523
Views
0
CrossRef citations to date
0
Altmetric
Research Article

Exploring the prevalence and characteristics of self-labelled identity, coping, and mental health among BDSM-practicing adults in the United States

, , , , , & show all
Pages 54-72 | Received 16 Feb 2022, Accepted 30 Mar 2023, Published online: 20 Apr 2023

References

  • Abed, E. C., Schudson, Z. C., Gunther, O. D., Beischel, W. J., & van Anders, S. M. (2019). Sexual and gender diversity among sexual and gender/sex majorities: insights via sexual configurations theory. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 48(5), 1423–1441. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1340-2
  • Badgett, M. (2009). Best practices for asking questions about sexual orientation on surveys. Retrieved from http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/SMART-FINAL-Nov-2009.pdf
  • Bauer, R. (2008). Transgressive and transformative gendered sexual practices and white privileges: The case of dyke/trans BDSM communities. Women’s Studies Quarterly, 36, 233–253. https://doi.org/10.1353/wsq.0.0100
  • Bauer, R. (2014). Queer BDSM intimacies. Palgrave Macmillian.
  • Baumeister, R. F. (1997). The enigmatic appeal of sexual masochism: Why people desire pain, bondage, and humiliation in sex. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 16(2), 133–150. https://doi.org/10.1521/jscp.1997.16.2.133
  • Baumeister, R. F., & Butler, J. L. (1997). Sexual masochism: Deviance without pathology. In D. R. Laws & W. O’Donohue (Eds.), Sexual deviance: Theory, assessment, & treatment (pp. 225–239). The Guilford Press.
  • Bezreh, T., Weinberg, T. S., & Edgar, T. (2012). BDSM disclosure and stigma management: Identifying opportunities for sex education. American Journal of Sexuality Education, 7, 37–61. https://doi.org/10.1080/15546128.2012.650984
  • Breslow, N. (1987). Locus of control, desirability of control, and sadomasochists. Psychological Reports, 61, 995–1001. https://doi.org/10.2466/pr0.1987.61.3.995
  • Brown, A., Barker, E. D., & Rahman, Q. (2019). A systematic scoping review of the prevalence, etiological, psychological, and interpersonal factors associated with BDSM. Journal of Sex Research, 57(6), 781–811. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2019.1665619
  • Cascalheira, C. J., Ijebor, E. E., Salkowitz, Y., Hitter, T. L., & Boyce, A. (2021). Curative kink: Survivors of early abuse transform trauma through BDSM. Sexual and Relationship Therapy, 1–31. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681994.2021.1937599
  • Cohen, J., Cohen, P., West, S. G., & Aiken, L. S. (2003). Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences. Routledge.
  • Connolly, P. H. (2006). Psychological functioning of bondage/domination/sado-masochism (BDSM) practitioners. Journal of Psychology & Human Sexuality, 18, 79–120. https://doi.org/10.1300/J056v18n01_05
  • Conybeare, D., Behar, E., Soloman, A., Newman, M. G., & Borkovec, T. D. (2012). The PTSD checklist-civilian version: Reliability, validity, and factor structure in a nonclinical sample. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 68, 699–713. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.21845
  • Cramer, R. J., Desmarais, S. L., Johnson, K. L., Gemberling, T. M., Nobles, M. R., Holley, S. R., Wright, S., & Van Dorn, R. (2017). The intersection of interpersonal and self-directed violence among general adult, college student, and sexually diverse samples. The International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 63(1), 78–85. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020764016683728
  • Cramer, R. J., Golom, F. D., Gemberling, T. M., Trost, K., Lewis, R. J., & Wright, S. (2018). Examining the lesbian, gay, and bisexual identity scale among members of an alternative sexual special interest group. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 47(4), 1261–1264. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-017-1120-4
  • Crane, B., Towne, A., & Crane-Seeber, J. P. (2013). The four boxes of gendered sexuality: A lesson plan for teaching about the history and effects of gendered sexuality. American Journal of Sexuality Education, 8(4), 274–305. https://doi.org/10.1080/15546128.2013.854008
  • Cross, P. A., & Matheson, K. (2006). Understanding sadomasochism: An empirical examination of four perspectives. Journal of Homosexuality, 50(2), 133–166. https://doi.org/10.1300/J082v50n02_07
  • De Neef, N., Coopens, V., Huys, W., & Morrens, M. (2019). Bondage-Discipline, dominance-submission, and sadomasochism (BDSM) from an integrative biopsychosocial perspective: A systematic review. Sexual Medicine, 7, 129–144. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esxm.2019.02.002
  • Dryman, M. T., & Heimburg, R. G. (2018). Emotion regulation in social anxiety and depression: A systematic review of expressive suppression and cognitive reappraisal. Clinical Psychology Review, 65, 17–42. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2018.07.004
  • Dunkley, C. R., & Brotto, L. A. (2018). Clinical considerations in treating BDSM practitioners: A review. Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy, 44, 701–712. https://doi.org/10.1080/0092623X.2018.1451792
  • Fennell, J. (2021). It’s Complicated: Sex and the BDSM subculture. Sexualities, Special Issue: BDSM Studies, 24(5–6), 784–802. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363460720961303
  • Flanders, C. (2016). Bisexuality, social identity, and well-being: An exploratory study. Sexualities, 19(5–6), 497–516. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363460715609093
  • Gemberling, T. M., Cramer, R., & Miller, R. S. (2015a). BDSM as sexual orientation: A comparison to lesbian, gay and bisexual sexuality. Journal of Positive Sexuality, 1, 37–43. https://doi.org/10.51681/1.133
  • Gemberling, T. M., Cramer, R. J., Wright, S., & Nobles, M. R. (2015b). Psychological functioning and violence victimization and perpetration in BDSM practitioners from the national coalition for sexual freedom. NCSF Technical Report.
  • Graham, B. C., Butler, S. E., McGraw, R., Cannes, S. M., & Smith, J. (2016). Member perspectives on the role of BDSM communities. The Role of Sex Research, 53(8), 895–909. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2015.1067758
  • Gross, J. J. (1998). Antecedent- and response-focused emotion regulation: Divergent consequences for experience, expression, and physiology. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 224–237. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.74.1.224
  • Gross, J. J., & John, O. P. (2003). Individual differences in two emotion regulation processes: Implication for affect, relationships, and well-being. Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 348–362. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.85.2.348
  • Hatzenbuehler, M. L., Nolen-Hoeksema, S., & Dovidio, J. (2009). How does stigma “get under the skin?”: The mediating role of emotion regulation. Psychological Science, 20(10), 1282–1289. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02441.x
  • Henry, J. D., & Crawford, J. R. (2005). The short version of the depression anxiety stress scales (DASS-21): Construct validity and normative data in a large non-clinical sample.British. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 44, 227–239. https://doi.org/10.1348/014466505X29657
  • Herbenick, D., Bowling, J., Fu, T. J., Dodge, B., Guerra-Reyes, L., & Sanders, S. (2017). Sexual diversity in the United States: Results from a nationally representative probability sample of adult women and men. PLoS One, 12(7), e0181198. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181198
  • Holvoet, L., Huys, W., Coppens, V., Seeuws, J., Goethals, K., & Morrens, M. (2017). Fifty shades of Belgian gray: The prevalence of BDSM-related fantasies and activities in the general population. The Journal of Sexual Medicine, 14, 1152–1159. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2017.07.003
  • Hoppe, T. (2011). Circuits of power, circuits of pleasure: Sexual scripting in gay men’s bottom narratives. Sexualities, 14, 193–217. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363460711399033
  • Hughes, S. D., & Hammack, P. L. (2019). Affirmation, compartmentalization, and isolation: Narratives of identity sentiment among kinky people. Psychology & Sexuality, 10(2), 149–168. https://doi.org/10.1080/19419899.2019.1575896
  • Johnson, A. H., & Rogers, B. A. (2020). “We’re the normal ones here”: Community involvement, peer support, and transgender mental health. Sociological Inquiry, 90(2), 271–292. https://doi.org/10.1111/soin.12347
  • Joyal, C. C., Cossette, A., & Lapierre, V. (2015). What exactly is an unusual sexual fantasy? The Journal of Sexual Medicine, 12, 328–340. https://doi.org/10.1111/jsm.12734
  • Klement, K. R., Lee, E. M., Ambler, J. K., Hanson, S. A., Comber, E., Wietting, D., Wagner, M. F., Burns, V. R., Cutler, B., Cutler, N., Reid, E., & Sagarin, B. J. (2016). Extreme rituals in a BDSM context: The physiological and psychological effects of the ‘Dance of Souls’. Culture, Health, & Sexuality, 19(4), 453–469. https://doi.org/10.1080/13691058.2016.1234648
  • Martinez, K. (2020). Overwhelming whiteness of BDSM: A critical discourse analysis of racialization in BDSM. Sexualities. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363460720932389
  • McConnell, E. A., Janulis, P., Phillips, G., II, Truong, R., & Birkett, M. (2018). Multiple minority stress and LGBT community resilience among sexual minority men. Psychological Sexual Orientation Gender Diversity, 5(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1037/sgd0000265
  • Miller, K., & Ryan, J. M. (2011). Design, development, and testing of the NHIS sexual identity question. Retrieved from http://wwwn.cdc.gov/qbank/report/Miller_NCHS_2011_NHIS%20Sexual%20Identity.pdf
  • Millet, N., Longworth, J., & Arcelus, J. (2017). Prevalence of anxiety symptoms and disorders of the transgender population: A systematic review of the literature. The International Journal of Transgenderism, 18, 27–38. https://doi.org/10.1080/15532739.2016.1258353
  • Becker, T., Chin, M., & N, B. (Editors), & National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2022). Measuring sex, gender identity, and sexual orientation. National Academies Press.
  • National Coalition of Sexual Freedom. (2020). Home. Retrieved from https://www.ncsfreedom.org
  • Nielsen, M. E. J. (2010). Safe, sane, and consensual – Consent and the ethics of BDSM. The International Journal of Applied Philosophy, 24(2), 265–288. https://doi.org/10.5840/ijap201024223
  • Osman, A., Wong, J. L., Bagge, C. L., Freedenthal, S., Gutierrez, P. M., & Lozano, G. (2012). The depression anxiety stress scales – 21 (DASS-21): Further examination of dimensions, scale reliability, and correlates. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 68, 1322–1338. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.21908
  • Pitagora, D. (2013). Consent vs. coercion: BDSM interactions highlight a fine but immutable line. The New School Psychology Bulletin, 10(1), 27–36.
  • Preece, D. A., Becerra, R., Robinson, K., & Gross, J. J. (2020). The emotion regulation questionnaire: Psychometric properties in general community samples. Journal of Personality Assessment, 102, 348–356. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223891.2018.1564319
  • Richters, J., de Visser, R. O., Badcock, P. B., Smith, A. M., Rissel, C., Simpson, J. M., & Grulich, A. E. (2014). Masturbation, paying for sex, and other sexual activities: The second Australian study of health and relationships. Sexual Health, 11, 461–471. https://doi.org/10.1071/SH14116
  • Richters, J., de Visser, R. O., Rissel, C. E., Grulich, A. E., & Smith, A. M. A. (2008). Demographic and psychosocial features of participants in bondage and discipline, “sadomasochism” or dominance and submission (BDSM): Data from a national survey. The Journal of Sexual Medicine, 5(7), 1660–1668. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1743-6109.2008.00795.x
  • Richters, J., Grulich, A. E., de Visser, R. O., Smith, A. M., & Rissel, C. E. (2003). Sex in Australia: Autoerotic, esoteric, and other sexual practices engaged in by a representative sample of adults. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health, 27, 180–190. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-842X.2003.tb00806.x
  • Ross, L. E., Salway, T., Tarasoff, L. A., MacKay, J. M., Hawkins, B. W., & Fehr, C. P. (2018). Prevalence of depression and anxiety among bisexual people compared to gay, lesbian, and heterosexual individuals: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Sex Research, 55, 435–456. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2017.1387755
  • Sandnabba, N. K., Santtila, P., Alison, L., & Nordling, N. (2002). Demographics, sexual behavior, family background and abuse experiences of practitioners of sadomasochistic sex: A review of recent research. Sexual and Relationship Therapy, 17(1), 39–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681990220108018
  • Sloan, E., Hall, K., Moulding, R., Bryce, S., Mildred, H., & Staiger, P. K. (2017). Emotion regulation as a transdiagnostic treatment construct across anxiety, depression, substance, eating, and borderline personality disorders: A systematic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 57, 141–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2017.09.002
  • Sprott, R. A., & Hadcock, B. B. (2018). Bisexuality, pansexuality, queer identity, and kink identity. Sexual and Relationship Therapy, 33, 214–232. https://doi.org/10.1080/14681994.2017.1347616
  • Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. (1979). An integrative theory of inter-group conflict. In W.G. Austin, S. Worchel (Eds.), The social psychology of inter-group relations (pp. 33–47). Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.
  • Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1986). The social identity theory of inter-group behavior. In W. G. Austin & S. Worchel (Eds.), Psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 7–24). Chicago: Nelson-Hall.
  • Testa, R. J., Habarth, J., Peta, J., Balsam, K., & Bockting, W. (2015). Development of the gender minority stress and resilience measure. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity. https://doi.org/10.1037/sgd0000081
  • Turner, J. C. (1987). Rediscovering the social group: A self-categorization theory. Blackwell Publishers.
  • Tuthill, Z. O. (2021). The intersection of sexual and racial/ethnic identity centrality and mental well-being among black and latinx sexual minority adults. Social Psychology Quarterly, 1–22.
  • van Anders, S. M. (2015). Beyond sexual orientation: Integrating gender/sex and diverse sexualities via sexual configurations theory. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 44, 1177–1213. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-015-0490-8
  • Vivid, J., Lev, E. M., & Sprott, R. A. (2020). The structure of kink identity: Four key themes within a world of complexity. Journal of Positive Sexuality, 6(2), 75–85. https://doi.org/10.51681/1.623
  • Wilkins, K. C., Lang, A. J., & Norman, S. B. (2011). Synthesis of the psychometric properties of the PTSD Checklist (PCL) military, civilian, and specific versions. Depression and Anxiety, 28, 596–606. https://doi.org/10.1002/da.20837
  • Williams, D., Prior, E. E., Alvarado, T., Thomas, J. N., & Christensen, M. C. (2016). Is bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and sadomasochism recreational leisure? A descriptive exploratory investigation. The Journal of Sexual Medicine, 13, 1091–1094. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsxm.2016.05.001
  • Wolff, M., Wells, B., Ventura DiPersia, C., Renson, A., & Grov, C. (2017). Measuring Sexual Orientation: A Review and Critique of U.S Data Collection Efforts and Implications for Health Policy. Journal of Sex Research, 54, 507–531. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2016.1255872
  • Zurbriggen, E. L., & Yost, M. R. (2004). Power, desire, and pleasure in sexual fantasies. Journal of Sex Research, 41, 288–300. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224490409552236

Reprints and Corporate Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

To request a reprint or corporate permissions for this article, please click on the relevant link below:

Academic Permissions

Please note: Selecting permissions does not provide access to the full text of the article, please see our help page How do I view content?

Obtain permissions instantly via Rightslink by clicking on the button below:

If you are unable to obtain permissions via Rightslink, please complete and submit this Permissions form. For more information, please visit our Permissions help page.