What an anti-climax! Women pursue orgasms less during one-night stands
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What an anticlimax! Women aim less for orgasm during one-night stands — while men expect to ejaculate every time, study finds
- New study reveals that women tend to orgasm less during brief encounters
- But men expect to ejaculate every time — no matter how short sex is
They are often considered the pinnacle of pleasure, but when it comes to orgasms, women seem to have much lower expectations than men.
A new study led by researchers at Rutgers University in New Jersey has revealed that women are less likely to chase the “big O” during one-night stands.
Men, on the other hand, expect to ejaculate every time — no matter how brief the sexual encounter.
“We know that there are contextual, societal and personal factors that are likely to create barriers that prevent women from feeling actively pursuing orgasm,” said Grace Wetzel, lead author of the study.
“We can use the information from this research to create sexual environments in which women’s orgasms can feel more attainable.”
They are often considered the pinnacle of pleasure, but when it comes to orgasms, women seem to have much lower expectations than men (stock image)
In the study, the team set out to find the “orgasm gap” – a well-known phenomenon in which men ejaculate significantly more often than women during heterosexual sex.
For example, a Study from 2005 led by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Previous found that while 91 percent of men say they always come during sexual encounters, only 39 percent of women say the same.
Researchers at Rutgers University have previously shown that women expect less pleasure in bed than men.
But in the new study, the team set out to find out how sexual situation influences the expectation of orgasm.
Three experiments were conducted, in which women read short vignettes and then were asked to imagine a hypothetical sexual scenario.
The situations varied in time and partner.
For example, in some situations the sexual encounter would last 20 minutes, while in other situations it would last a few hours.
Meanwhile, some partners were described as focused on the woman’s pleasure, while others were more selfish.
After reading the hypothetical scenarios, the women were asked to report how strongly they would pursue an orgasm and how likely they were to have one.
The results showed that women were less likely to pursue orgasm during brief sexual encounters, as well as those with selfish men.
“Research into goal pursuit has shown that the strength of our effort is determined by how much we value the outcome and how much we expect it to be achieved,” Ms. Wetzel explains.
“So if an orgasm is important to women, and if they believe it’s possible to have one, they’re more likely to strive for it.”
The results showed that women were less likely to pursue orgasm during brief sexual encounters, as were women with selfish men (stock image)
“As we now understand, women pay attention to cues from the environment and cues from their partners when deciding whether an orgasm is ‘worth pursuing’ during a sexual encounter.
“We can’t ignore that.”
Based on the findings, the researchers suggest that male partners should try to create a sexual environment in which women’s orgasm is more likely.
“Men should communicate to their female partners that they want their partner’s pleasure to be a priority, without pressuring their partners to orgasm,” Ms. Wetzel concluded.
“This shift in men’s behavior could ultimately influence women’s decisions about orgasm, resulting in women being more likely to have an orgasm.”