The surprising sexual kink that is most likely to result in orgasm, new study suggests

Being tickled may be enough to trigger an orgasm, a study suggests.

The first study of its kind from Germany, involving around 700 adults, looked at the relationship between being tickled and experiencing sexual pleasure.

The researchers found that almost 90 percent said they felt some degree of sexual stimulation from being tickled alone without other stimuli.

And one in four women and men achieved orgasm solely through tickling.

The team found that most participants who found tickling sexually satisfying enjoyed being tickled as children, suggesting that childhood experiences “could shape their development of fetishism.”

Sarah Dagher, study author and PhD candidate at the University Medical Center of Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, Germany, said PsyPost that the study shows that “the spectrum of what can lead to sexual pleasure is broader than what we previously thought and goes beyond conventional concepts.”

The researchers recruited participants through a 43-question survey posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. Five ‘tickle fetish influencers’ also agreed to participate by reposting the survey link and pinning it to their profiles.

Over the course of 108 days, 719 people completed the survey, which was available in both English and Japanese. Of those responses, 193 were in English and 526 were in Japanese.

The vast majority of participants (74.3 percent) were male, while 20.7 percent were female and the remainder identified as non-binary.

Most of the group – 73.3 percent – ​​came from East Asian countries, while 13.8 percent came from North America and 8.3 percent from Europeans.

In terms of sexuality, 79.7 percent of participants were heterosexual. Bisexuals made up 10.8 percent of the population, while 2.8 percent were asexual.

About 26 percent reported never having engaged in any sexual activity.

More than half of the group (56.3 percent) was between 20 and 29 years old, and 14.2 percent was between 8 and 19 years old. Furthermore, the age groups from 30 to 29 years made up 22.5 percent of the sample.

Overall, 77.4 percent reported being ticklish, and 44.1 percent said they enjoyed being lightly or severely tickled.

Nearly all participants (99.7 percent) said they used their hands as the main tool for tickling, while the rest preferred feathers, balls, brushes, etc.

Surprisingly, 88 percent of respondents said they felt sexual pleasure from being tickled without any other stimulus, and 25 percent achieved orgasm from tickling alone.

Dagher told PsyPost that she was surprised that “some participants reported that tickling alone can lead to orgasm without genital stimulation.”

Additionally, 70.1 percent of participants said they enjoyed being tickled as children, which means they would likely enjoy it more as adults.

Nearly 90 percent of respondents said they experienced the most pleasure from the physical sensation of being tickled, while 42.2 percent fetishized the feeling of helplessness or submissiveness it produced. Other factors in arousal included verbal teasing of the tickler and the anticipation of being tickled.

Of those who tickled, 91.2 percent were most aroused by their partner’s physical response, followed by 85.8 percent who were most interested in the sound of their partner’s voice. And 85.8 percent felt a sense of power through tickling.

The findings come as more than 80 percent of women report being unable to have an orgasm just from having sex.

The team noted that the study has several limitations, including that participants are self-selected and likely already interested in sexually stimulating tickling.

“This study is not intended to encourage or promote tickling as any form of solution to any sexual problem,” Dagher said. ‘However, we aim to highlight the existence of a broad, previously unknown community with special sexual preferences.’