Orgasms

Lesbians Report More Orgasms Than Straight Women

Women kissing (Wallhaven)

That headline got your attention, didn’t it?

Yes, it’s true: Women with same-sex partners orgasm more than women in heterosexual partnerships and also bisexual women.

A 2014 study by Garcia, Lloyd, Wallen and Fisher examined the orgasm frequency of 6K+ women and men. (No word on how it broke down via gender and orientation identifications.) Participants self-selected to take the 2011 survey. Data was used from 1.4K+ men and 1.3K+ women who’d had sex within the past year.

The study found that heterosexual women experienced an orgasm 61%+ of the time, bisexual women had an orgasm 58% of the time, and lesbian women had an orgasm 74%+ of the time. Needless to say, those are some very large gaps to attribute to orientation.

But why is this? There are a few reasons: First, a woman would theoretically be able to get her female partner off more easily, because she’s working with the same equipment (so to speak). She would also be more comfortable with her own body, allowing her to orgasm more. Another reason mentioned is a bit more about social conditioning in terms of sexual etiquette: A 2013 study reveals that women in heterosexual partnerships don’t expect to have an orgasm during a sexual encounter, whereas women in homosexual partnerships do have that expectation.

Why is There an Orgasm Gap in Hook-Ups vs. Relationships?

Orgasm (NYC Barstool Sports)

In honor of International Women’s Day yesterday, let’s examine a very real issue that a lot of women face: the orgasm gap in hookups vs. relationships.

There have been a few studies on this. A 2013 study by the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University found that “women were twice as likely to reach orgasm from intercourse or oral sex in serious relationships as in hookups.” The study surveyed 600 male and female college students. A study out of New York University found that only 40% of women achieved orgasm during their most recent hookup that included sex, where 80% of men reported climaxing. This study polled 24K students at 21 colleges.

But when a woman is in a committed relationship, their orgasm rate shoots up to 75%.

Why is this?

There are several reasons for this: more frequent and consistent practice with a steady partner, communication with a partner and/or feeling empowered and confident within one’s sexuality.

Dr. Debby Herbenick of The Kinsey Institute points out that men tend to report orgasms more than women, so the number of women having orgasms might well be higher. Also, the term “hook(ing) up” includes sexual acts that might not result in having an orgasm, such as kissing.

But women can have sex and get pregnant without climaxing. So why are we so worried about having one (or multiples)?

Dr. Elisabeth A. Lloyd, author of “The Case of the Female Orgasm: Bias in the Science of Evolution,” puts it best:

“The female orgasm is for fun.”

And she’s so totally right. So get out there and go get yours!

Thursday Trends: Technology in Sex Toys

Crave’s Vesper vibrator (Fast CoDesign)

Legend has it Cleopatra may have been one of the first women to use a vibrator. (In her case, it was a calabash filled with buzzing bees.) The legendary queen/sex toy early adopter clearly knew she needed some extra stimulation, and the simple invention paved the way for a future industry.

Now, things have become a little more complex (and thankfully bee-less). Some sex toys have become more high-tech, and take advantage of opportunities within that field. Clearly, when technology enters the bedroom, fun follows.

Below are just a sampling of what tech looks like…in bed:

We Vibe:

The couples’ vibrator We-Vibe 4 Plus makes use of an app designed to maximize each users’ experience. It can used during sex, stimulating both partners. But it can also be used at a distance, with one wearing and the other controlling via the complementary app. The controller can choose the sensations, which the other partner then receives.

Lelo:

Sometimes you just want oral. Enter the Ora 2, which simulates cunnilingus via a rotating hub that stimulates the clitoris.

Crave:

One central component of technology is that it must look good (thank you Steve Jobs for making this commonplace). Sleek is generally the operative term. Crave’s Vesper is a wearable, thin vibrator the consumer can wear around her neck (and only use externally). Creators of the Vesper made sure the product is as elegant to wear as it is useful.

…And into the future:

Una:

This company doesn’t yet have a product on the market. But their goal is to sell a “smart” vibrator that learns from what the user likes. It’ll be interesting to see how this one takes shape.

As technology continues to evolve, it’ll be interesting to witness how sex toys incorporate the new tech into existing and new toys. Who knows? We could soon see something that looks straight out of “The Jetsons.”

How Female Orgasms Influence Mate Choice

Orgasm

Happy Friday! Here’s something to fun to keep mind as you head out for the weekend:

A new study claims that female orgasms influence beneficial mate choice: The more orgasms a woman has was directly correlated to her partner’s income, confidence and attractiveness. But it’s not all about quantity. Orgasm intensity was related to sexual satisfaction in terms of intercourse frequency and “how attracted they were to their partners.” Makes sense, right? (“Salon” breaks it down into less-scientific terms.)

The study analyzed “heterosexual female college students in committee relationships,” but doesn’t go into detail about these subjects. What was their average age? How long had the couples been together, on average? How times a week were the couples having sex on average?

Sounds like an excellent way to make a positive mate choice to me.

Vaginal Orgasms: How Many Women Have Them?

Female Orgasm

Are vaginal orgasms the new yeti?

A new study published in “Clinical Anatomy“ came out on Oct. 6th, taking on various aspects of womens’ orgasms. The study claims that the vagina has no such structure that would lend itself to producing orgasms, and therefore there is no such thing as a vaginal orgasm. It also suggests that the vaginal orgasm some women claim to experience is caused by surrounding “orgasm triggers.”

(If you’re having trouble wading through the abstract, “The Cut” has a pretty good summary.)

Popular wisdom has always stated that most women do not regularly experience vaginal orgasms. But is this truly the case?

A 2009 article from “Psychology Today“ states that only 25% of women consistently experience vaginal orgasms. (In fact, that’s pretty much the opening sentence.) This percentage was found using a long-range combination of 33 studies over 80 years, so it’s decently comprehensive. The article doesn’t mention whether said women also experienced clitoral orgasms, or exactly what timeframe was used to measure consistency.

Contrary to Freud’s belief, the conclusions this new study is drawing might make women think they’re inferior if they are having vaginal orgasms. Because if you have a vaginal orgasm, and then are told they don’t exist, did you even O at all?

Faking It: Who’s Doing It?

Maybe she will, maybe she won’t.

Women faking orgasms have been a staple of pop culture for, well, probably forever. (I’m sure there’s a cave painting illustrating this somewhere that’s yet to be discovered.) But just how common is it?

A recent study finds that 80% of women fake their Os. At first glance, this seems high, doesn’t it?

Like many sex stats, the data is self-reported. I’m wondering if even more women fake it, but didn’t admit to it during the study. Of course, there’s no way to confirm this, short of doing another survey, since some women might (understandably) lie.

There’s also the issue that the majority of women can’t come purely from vaginal intercourse. Did the study ask women if they can (by which I mean physically able to) come from vaginal penetration? The study’s abstract doesn’t elaborate on this point, but it might be within the whole study.

Either way, a large number of women are faking it for a variety of reasons.

Orgasms During Sex: French Women vs. American Women

Eiffel Tower

We all know the stereotype that the French are having way more sex than anyone, particularly Americans. But are they actually having more pleasure?

A 2012 study of 3K+ French women ages 15 to 80 reveals that 74% have no trouble achieving orgasm (but it’s not specified whether it’s alone or with a partner). Within that percentage, 55% climax often, 16% come every time, 21% climaxed rarely and 5% never do.

How does that stack up to American women?

A 2009 article from ABC News notes that 75% of women can’t reach orgasm solely from sexual intercourse. It’s unclear a) how large the study was, in terms of quantity and age range, and b) for the women who were reaching orgasm, the frequency there.

It’s not a pure comparison, but it appears in this case, the stereotype is true: French women are having better sex (measured here by orgasm frequency).

Sex & Stats: Where Numbers Come to Bang

Statistics. Economics. Sex.