The study, which was published in the Journal of s*xual Medicine in May, surveyed 902 people who practice B-D-S-M and 434 people who prefer so-called “vanilla” (non-kinky) s*x. Each person filled out questionnaires regarding their personalities, general well-being, sensitivity to rejection and style of attachment in relationships. The participants were not aware of the purpose of the study.
Despite past assumptions that B-D-S-M proclivities might be correlated with previous abuse, r*pe or mental disorders (research has shown that they’re not), this survey found that kinky people actually scored better on many indicators of mental health than those who didn’t practice B-D-S-M, reported LiveScience. According to Reuters,B-D-S-M-friendly participants were found to be less neurotic, more open, more aware of and sensitive to rejection, more secure in their relationships and have better overall well-being.
Andreas Wismeijer, a psychologist at Nyenrode Business University in the Netherlands and the lead author on the study, told LiveScience that people involved in the B-D-S-M community may have scored better on these surveys because they tend to be more aware of and communicative about their s*xual desires, or because they have done some “hard psychological work” to accept and live with s*xual needs that are beyond the scope of what is often considered socially acceptable to discuss in the mainstream.
This research isn’t necessarily representative of the general population since participants were selected on a volunteer basis, but it does support the argument for removing B-D-S-M from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). In the current DSM, B-D-S-M fetishes are listed as “paraphilia,” which essentially encompasses any “unusual” s*xual preferences.
Fetish communities have argued for years that harmless s*xual tastes should not be listed next to mental disorders. Perhaps this research will help bolster their case.
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