrinsic or extrinsic. Reasons to engage in m/s were related to one of three main types of activities: use of interpersonal power; experiencing physical pain; and altering one's state of mind. These results concord with accounts found in non-academic books and small-scale studies suggesting that m/s interests are often present early in life and usually practiced to reach an altered state of mind associated with sexual arousal. Possible reasons for choosing m/s over more common means of mind alteration are discussed.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-3 content type line 23 ObjectType-Review-1
ISSN:	0022-4499 1559-8519
DOI:	10.1080/00224499.2020.1767025