Laurie Mintz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Imagine a steamy sex scene involving a woman and a man from your favourite television show or movie. Because during heterosexual sexual encounters, women have far fewer orgasms than men. This is called the orgasm gap. And it has been documented in the scientific literature for more than 20 years.
Indeed, many studies show that women orgasm more when alone than with a partner. Five old contraception methods that show why the pill was a medical breakthrough. Women also orgasm more when having sex in relationships compared with casual sex. Women also orgasm more when having sex with other women.
In all these scenarios where women are climaxing more, there is a greater focus on clitoral stimulation. The majority of women need clitoral stimulation to orgasm β which makes sense given that the clitoris and the penis originate from the same kind of tissue. And both the clitoris and the penis are chock full of touch-sensitive nerve endings and erectile tissue.
The main reason for the orgasm gap, then, is that women are not getting the clitoral stimulation they need. And cultural messages about the supremacy of intercourse feed into this. Indeed, countless films, TV shows , books and plays portray women orgasming from intercourse alone. And while some of the positions do include clitoral stimulation, the message is still that intercourse is the central and most important sexual act.
The language used in these articles β and in the culture as a whole β reflects and perpetuates this overvaluing of intercourse. Multiple studies have demonstrated that such messages give the idea that sex should proceed as follows: foreplay just to get the woman ready for intercourse , intercourse, male orgasm and sex over.
