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New Ideas for Sex Research
Tristan Taormino recently went to the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality conference. Besides the fact that there were some evening activities that sounded like a lot of fun, Tristan made some recommendations for further areas of research and I have to say that I couldn’t agree more:
1. Female Ejaculation. We still have very little scientific information about female ejaculation—most of what we know is based on anecdotal evidence. We need some heavy-hitting studies to prove wrong all the people who still insist that “women are just peeing.”
2. Sex-Toy Use. In his talk about the history of sex-toy stores in North America, Cory Silverberg from Come As You Are, a sex-positive shop in Toronto (comeasyouare.com), pointed out that no research has been done on people who buy sex toys, how they use them, and how the toys affect their sex lives and attitudes about sexuality. Silverberg sounded an unabashedly activist note when he called on sex researchers to pay attention to current trends; sadly, there were only a dozen people in the room.
3. BDSM. There were a handful of papers on BDSM, but I’d like to see lots more, particularly a study on the intersection between people who do BDSM and their perceptions and attitudes about body image. In my experience, people in BDSM communities appear to be more comfortable with nudity and diverse body sizes; I’d love to see if this hypothesis holds up with research.
4. Female Porn Viewers. There were only two papers on porn at this conference, but that’s pretty representative of the lack of information we have about porn consumption. We know especially little about how women react to different kinds of porn and what they want to see in porn. And not just college students. I get it—college students are a convenient pool of research subjects because they’re in the professor’s backyard—but there seemed to be far too many studies of college students.
5. Sex-Toy Safety. We don’t have enough information about sex-toy materials, like the safety or toxicity of those made with phthalates (which I reported on in my February column, “Dangerous Dildos,” part one and two.). My suggestion: Why not study a population of people that has extensive “exposure” to these toys—i.e., porn stars?
I’m especially interested in #4 because I am trying to write a paper about women and porn and I’m having a hard time finding any new porn-positive research out there. Most of it is either about the negative effects of porn or it’s about how women do not watch porn which I know for a fact is not true considering how many women I’ve sold porn to over the years.
So, I’m conducting an informal survey. If you identify as female and would like to take a few minutes, please answer the following questions in the comments:
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
3. Do you view porn regularly?
4. What do you like to see in porn?
5. What is your favorite film?
6. Have you ever purchased porn?
Thanks!
November 28th, 2007 at 8:05 pm
What the heck, I’m a 28-year-old female, and I’d love to see sex and enjoying it become less of a taboo for women, and more something we can just enjoy about ourselves. And sadly, there is an extreme lack of good porn out there. Maybe if we start speaking up, we can change things.
1. When do you first remember watching porn? Not all that long ago actually. I watched my first porn maybe a year ago now.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it? It was originally for research for a story I was writing about a couple who happened to live a BDSM lifestyle. I had read a lot of books, but watching porn to get a feel for (even if it isn’t completely true to life) the ways people react to each other and are turned on seemed like a good idea. I was aroused and found it incredibly hot.
3. Do you view porn regularly? Semi-regularly. Sometimes a girl just wants something new to fantasize about other than what’s in her own head.
4. What do you like to see in porn? More than anything, I like to see the people enjoying themselves and really getting into it. I have to admit, I’m a straight female, but my preference is for gay male porn — twice the dicks to enjoy looking at! And when the guys are really into it, and making all kinds of sexy noises, that’s my favorite stuff.
5. What is your favorite film? Good Measure — I’ve seen the two stars in a couple different films now, but for some reason the chemistry they have together keeps me coming back. I like that they’re both obviously enjoying themselves, and god Erik Michaels makes some hot noises when he’s aroused.
6. Have you ever purchased porn? Yes. Not any DVDs, but I have purchased time on a streaming service. I like having access to the variety for whatever I’m in the mood for, instead of getting locked into only one or two scenarios.
November 28th, 2007 at 11:22 pm
1. I was probably 15 or 16; early high-school, cloistered in my bedroom with the doors locked and headphones on.
2. Guilty, guilty, guilty! But at the same time, mesmerized.
3. Yes, but not frequently.
4. Women receiving pleasure. Most of it is so male-pleasure oriented that many of the women in porn don’t even seem to be enjoying it. When a director engages the actors so that they both are getting pleasure from what they’re doing, it turns me on, too. I don’t like to see selfishness in porn at all.
5. Can’t say that I have one.
6. No, but I’ve browsed several times and have never found quite what I was looking for.
November 29th, 2007 at 2:09 am
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
I was fifteen-sixteen-ish (I’m twenty now), my parents were out of town and my gay male friend was helping me house-sit because my parents were paranoid. He started to download porn–mostly guy-on-guy stuff, but I remember some straight anime porn–onto my computer and I was curious as to what all the hub-bub was about.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
I remember tilted my head to the side and thinking, ‘that’s it? People having sex?’ It wasn’t until I saw a gay BDSM porn from the 70’s that I felt as turned on from porn that I did from erotica.
3. Do you view porn regularly?
I used to a few years back when file share applications were big (I’m cheap), but not so much now. I’m interested in buying a porn movie, but I’m a little embarrassed to have it in my apartment.
4. What do you like to see in porn?
I’m still a fan of BDSM, especially dominance/submissive topics. It’s hard for me to watch porn with women in them, just because high-pitched voices annoy me and almost all of them seem to squeal ‘oh god!’ in pitches that rival those of dog whistles. Because of this, I tend to go toward male/male films. I also like seeing three or more guys on screen together.
5. What is your favorite film?
I can’t say I’ve actually watched an entire movie all the way through, all I’ve seen are disembodies clips. The only movie title I can think of is Indecent Itch, which I watched with a group of people from my dorm, and it was very unarousing.
6. Have you ever purchased porn?
No. For some reason, I’m perfectly comfortable with having a vibrator around, but I’m terrified of someone finding a porn stash in my place.
November 30th, 2007 at 12:20 am
> 1. When do you first remember watching porn?
I kinda watched in high school. My parents subscribed to cable TV, and the playboy channel was scrambled. Late at night I’d sneak into the living room, put a pillow over the TV speaker, and turn on the playboy channel. It wasn’t so much “watching porn” as “identifying the body part.” “Is that a thigh, or a rib?”
In college, once or twice some of the guys in my student house played a porn tape in the common room for everybody. This was the first time I saw porn for real. It was typical “debbie does dallas” mechanical stuff.
> 2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
The “identify the body part” game was mostly fun for the illicitness, and its frustrating pointlessness.
In college, I was attracted by the idea, but repulsed by the bluntness and inelegance. I was embarrassed, because I’d been brought up in a religious household and “knew it was wrong.” I actually had more fun watching the faces of the other people in the room, until they spotted me doing that.
> 3. Do you view porn regularly?
Now, yes!
> 4. What do you like to see in porn?
I like to watch the face of the woman, and see that she’s enjoying it. I like to see pretty girls, and wish I were them, doing that. I like to see them doing the things I wish I could do .. bondage, fetish, facials.
> 5. What is your favorite film?
Sensual Exposure, by Andrew Blake. (Not that I know that many films.)
> 6. Have you ever purchased porn?
I bought some of the instructional videos from Good Vibrations, but that’s not really porn. The videos I have were given to me by a friend. Now I get it for free from the net. I’d probably buy or rent more, but I’m a little shy because I don’t know how my partner would react.
November 30th, 2007 at 12:58 am
Background: I’m a 27 year old female that has until recently (the last couple of years) been fairly sexually repressed. But now am more comfortable and confident in my body and sexuality. I’ve been trying to catch up on reading a number of classic books on feminism and human sexuality.
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
Senior year of high school. My boyfriend and a couple of friends thought it would be funny to get a porn and watch it all together, we also rented “Army of Darkness” at the same time if that tells you anything.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
Pretty silly and embarrassed. We all laughed and joked about it. I honestly think at the time I was quite horrified and disgusted by it. At the time I think I had just lost my virginity, and was pretty much embarrassed about anything that had to do with sex. And to top it off… I was raised Catholic… enough said.
3. Do you view porn regularly?
Fairly regularly. I go through phases. There will be weeks when I watch porn and read erotica alot, then other weeks that I barely think about sex at all. I think it has to do with hormones and stress at work.
4. What do you like to see in porn?
I’ll be honest. I like Barbie porn. Big budgets, decent acting, super smoke’n blonde bombshells, and guys hung like horses. Kinda vanilla, but I also really like to watch girl-on-girl. Two smoke’n hot girls enjoying each other’s bodies. I consider myself straight, so there are the occasional girl-guy scenes that I like too.
5. What is your favorite film?
I haven’t seen that many really, but I really like “Pirates”. It’s fun, pretty typical, overly produced, nothing too kinky. I especially like the “wench” scene with the 2 girls in front of the crowd of rowdy pirates.
6. Have you ever purchased porn?
I have a couple movies that I bought over the Internet. That seems to be the best way of going about it. I did go into a local shop recently to find a specific movie because I didn’t want to wait for it to come in the mail, but they didn’t have it, so i had to order it on-line anyway. I think I like to order on-line cause then you can kind of read a description of it and what kinds of scenes are in it. It is less of a blind faith act.
December 2nd, 2007 at 1:53 am
18 yr old college student:
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
Early high school. I had been masturbating since at least the age of 8 (before I knew what both sex and masturbation was) and had illustrious sexual fantasies since 11 or 12.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
Completely disgusted. I was curious about what was out there, outside of my own fantasies, and obviously the free streaming porn that came up was up-close intercourse shots so I closed the browser quickly out of shock and didn’t think I would ever get into it. Until a year or two later when I was looking specifically for BDSM porn, and it was completely mesmerizing, turned me on a great deal, and helped me explore my own sexual tastes further.
3. Do you view porn regularly? Yes, at least twice a week.
4. What do you like to see in porn: 1)BDSM: (Male-dom, fem-sub porn. Lots of dialogue and display of male control) (SOME fem-dom, but most of the time the female power-display technique is way off from my ideal female dominant role.) 2)Guys: Solo, on other guys, on girls (with the focus and eroticism on the guy. NEED MORE OF THIS OUT THERE!) Men clearly enjoying themselves, being vocal with each other about how much their enjoying themselves/the girl(s). Dialogue can help any porn in some way, big or small.
Turnoffs: annoying females in porn (repetitive and/or awkward pleasure sounds), bored-looking females, females who seem to be poorly faking enjoyment, males going through the motions (generally expressionless and silent)
5. What is your favorite film? I’ve only watched one or two films straight through, and they weren’t very noteworthy, I can’t even remember their names or content.
6. Have you ever purchased porn? No, but I intend to subscribe to a certain awesome looking guy-centric site soon.
December 6th, 2007 at 12:53 pm
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
I was probably 12 or 13.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
A little naughty and alot turned on. I was scared I would get caught.
3. Do you view porn regularly?
I watch porn probably 4-6 times a week. Sometimes I’ll go a while without watching it, and sometimes I’ll watch it 2 or 3 times a day.
4. What do you like to see in porn?
I love really rough porn. I love throatfucking/gagging porn, really hardcore anal and insertion porn.
I like it when I think it hurts the girl on the receiving end.
5. What is your favorite film?
I like some parts of Max Hardcore films, but don’t like the golden showers or the little girl/daddy themes he uses. If I fast forward to the throatfucking and gaping scenes I get off quite nicely.
6. Have you ever purchased porn?
Yes. But I get bored easily, so downloading works for me.
December 6th, 2007 at 10:01 pm
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
when i was 12 i intercepted a package addressed to a junk mail name at my house. the movie was called ’slurp.’
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
ugh! i was turned on, but the movie made me anti-blow job for a long,long time.
3. Do you view porn regularly?
maybe once a month?
4. What do you like to see in porn?
boys eating pussy; real lesbian sex; gay guys.
5. What is your favorite film?
hmm. i’m not sure i have a favorite. every one could be so much better.
6. Have you ever purchased porn?
nope–i get them for free when i review them.
December 9th, 2007 at 7:33 pm
Straight 32 year old female here.
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
Freshman year of college- I stumbled into the back room of a party where a group of guys was watching a video of your basic big-fake-tits fucks human dildo.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
I felt very uncomfortable. I knew most of the guys as friends and sensed immediately that they didn’t think I belonged in the room. I hated that feeling of exclusion, and after a guy (who had been raised in a fundamentalist household) told me he’d run a porn-exchange ring in high school, I decided to procure some videos and start my education. I felt like I needed to know what images had shaped the sexual experience of just about every guy I knew (including the ultra-conservatives) since adolescence. I started out to find out what I was up against and ended up loving it.
3. Do you view porn regularly?
I view porn online regularly, maybe four times a week. I used to own videos, but since the advent of online smut I find full-length movies are irrelevant.
4. What do you like to see in porn?
I love gay porn- all that cock! I also love BDSM (male dom, female sub), electro stimulation (male and female) and medical scenarios. I’m rarely disappointed with the variety offered by kink.com. I like the Max Hardcore stuff too, older guys with younger girls. I like watching two women together, but it is exceedingly rare to find surgically unaltered women who actually look like they are enjoying it. I have recently discovered the joys of vintage (70’s) porn- all those real bodies, big bushes and sensual sucking and fucking.
5. What is your favorite film?
I can’t say I have a favorite. Again, I don’t really watch films anymore. I have been really getting into sites like xtube and redtube because of all the user-generated porn. Nothing turns me on more that someone posting a video of themselves practicing their particular kink, even if it’s not my thing, because they so obviously enjoy it and went to all the trouble to document it.
6. Have you ever purchased porn?
I haven’t purchased anything in a long time. I used to subscribe to Suicide Girls, but that was pretty cheap. I’m kind of hesitant to subscribe to a site like kink.com because it seems really expensive when there is so much free stuff out there. I find my tastes change over time and I don’t want to stockpile a genre I’ll eventually get sick of.
December 15th, 2007 at 6:37 pm
50 y/o bi-femail in LTR w/advanturous male
1. When do you first remember watching porn? I was about 16. Used to date the projectionist at a XXX movie theater in the 8mm days.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it? A combination of really turned on and kind of disappointed that it seemed so sleazy and so staged.
3. Do you view porn regularly? Yes.
4. What do you like to see in porn? Real people, really getting off & variety. Its easier to state what I don’t go for which would be no kids, no animals, no scat, no gore. I’ll watch pretty much anything at least once.
5. What is your favorite film? That changes. Right now its Expert Guide to Oral Sex - Cunnilingus. I favor films with lots of women, though. REAL women not some guy’s idea of what women should look like when they’re getting into each other.
6. Have you ever purchased porn? All the time.
December 16th, 2007 at 6:31 pm
1. When do you first remember watching porn?
I was maybe 17 and with my boyfriend of the time.
2. How did you feel the first time you watched it?
I was disappointed. The idea of it was more interesting and titillating than the reality. Too generic, too staged, ugly men, bored women. We turned it off and focused on our own fun.
3. Do you view porn regularly?
I view more internet porn than movie porn, but that goes in phases. I’ll watch a lot over a short period, then not again for a few months.
4. What do you like to see in porn?
My biggest requirement for good porn is to see natural people actually enjoying themselves. Nothing is worse than watching a guy pounding away just to hurry up and reach a climax, or watching a woman faking pleasure-especially an orgasm. If the woman isn’t enjoying herself, why should I enjoy watching? I like BSDM and agree that kink.com has some quality programming in which, for the most part, the woman seem to be having a good time. But even they are not immune to some obvious faking and pandering to their male audience with plastic women and insincere lesbian action, or whatever they imagine the guys want to see. Also some of the male doms involved are less than attractive. Am I asking too much to see an attractive guy eliciting genuine pleasure from an attractive, but not surgically enhanced, woman?
5. What is your favorite film?
Don’t have one. Favorite website is Wired Pussy. Even though electrostimulation isn’t my favorite thing to watch, Princess Donna does a decent job of keeping it real and that goes a long way in my book.
6. Have you ever purchased porn?
Rented and subscribed but not purchased.