Editing Sexual stimulation (section)

==Mental stimulation==
Sexual arousal includes feelings, attractions and desires, as well as physiological changes.<ref name=":3">LeVay, S., & Valente, S. M. (2006). ''Human sexuality'' (2nd ed.). Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates.</ref> These can be elicited not only by physical but also mental stimulations, such as [[Sexual fantasy|fantasy]], erotic literature, dreams, role-play, and imagination.

===Fantasy===
[[File:Alsana Sin by ropemarks.jpg|thumb|[[Bondage (BDSM)|Bondage]] can be a sexual fantasy and is often practiced by those participating in [[BDSM]]]]
[[Sexual fantasy]] is a form of mental sexual stimulation which many people engage in.<ref name=":3" /> It is where a person imagines a sexual experience while they are awake. Fantasy has less social or safety limits than in real life situations. It gives people more freedom to experiment or think of things they could not necessarily try in real life and can be anything from imagining your spouse naked, to imagining a sexual experience with a mythical creature. Common sexual fantasies include imagining activities with a loved partner, reliving past experiences and experiences with multiple partners of the opposite gender.<ref name=":3" /> It is also common to have fantasies about things you would not do in real life and about taboo or illegal activities, such as forcing another, or being forced by another to have sex, intercourse with a stranger and sex with a boy or girl or older partner.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4">{{cite journal | last1 = Leitenberg | first1 = H. | last2 = Henning | first2 = K. | year = 1995 | title = Sexual fantasy | journal = Psychological Bulletin | volume = 117 | issue = 3| pages = 469–496 | doi=10.1037/0033-2909.117.3.469 | pmid = 7777650}}</ref>

It is useful for research because it makes differences between male and female heterosexual preferences clearer than studies of behaviour. Many sexual fantasies are shared between men and women, possibly because of cultural influence.<ref name=":4" /> However, there are still gender differences that have been found. Men are more likely than women to imagine being in a dominant or active role, whereas women are more likely to imagine themselves as passive participants.<ref name=":4" /> Women's fantasies have significantly more affection and commitment,<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Kelley | first1 = K | year = 1984 | title = Sexual fantasy and attitudes as functions of sex of subject and content of erotica | journal = Imagination, Cognition, and Personality | volume = 4 | issue = 4| pages = 339–347 | doi=10.2190/j66d-n10e-lth5-8aw5| s2cid = 144756486 }}</ref> whereas men are more likely to fantasise using visual imagery and explicit detail.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Barclay | first1 = A. M. | year = 1973 | title = Sexual fantasies in men and women | url = http://psycnet.apa.org/record/1974-05175-001 | journal = Medical Aspects of Human Sexuality | volume = 7 | pages = 205–216 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Hardin | first1 = K. | last2 = Gold | first2 = S. | year = 1988 | title = Relationship of sex, sex guilt, and experience to written sexual fantasies | journal = Imagination, Cognition, and Personality | volume = 8 | issue = 2| pages = 155–163 | doi=10.2190/yqqj-7a8u-23le-59kj| s2cid = 145369267 }}</ref> One explanation of this difference comes from the [[Evolutionary psychology|evolutionary perspective]]. Women have a higher minimum parental investment than males (they have 9 months of gestation prior birth and are then the main care givers, whereas men only have to provide sperm to ensure their genes are passed on) and are therefore more likely to want commitment from their partner in order to gain resources to improve their offspring's chance of survival.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Ellis | first1 = B. | last2 = Symons | first2 = D. | year = 1990 | title = Sex Differences in Sexual Fantasy: An Evolutionary Psychological Approach | journal = The Journal of Sex Research | volume = 27 | issue = 4| pages = 527–555 | doi=10.1080/00224499009551579}}</ref>

Fantasies can have benefits, such as increasing arousal more than other forms of sexual stimuli (such as an [[Erotic literature|erotic story]]) and increasing [[sexual desire]].<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Goldey | first1 = K. L. | last2 = van Anders | first2 = S. M. | year = 2012 | title = Sexual arousal and desire: Interrelations and responses to three modalities of sexual stimuli | url = http://www.jsm.jsexmed.org/article/S1743-6095(15)34099-6/fulltext | journal = Journal of Sexual Medicine | volume = 9 | issue = 9| pages = 2315–2329 | doi=10.1111/j.1743-6109.2012.02845.x| pmid = 22788995 | hdl = 2027.42/93670 | hdl-access = free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Erotica Stories – EroticaTale|url=https://eroticatale.com/|access-date=2020-10-27|website=Free Sex Stories and Adult Erotica Stories|language=en-US}}</ref> Individuals who disclose their sexual fantasies to their partners also have a higher sexual satisfaction. However, whether people are willing to open up to their partner generally depends on the content of such fantasies.<ref>Anderson, M. (2012). ''[https://kuscholarworks.ku.edu/bitstream/handle/1808/9806/Anderson_ku_0099D_11825_DATA_1.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y Sexual communication in romantic relationships: An investigation into the disclosure of sexual fantasies]'' (Order No. AAI3489846).</ref> A more negative effect of sexual fantasy is that it has been linked with [[sexual crimes]], and indeed sexual offenders often report that they have had fantasies related to their offense.<ref name=":4" /> However, such fantasies are also common among those who have not been involved in such criminal acts<ref name=":4" /> and non-offenders do not use their fantasies to guide their behaviour.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Howitt | first1 = D | year = 2004 | title = What is the role of fantasy in sex offending? | journal = Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health | volume = 14 | issue = 3| pages = 182–188 | doi=10.1002/cbm.585| pmid = 15614321 }}</ref> Therefore, fantasy alone cannot be used as a sign that someone will become an offender.<ref name=":4" />

===Dreams===
[[Nocturnal emission]] orgasms or "wet dreams" or "erotic dreams" are when people ejaculate or orgasm during sleep.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Geller|first=Lindsay|date=2019-06-07|title=Whoa, You'll Never Guess What A Lesbian Sex Dream Really Means If You're Straight|url=https://www.womenshealthmag.com/sex-and-love/a27786084/lesbian-sex-dreams/|access-date=2020-10-27|website=Women's Health|language=en-US}}</ref> These occur during [[Rapid eye movement sleep|REM (rapid eye movement)]] phases of sleep,<ref name=":3" /> which is the main stage when humans dream.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Suzuki | first1 = H. | last2 = Kuga | first2 = R. | last3 = Uchiyama | first3 = M. | year = 2002 | title = Relationship between dream experience and sleep state under ultra-short sleep-wake schedule | url = https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/jjppp1983/20/1/20_19/_pdf | journal = Japanese Journal of Physiological Psychology and Psychophysiology | volume = 20 | pages = 19–28 | doi=10.5674/jjppp1983.20.19| doi-access = free }}</ref> This implies that erotic dreams alone are enough to stimulate men, but erections accompany all REM phases.<ref name=":3" /> According to self-report data, as many as 22% of young women may also experience [[orgasm]] during sleep, with such dreams being more common in college students in higher school years than younger students.<ref name=":0">{{cite journal | last1 = Henton | first1 = C. L. | year = 1976 | title = Nocturnal orgasm in college woman: Its relation to dreams and anxiety associated with sexual factors | journal = Journal of Genetic Psychology | volume = 129 | issue = 2| pages = 245–51 | doi=10.1080/00221325.1976.10534034| pmid = 1003178 }}</ref> The orgasms experienced were positively correlated with high emotionality, including [[Sexual arousal|sexual excitement]], but also [[anxiety]].<ref name=":0" />

===Sexual role-play===
[[Sexual roleplay|Sexual role-play]] is when people act out characters or scenarios which may sexually stimulate each other. This can include [[Sexual fantasy|fantasies]] (discussed above) and [[Sexual fetishism|fetishes]], such as [[BDSM]] (bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, sadism and masochism) or [[Ageplay|age-play]]. It has been described by some as an adult form of [[Live action role-playing game|L.A.R.P]] (live action role-play).<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Harviainen | first1 = J. T. | year = 2011 | title = Sadomasochist role-playing as live-action role-playing: a trait-descriptive analysis | url = http://www.ijrp.subcultures.nl/wp-content/issue2/IJRPissue2-Article5.pdf | journal = International Journal of Role-Playing | volume = 2 | issue = 2 | pages = 59–70 | doi = 10.33063/ijrp.vi2.194 | access-date = 2017-09-14 | archive-date = 2020-07-06 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200706053619/http://www.ijrp.subcultures.nl/wp-content/issue2/IJRPissue2-Article5.pdf }}</ref> Role-play can also be carried out online, by typing stories to each other or pretending to be a character, and is therefore a form of mental stimulation you can engage in with another person without them being physically present. Many adolescents find online role-play pleasurable and arousing.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Nielsen | first1 = S. | last2 = Paasonen | first2 = S. | last3 = Spisak | first3 = S. | year = 2015 | title = 'Pervy role-play and such': Girls' experiences of sexual messaging online | journal = Sex Education | volume = 15 | issue = 5| pages = 472–485 | doi=10.1080/14681811.2015.1048852| s2cid = 142054076 }}</ref>

Role-play can also include sexual [[fan fiction]], where characters from well-known stories, that were not sexually or romantically together in the original story, are written into sexual scenes. [[Slash fiction]] is a type of fan fiction where the characters of the same sex (originally male-male) engage in romantic or sexual activities. Slash fiction allows people the freedom to share stimulating things that can be counter-cultural.<ref>Kustritz, A. M. (2008). Productive (cyber) public space: Slash fan fiction's multiple imaginary (Order No. AAI3276215). Available From PsycINFO. (621716546; 2008-99030-157).</ref>