Editing Orgasm

{{Short description|Intense physical sensation of sexual release}}
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{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2018}}
'''Orgasm''' (from [[Greek language|Greek]] {{lang|el|ὀργασμός}}, {{transliteration|el|orgasmos}}; "excitement, swelling"), '''sexual climax''', or simply '''climax''', is the sudden release of accumulated [[Sexual arousal|sexual excitement]] during the [[Human sexual response cycle|sexual response cycle]], characterized by intense sexual [[pleasure]] resulting in rhythmic, involuntary [[Muscle contraction|muscular contractions]] in the [[Pelvis|pelvic]] region.<ref name=dictbiopsych>{{cite book |last1 = Winn |first1 = Philip |title = Dictionary of Biological Psychology |date = 2003 |publisher = Routledge |isbn = 978-1-134-77815-7 |page = 1189 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OEMSWCeeSPYC&pg=PA1189 |language = en |access-date = November 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065023/https://books.google.com/books?id=OEMSWCeeSPYC&pg=PA1189 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Rosenthal">See [https://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PT153 133–135] {{webarchive|url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20160402152531/https://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PT153 |date=April 2, 2016 }} for orgasm information, and [https://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PT96 page 76] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065024/https://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PT96 |date=February 27, 2023 }} for G-spot and vaginal nerve ending information. {{cite book |first = Martha |last = Rosenthal |title = Human Sexuality: From Cells to Society |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2012 |isbn = 978-0-618-75571-4 }}</ref> Orgasms are controlled by the involuntary or [[autonomic nervous system]] and are experienced by both males and females; the body's response includes muscular [[spasm]]s (in multiple areas), a general [[euphoria|euphoric]] sensation, and, frequently, body movements and vocalizations.<ref name="Rosenthal" /> The period after orgasm (known as the [[refractory period (sex)|resolution phase]]) is typically a [[Relaxation (psychology)|relaxing experience]] after the release of the [[neurohormone]]s [[oxytocin]] and [[prolactin]], as well as [[endorphins]] (or "endogenous [[morphine]]").<ref>{{Cite journal |vauthors = Exton MS, Krüger TH, Koch M |title = Coitus-induced orgasm stimulates prolactin secretion in healthy subjects |journal = Psychoneuroendocrinology |volume = 26 |issue = 3 |pages = 287–94 |date = April 2001 |pmid = 11166491 |doi = 10.1016/S0306-4530(00)00053-6 |s2cid = 21416299 |display-authors = etal  |issn=0306-4530}}</ref>

Human orgasms usually result from physical [[sexual stimulation]] of the [[Human penis|penis]] in males (typically accompanied by [[ejaculation]]) and of the [[clitoris]] (and [[vagina]]) in females.<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Weiten">{{cite book |title = Psychology Applied to Modern Life: Adjustment in the 21st Century |isbn = 978-1-111-18663-0 |publisher = Cengage |date = 2011 |page = 386 |access-date = January 5, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=CGu96TeAZo0C&pg=PT423 |author1 = Wayne Weiten |author2 = Dana S. Dunn |author3 = Elizabeth Yost Hammer |archive-date = February 26, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230226053001/https://books.google.com/books?id=CGu96TeAZo0C&pg=PT423 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="O'Connell">{{br}}{{bull}}{{Cite journal |vauthors = O'Connell HE, Sanjeevan KV, Hutson JM |title = Anatomy of the clitoris |journal = The Journal of Urology |volume = 174 |issue = 4 Pt 1 |pages = 1189–95 |date = October 2005 |pmid = 16145367 |doi = 10.1097/01.ju.0000173639.38898.cd |s2cid = 26109805 }}{{br}}{{bull}}{{cite news |author = Sharon Mascall |date = June 11, 2006 |title = Time for rethink on the clitoris |work = [[BBC News]] |url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/5013866.stm |access-date = October 31, 2009 |archive-date = September 9, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190909192820/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/5013866.stm |url-status = live }}</ref> Sexual stimulation can be by [[masturbation]] or with a [[sexual partner]] ([[Sexual penetration|penetrative sex]], [[non-penetrative sex]], or other [[Human sexual activity|sexual activity]]). Physical stimulation is not a requisite, as it is possible to reach orgasm through psychological means.<ref>{{Cite journal|title=A Case Of Female Orgasm Without Genital Stimulation - PMC|date=24 February 2022|pmc=9023237 |last1=Pfaus |first1=J. G. |last2=Tsarski |first2=K. |journal=Sexual Medicine |volume=10 |issue=2 |doi=10.1016/j.esxm.2022.100496 |pmid=35220156 }}</ref> Getting to orgasm may be difficult without a suitable [[psychological state]]. During sleep, a sex dream can trigger an orgasm and the release of sexual fluids ([[nocturnal emission]]).

The health effects surrounding the human orgasm are diverse. There are many physiological responses during sexual activity, including a relaxed state, as well as changes in the [[central nervous system]], such as a temporary decrease in the [[Metabolism|metabolic]] activity of large parts of the [[cerebral cortex]] while there is no change or increased metabolic activity in the [[Limbic system|limbic]] (i.e., "bordering") areas of the brain.<ref name="Georgiadis">{{Cite journal |vauthors = Georgiadis JR, Reinders AA, Paans AM, Renken R, Kortekaas R |title = Men versus women on sexual brain function: prominent differences during tactile genital stimulation, but not during orgasm |journal = Human Brain Mapping |volume = 30 |issue = 10 |pages = 3089–101 |date = October 2009 |pmid = 19219848 |doi = 10.1002/hbm.20733 |pmc = 6871190 }}</ref> There are [[sexual dysfunction]]s involving orgasm, such as ''[[anorgasmia]]''.

Depending on culture{{Which|date=May 2025}}, reaching orgasm (and the frequency or consistency of doing so) is either important or irrelevant for satisfaction in a [[sexual relationship]],<ref name="Kinsey Institute">{{cite web |title = Frequently Asked Sexuality Questions to the Kinsey Institute: Orgasm |publisher = iub.edu/~kinsey/resources |access-date = January 3, 2012 |url = http://www.iub.edu/~kinsey/resources/FAQ.html#orgasm |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120105131500/http://iub.edu/~kinsey/resources/FAQ.html#orgasm |archive-date = January 5, 2012 }}</ref> and theories about the biological and evolutionary functions of orgasm differ.<ref name="Geoffrey Miller">{{cite book |author = Geoffrey Miller |title = The Mating Mind: How Sexual Choice Shaped the Evolution of Human Nature |publisher = [[Random House|Random House Digital]] |date = 2011 |pages = 238–239 |access-date = August 27, 2012 |isbn = 978-0-307-81374-9 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=QG-8PbZb4csC&q=The+human+clitoris+shows+no+apparent+signs+of+having+evolved+directly+through+male+mate+choice.&pg=PA238 |author-link = Geoffrey Miller (psychologist) |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065036/https://books.google.com/books?id=QG-8PbZb4csC&q=The+human+clitoris+shows+no+apparent+signs+of+having+evolved+directly+through+male+mate+choice.&pg=PA238 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Wallen K, Lloyd EA">{{cite journal |title = Female sexual arousal: genital anatomy and orgasm in intercourse |journal = Hormones and Behavior |date = May 2011 |pmid = 21195073 |pmc = 3894744 |doi = 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.12.004 |volume = 59 |issue = 5 |pages = 780–92 |author = Wallen K, Lloyd EA. |last2 = Lloyd |url = https://philpapers.org/rec/WALFSA-2 |access-date = August 31, 2018 |archive-date = November 5, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20211105043848/https://philpapers.org/rec/WALFSA-2 |url-status = live }}</ref> 

== Definitions ==

In a clinical context, orgasm is usually defined strictly by the [[Muscle contraction|muscular contractions]] involved during [[Human sexual activity|sexual activity]], along with the characteristic patterns of change in [[heart rate]], [[blood pressure]], and often [[respiration rate]] and depth.<ref name="M&J" /> This is categorized as the sudden discharge of accumulated sexual tension during the [[Human sexual response cycle|sexual response cycle]], resulting in rhythmic muscular contractions in the [[Pelvis|pelvic]] region.<ref name=dictbiopsych/><ref name="Rosenthal" /> Definitions of orgasm vary,<ref name="Levin 2004">{{Cite journal |author = Levin |first = Roy J. |date = 2004 |title = An orgasm is... who defines what an orgasm is? |journal = [[Sexual and Relationship Therapy]] |volume = 19 |pages = 101–107 |doi = 10.1080/14681990410001641663 |s2cid = 146550757 }}</ref> and at least 26 definitions of orgasm are listed in the 2001 journal ''[[Clinical Psychology Review]]''.<ref name=mah_&_binik>{{Cite journal |last1 = Mah |first1 = K. |last2 = Binik |first2 = Y. M. |title = The nature of human orgasm: a critical review of major trends |journal = [[Clinical Psychology Review]] |volume = 21 |issue = 6 |pages = 823–56 |date = August 2001 |pmid = 11497209 |doi = 10.1016/S0272-7358(00)00069-6 }}</ref>

There is some debate about whether certain types of sexual sensations should be accurately classified as orgasms, including female orgasms caused by [[G-spot]] stimulation alone, and the demonstration of extended or continuous orgasms lasting several minutes or even an hour.<ref>{{Cite book |author = Schwartz, Bob |title = The One Hour Orgasm: A New Approach to Achieving Maximum Sexual Pleasure |publisher = Breakthru Publishing |date = May 1992 |isbn = 978-0-942540-07-9 |url = https://archive.org/details/onehourorgasmnew0000schw }}{{Page needed|date=August 2010}}</ref> The question centers around the clinical definition of orgasm, but this way of viewing orgasm is merely physiological, while there are also psychological, endocrinological, and neurological definitions of orgasm.<ref name="Levin 2004" /><ref name=mah_&_binik/><ref name="Mah">{{Cite journal |last1 = Mah |first1 = K. |last2 = Binik |first2 = Y. M. |title = Do all orgasms feel alike? Evaluating a two-dimensional model of the orgasm experience across gender and sexual context |journal = [[Journal of Sex Research]] |volume = 39 |issue = 2 |pages = 104–13 |date = May 2002 |pmid = 12476242 |doi = 10.1080/00224490209552129 |s2cid = 33325081 }}</ref> In these and similar cases, the sensations experienced are subjective and do not necessarily involve the involuntary contractions characteristic of orgasm. In both sexes, they are extremely pleasurable and often felt throughout the body, causing a mental state that is often described as transcendental, and with [[vasocongestion]] and associated pleasure comparable to that of a full-contractionary orgasm. For example, modern findings support the distinction between ejaculation and male orgasm.<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name=mah_&_binik/> For this reason, there are views on both sides as to whether these can be accurately defined as orgasms.<ref name="Mah" />

== Achievement ==
[[File:Organs and tissues with sexual functions (female) 1.png|thumb|Organs and tissues involved in triggering the female orgasm]]
Orgasms can be achieved during a variety of activities, including [[Sexual intercourse|vaginal]], [[Anal sex|anal]], [[Oral sex|oral]], [[Non-penetrative sex#Manual sex|manual]], [[non-penetrative sex]], or [[masturbation]]. They may also be achieved by the use of a [[sex toy]] or an [[erotic electrostimulation]]. Achieving orgasm by stimulation of the [[nipple]]s or other [[erogenous zone]]s is rarer.<ref name="Answer">{{cite book |title = The Orgasm Answer Guide |isbn = 978-0-8018-9396-4 |publisher = JHU Press |date = 2009 |pages = 108–109 |access-date = November 6, 2011 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Kkts3AX9QVAC&pg=PA108 |author1-link = Barry Komisaruk |author2-link = Beverly Whipple |author3-link = Sara Nasserzadeh |author1 = Barry R. Komisaruk |author2 = Beverly Whipple |author3 = Sara Nasserzadeh |author4 = Carlos Beyer-Flores |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065039/https://books.google.com/books?id=Kkts3AX9QVAC&pg=PA108 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Boston">{{cite book |author = Boston Women's Health Book Collective |title = The New Our Bodies, Ourselves: A Book by and for Women |publisher = [[Simon & Schuster]] |isbn = 978-0-684-82352-2 |page = 575 |date = 1996 |access-date = August 12, 2017 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JFI4AQAAIAAJ |quote = A few women can even experience orgasm from breast stimulation alone. |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065046/https://books.google.com/books?id=JFI4AQAAIAAJ |url-status = live }}</ref> Multiple orgasms are also possible, especially in women, but they are also uncommon.<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Crooks and Baur">{{cite book |vauthors = Crooks RL, Baur K |title = Our Sexuality |isbn = 978-0-495-81294-4 |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2010 |pages = 175–176 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=MpRnPtmdRVwC&pg=PA175 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065053/https://books.google.com/books?id=MpRnPtmdRVwC&pg=PA175 |url-status = live }}</ref> Multiple orgasms are orgasms that occur within a short period of one another.<ref name="Crooks and Baur" />

In addition to physical stimulation, orgasm can be achieved from psychological arousal alone, such as during dreaming ([[nocturnal emission]] for males or females)<ref name=mah_&_binik/><ref name="Mah" /><ref name="Komisaruk">{{cite journal |title = Functional MRI of the brain during orgasm in women |journal = Annual Review of Sex Research |volume = 16 |pages = 62–86 |date = 2005 |pmid = 16913288 |vauthors = Komisaruk BR, [[Beverly Whipple|Whipple B]] |doi = 10.1080/10532528.2005.10559829 |citeseerx = 10.1.1.177.782 }}</ref> or by [[forced orgasm]]. Orgasm by psychological stimulation alone was first reported among people who had [[spinal cord injury]].<ref name="Komisaruk" /> Although sexual function and [[sexuality after spinal cord injury]] are very often impacted, this injury does not deprive one of the sexual feelings such as [[sexual arousal]] and erotic desires.<ref name="Komisaruk" />

Scientific literature focuses on the psychology of female orgasm significantly more than it does on the psychology of male orgasm, which "appears to reflect the assumption that female orgasm is psychologically more complex than male orgasm," but "the limited empirical evidence available suggests that male and female orgasm may bear more similarities than differences. In one controlled study by Vance and Wagner (1976), independent raters could not differentiate written descriptions of male versus female orgasm experiences".<ref name="Mah" />

=== Female ===
{{anchor|In females}}
==== Factors and variability ====
[[File:Phases of sexual arousal and female orgasm.png|thumb|right|Schematic representation of the phases of female sexual arousal and female orgasm]]
In women, the most common way to achieve orgasm is by direct sexual stimulation of the [[clitoris]] (meaning consistent [[Fingering (sexual act)|digital]], [[Cunnilingus|oral]], or other concentrated friction against the external parts of the clitoris). General statistics indicate that 70–80 percent of women require direct clitoral stimulation to achieve orgasm,<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Flaherty">{{cite book |author = Joseph A. Flaherty |author2 = John Marcell Davis |author3 = Philip G. Janicak |title = Psychiatry: Diagnosis & therapy. A Lange clinical manual |isbn = 978-0-8385-1267-8 |publisher = Appleton & Lange (Original from Northwestern University) |date = 1993 |page = [https://archive.org/details/psychiatrydiagno00flah/page/217 217] |quote = The amount of time of sexual arousal needed to reach orgasm is variable&nbsp;— and usually much longer&nbsp;— in women than in men; thus, only 20–30% of women attain a coital climax. b. Many women (70–80%) require manual clitoral stimulation... |url = https://archive.org/details/psychiatrydiagno00flah/page/217 }}</ref><ref name="Kammerer-Doak">{{cite journal |first1 = Dorothy |last1 = Kammerer-Doak |first2 = Rebecca G. |last2 = Rogers |title = Female Sexual Function and Dysfunction |journal = Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinics of North America |volume = 35 |issue = 2 |pages = 169–183 |doi = 10.1016/j.ogc.2008.03.006 |date = June 2008 |pmid = 18486835 |quote = Most women report the inability to achieve orgasm with vaginal intercourse and require direct clitoral stimulation ... About 20% have coital climaxes... }}</ref> although indirect clitoral stimulation (for example, via [[vagina]]l penetration) may also be sufficient.<ref name="O'Connell" /><ref name="Lloyd">{{cite book |author = Elisabeth Anne Lloyd |title = The Case of the Female Orgasm: Bias In the Science of Evolution |isbn = 978-0-674-01706-1 |publisher = Harvard University Press |date = 2005 |page = 53 |access-date = January 5, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=6GFNvA6TvlwC&pg=PA53 |author-link = Elisabeth Lloyd |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065057/https://books.google.com/books?id=6GFNvA6TvlwC&pg=PA53 |url-status = live }}</ref> The [[Mayo Clinic]] states, "Orgasms vary in intensity, and women vary in the frequency of their orgasms and the amount of stimulation necessary to trigger an orgasm."<ref name="Anorgasmia">{{cite web |url = http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/anorgasmia/DS01051 |title = Anorgasmia in women |publisher = [[Mayo Clinic]] |access-date = November 23, 2010 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140102052814/http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/anorgasmia/DS01051 |archive-date = January 2, 2014 }}</ref> Clitoral orgasms are easier to achieve because the [[Clitoris#Glans|glans of the clitoris]], or clitoris as a whole, has more than 8,000 sensory [[nerve]] endings, which is as many (or more in some cases) nerve endings as are present in the human penis or [[glans penis]].<ref name="Di Marino">{{cite book |last = Di Marino |first = Vincent |title = Anatomic Study of the Clitoris and the Bulbo-Clitoral Organ |publisher = [[Springer Publishing|Springer]] |date = 2014 |page = 81 |isbn = 978-3-319-04894-9 |access-date = September 4, 2014 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=wKMpBAAAQBAJ&q=gbs_navlinks_s |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150318213354/http://books.google.com/books?id=wKMpBAAAQBAJ&dq=gbs_navlinks_s |archive-date = March 18, 2015 }}</ref><ref name="Carroll">See [https://books.google.com/books?id=5f8mQx7ULs4C&pg=PA271 pages 270–271] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021114159/https://books.google.com/books?id=5f8mQx7ULs4C&pg=PA271 |date=October 21, 2023 }} for anal sex information, and [https://books.google.com/books?id=5f8mQx7ULs4C&pg=PA118 page 118] for information about the [[clitoris]]. {{cite book |author = Janell L. Carroll |title = Sexuality Now: Embracing Diversity |isbn = 978-0-495-60274-3 |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2009 |pages = 629 pages |access-date = June 23, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5f8mQx7ULs4C&q=Sexuality+Now:+Embracing+Diversity |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065106/https://books.google.com/books?id=5f8mQx7ULs4C&q=Sexuality+Now:+Embracing+Diversity |url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last = Crooks |first = Robert |url = https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/456838969 |title = Our sexuality |date = 2011 |publisher = Wadsworth/Cengage |others = Karla Baur |isbn = 978-0-495-81294-4 |edition = Eleventh |location = Belmont, CA |oclc = 456838969 }}</ref> As the clitoris is [[Homology (biology)|homologous]] to the penis, it is the equivalent in its capacity to receive sexual stimulation.<ref name="Schünke">{{cite book |first1 = Michael |last1 = Schünke |first2 = Erik |last2 = Schulte |first3 = Lawrence M. |last3 = Ross |first4 = Edward D. |last4 = Lamperti |first5 = Udo |last5 = Schumacher |title = Thieme Atlas of Anatomy: General Anatomy and Musculoskeletal System, Volume 1 |publisher = [[Thieme Medical Publishers]] |date = 2006 |isbn = 978-3-13-142081-7 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=NK9TgTaGt6UC&pg=PA192 |access-date = December 15, 2013 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065111/https://books.google.com/books?id=NK9TgTaGt6UC&pg=PA192 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Francoeur">{{cite book |last = Francoeur |first = Robert T. |date = 2000 |title = The Complete Dictionary of Sexology |publisher = The Continuum Publishing Company |page = [https://archive.org/details/completedictiona0000unse_w1u0/page/180 180] |isbn = 978-0-8264-0672-9 |url = https://archive.org/details/completedictiona0000unse_w1u0/page/180 }}</ref>

One misconception, particularly in older research publications, is that the vagina is completely insensitive.<ref name="Pappas">{{cite web |last = Pappas |first = Stephanie |title = Does the Vaginal Orgasm Exist? Experts Debate |publisher = [[LiveScience]] |date = April 9, 2012 |access-date = November 28, 2012 |url = http://www.livescience.com/19579-vaginal-orgasm-debate.html |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161011211945/http://www.livescience.com/19579-vaginal-orgasm-debate.html |archive-date = October 11, 2016 }}</ref> In reality, there are areas in the anterior vaginal wall and between the top junction of the [[labia minora]] and the [[urethra]] that are especially sensitive.<ref name="Lief and Berger">{{cite book |last = Lief |first = Harold I. |editor-last = Berger |editor-first = Milton Miles |chapter = Discussion of the Paper by Helen Singer Kalplan |title = Women Beyond Freud: New Concepts of Feminine Psychology |isbn = 978-0-87630-709-0 |publisher = [[Psychology Press]] |date = 1994 |pages = [https://archive.org/details/womenbeyondfreud00milt/page/65 65–66] |access-date = July 22, 2012 |chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=By3n48Gqt_kC&pg=PA65 |url = https://archive.org/details/womenbeyondfreud00milt/page/65 }}</ref> With regard to specific density of nerve endings, while the area commonly described as the [[G-spot]] may produce an orgasm,<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Acton" /> and the [[urethral sponge]] (area in which the G-spot may be found) runs along the "roof" of the vagina and can create pleasurable sensations when stimulated, intense sexual pleasure (including orgasm) from vaginal stimulation is occasional or otherwise absent because the vagina has significantly fewer nerve endings than the clitoris.<ref name="Weiten" /><ref name="Sloane">{{cite book |first = Ethel |last = Sloane |title = Biology of Women |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2002 |pages = 32–33 |access-date = August 25, 2012 |isbn = 978-0-7668-1142-3 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=kqcYyk7zlHYC&pg=PA32 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065037/https://books.google.com/books?id=kqcYyk7zlHYC&pg=PA32 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Kilchevsky">{{br}}{{bull}}{{cite journal |title = Is the Female G-Spot Truly a Distinct Anatomic Entity? |journal = [[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]] |volume = 9 |date = January 2012 |pmid = 22240236 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2011.02623.x |vauthors = Kilchevsky A, Vardi Y, Lowenstein L, Gruenwald I |issue = 3 |pages = 719–26 }}{{br}}{{bull}}{{cite news |date = January 19, 2012 |title = G-Spot Does Not Exist, 'Without A Doubt,' Say Researchers |work = [[The Huffington Post]] |url = http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/19/g-spot-does-not-exist_n_1215822.html |access-date = March 2, 2012 |archive-date = March 10, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190310161629/https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/19/g-spot-does-not-exist_n_1215822.html |url-status = live }}</ref> The greatest concentration of vaginal nerve endings are at the lower third (near the entrance) of the vagina.<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Weiten" /><ref name="Greenberg">{{cite book |vauthors = Greenberg JS, Bruess CE, Oswalt SB |title = Exploring the Dimensions of Human Sexuality |pages = 102–104 |isbn = 978-1-4496-4851-0 |date = 2014 |access-date = October 30, 2014 |publisher = [[Jones & Bartlett Publishers]] |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hm3aTuANFroC&pg=PA102 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065038/https://books.google.com/books?id=hm3aTuANFroC&pg=PA102 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Sex and Society">{{cite book |title = Sex and Society, Volume 2 |isbn = 978-0-7614-7907-9 |publisher = Marshall Cavendish Corporation |date = 2009 |page = 590 |access-date = August 17, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=YtsxeWE7VD0C&pg=PA590 |author = Marshall Cavendish Corporation |archive-date = February 26, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230226053114/https://books.google.com/books?id=YtsxeWE7VD0C&pg=PA590 |url-status = live }}</ref>

[[Sex educator]] Rebecca Chalker states that only one part of the clitoris, the urethral sponge, is in contact with the penis, fingers, or a [[dildo]] in the vagina.<ref name="Cornforth">{{cite web |first = Tracee |last = Cornforth |title = The Clitoral Truth. Interview with author and sex educator Rebecca Chalker |publisher = [[About.com]] |date = July 17, 2009 |access-date = April 21, 2010 |url = http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/sexuality/a/clitoraltruthin.htm |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160203174804/http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/sexuality/a/clitoraltruthin.htm |archive-date = February 3, 2016 }}</ref> Hite and Chalker state that the tip of the clitoris and the inner lips, which are also very sensitive, are not receiving direct stimulation during penetrative intercourse.<ref name="Cornforth" /><ref name="Hite">{{cite book |last = Hite |first = Shere |author-link = Shere Hite |title = The Hite Report: A Nationwide Study of Female Sexuality |publisher = [[Seven Stories Press]] |date = 2003 |location = New York, NY |isbn = 978-1-58322-569-1 |access-date = March 2, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s3OZaVn2wfkC&q=The%20Hite%20Report%3A%20a%20Nationwide%20Study%20of%20Female%20Sexuality&pg=PP1 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065044/https://books.google.com/books?id=s3OZaVn2wfkC&q=The%20Hite%20Report%3A%20a%20Nationwide%20Study%20of%20Female%20Sexuality&pg=PP1 |url-status = live }}</ref> Because of this, some couples may engage in the [[Woman on top|woman on top position]] or the [[coital alignment technique]] to maximize clitoral stimulation.<ref name="Roberts">{{cite book |title = Sex |publisher = Lotus Press |date = 2006 |page = 145 |isbn = 978-81-89093-59-4 |access-date = August 17, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=zDS9kC03x2IC&pg=PA145 |author = Keath Roberts |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227065052/https://books.google.com/books?id=zDS9kC03x2IC&pg=PA145 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Hurlbert">{{cite journal |title = The coital alignment technique and directed masturbation: a comparative study on female orgasm |journal = [[Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy]] |volume = 21 |pages = 21–29 |date = 1995 |pmid = 7608994 |doi = 10.1080/00926239508405968 |vauthors = Hurlbert DF, Apt C |issue = 1 }}</ref> For some women, the clitoris is very sensitive after climax, making additional stimulation initially painful.<ref name="Rathus">{{cite book |last1 = Rathus |first1 = Spencer A. |last2 = Nevid |first2 = Jeffrey S. |last3 = Fichner-Rathus |first3 = Lois |last4 = Herold |first4 = Edward S. |last5 = McKenzie |first5 = Sue Wicks |date = 2005 |title = Human Sexuality In A World Of Diversity |edition = Second |publisher = Pearson Education |location = New Jersey, USA }}</ref>

[[Masters and Johnson]] argue that all women are potentially multiply<!--do not change to "multiple"!--> orgasmic, but that multiply<!--do not change to "multiple"!--> orgasmic men are rare, and stated that "the female is capable of rapid return to orgasm immediately following an orgasmic experience, if re-stimulated before tensions have dropped below plateau phase response levels".<ref name="Dunn" /> Though generally reported that women do not experience a [[refractory period (sex)|refractory period]] and thus can experience an additional orgasm, or multiple orgasms, soon after the first one,<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name=soc>{{Cite web |title = The Sexual Response Cycle |website = UCSB SexInfo Online |publisher = [[University of California, Santa Barbara]] |url = http://www.soc.ucsb.edu/sexinfo/article/the-sexual-response-cycle |access-date = August 6, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110725051823/http://www.soc.ucsb.edu/sexinfo/article/the-sexual-response-cycle |archive-date = July 25, 2011 |url-status = dead }}</ref> some sources state that both men and women experience a refractory period because women may also experience a period after orgasm in which further sexual stimulation does not produce excitement.<ref name="Schacter">{{cite book |title = Psychology |publisher = [[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]] |date = 2010 |page = 336 |access-date = November 10, 2012 |isbn = 978-1-4292-3719-2 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=emAyzTNy1cUC&pg=PA336 |author1 = Daniel L. Schacter |author2 = Daniel T. Gilbert |author3 = Daniel M. Wegner |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055134/https://books.google.com/books?id=emAyzTNy1cUC&pg=PA336 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Weiner & Craighead">{{cite book |title = The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology, Volume 2 |publisher = [[John Wiley & Sons]] |date = 2010 |page = 761 |access-date = November 10, 2012 |isbn = 978-0-470-17026-7 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=pa5vKqntwikC&pg=PA761 |author1 = Irving B. Weiner |author2 = W. Edward Craighead |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055138/https://books.google.com/books?id=pa5vKqntwikC&pg=PA761 |url-status = live }}</ref> After the initial orgasm, subsequent orgasms for women may be stronger or more pleasurable as the stimulation accumulates.<ref name="Rathus" />

==== Clitoral and vaginal categories ====
[[File:Vulva - Sexual response.png|thumb|right|Images of the female vulva in various stages of the sexual response cycle]]
Discussions of female orgasm are complicated by orgasms in women typically being divided into two categories: clitoral orgasm and vaginal (or G-spot) orgasm.<ref name="Mah" /><ref name="Sex and Society" /> In 1973, [[Irving Singer]] theorized that there are three types of female orgasms; he categorized these as [[vulva]]l, uterine, and blended, but because he was a philosopher, "these categories were generated from descriptions of orgasm in literature rather than laboratory studies."<ref name="Rosenthal" /> In 1982, Ladas, [[Beverly Whipple|Whipple]] and Perry also proposed three categories: the tenting type (derived from clitoral stimulation), the A-frame type (derived from G-spot stimulation), and the blended type (derived from clitoral and G-spot stimulation).<ref name="Bolin & Whelehan">{{cite book |title = Human Sexuality: Biological, Psychological, and Cultural Perspectives |isbn = 978-0-7890-2672-9 |publisher = [[Taylor & Francis]] |date = 2009 |page = 276 |access-date = February 11, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=lDQoIhOwwdYC&pg=PA276 |author1 = Anne Bolin |author2 = Patricia Whelehan |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055140/https://books.google.com/books?id=lDQoIhOwwdYC&pg=PA276 |url-status = live }}</ref> In 1999, Whipple and Komisaruk proposed [[cervix]] stimulation as being able to cause a fourth type of female orgasm.<ref name="Bolin & Whelehan" />

Female orgasms by means other than clitoral or vaginal/G-spot stimulation are less prevalent in scientific literature,<ref name="Mah" /> and most scientists contend that no distinction should be made between "types" of female orgasm.<ref name="Sex and Society" /> This distinction began with [[Sigmund Freud]], who postulated the concept of "vaginal orgasm" as separate from clitoral orgasm.<!-- NOTE: Rules are "promulgated"; theories are "postulated."--> In 1905, Freud stated that clitoral orgasms are purely an adolescent phenomenon and that upon reaching puberty, the proper response of mature women is a change-over to vaginal orgasms, meaning orgasms without any clitoral stimulation. While Freud provided no evidence for this basic assumption, the consequences of this theory were considerable. Many women felt inadequate when they could not achieve orgasm via vaginal intercourse alone, involving little or no clitoral stimulation, as Freud's theory made penile–vaginal intercourse the central component to women's sexual satisfaction.<ref name="Zastrow">{{cite book |author = Charles Zastrow |author-link = Charles Zastrow |title = Introduction to Social Work and Social Welfare: Empowering People |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2007 |page = 228 |access-date = March 15, 2014 |isbn = 978-0-495-09510-1 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=tco4YjyZab4C&pg=PT248 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055146/https://books.google.com/books?id=tco4YjyZab4C&pg=PT248 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Irvine">{{cite book |title = Disorders of Desire: Sexuality and Gender in Modern American Sexology |isbn = 978-1-59213-151-8 |publisher = Temple University Press |date = 2005 |pages = 37–38 |access-date = January 3, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=uIJXT7ZCTCsC&pg=PA37 |author = Janice M. Irvine |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055146/https://books.google.com/books?id=uIJXT7ZCTCsC&pg=PA37 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Difference">{{cite web |title = Difference between clitoral and vaginal orgasm |publisher = [[Go Ask Alice!]] |date = March 28, 2008 |access-date = April 21, 2010 |url = http://goaskalice.columbia.edu/difference-between-clitoral-and-vaginal-orgasm |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150729172459/http://goaskalice.columbia.edu/difference-between-clitoral-and-vaginal-orgasm |archive-date = July 29, 2015 }}</ref><ref name="Gould">{{cite book |author = Stephen Jay Gould |title = The Structure of Evolutionary Theory |publisher = [[Harvard University Press]] |date = 2002 |pages = 1262–1263 |access-date = August 27, 2012 |isbn = 978-0-674-00613-3 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=nhIl7e61WOUC&pg=PA767 |author-link = Stephen Jay Gould |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055152/https://books.google.com/books?id=nhIl7e61WOUC&pg=PA767 |url-status = live }}</ref>

The first major national surveys of sexual behavior in the U.S. were the [[Kinsey Reports]].<ref name="Andersen" /> [[Alfred Kinsey]] was the first researcher to harshly criticize Freud's ideas about female sexuality and orgasm when, through his interviews with thousands of women,<ref name="Andersen" /> Kinsey found that most of the women he surveyed could not have vaginal orgasms.<ref name="Irvine" /> He "criticized Freud and other theorists for projecting male constructs of sexuality onto women" and "viewed the clitoris as the main center of sexual response" and the vagina as "relatively unimportant" for sexual satisfaction, relaying that "few women inserted fingers or objects into their vaginas when they masturbated." He "concluded that satisfaction from penile penetration [is] mainly psychological or perhaps the result of referred sensation".<ref name="Irvine" />

Masters and Johnson's research into the female [[Human sexual response cycle|sexual response cycle]], as well as [[Shere Hite]]'s, generally supported Kinsey's findings about female orgasm.<ref name="Hite" /><ref name="Irvine" /><ref name="Archer, Lloyd">{{cite book |title = Sex and Gender |publisher = [[Cambridge University Press]] |date = 2002 |pages = 85–88 |access-date = August 25, 2012 |isbn = 978-0-521-63533-2 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=BJ1V9r_J0sUC&pg=PA85 |author1 = John Archer |author2 = Barbara Lloyd |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055101/https://books.google.com/books?id=BJ1V9r_J0sUC&pg=PA85 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Masters and Johnson">{{cite book |last = Federation of Feminist Women's Health Centers |date = 1991 |title = A New View of a Woman's Body |publisher = Feminist Heath Press |page = 46 }}</ref> Masters and Johnson's research on the topic came at the time of the [[second-wave feminism|second-wave feminist movement]] and inspired feminists such as [[Anne Koedt]], author of ''[[The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm]]'', to speak about the "false distinction" made between clitoral and vaginal orgasms and women's biology not being properly analyzed.<ref name="Koedt">{{cite news |first = Anne |last = Koedt |title = The Myth of the Vaginal Orgasm |publisher = [[Chicago Women's Liberation Union]] (CWLU) |date = 1970 |access-date = December 12, 2011 |url = http://www.uic.edu/orgs/cwluherstory/CWLUArchive/vaginalmyth.html |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130106211856/http://www.uic.edu/orgs/cwluherstory/CWLUArchive/vaginalmyth.html |archive-date = January 6, 2013 }}</ref>

==== Clitoral and vaginal relationships ====
{{Further|G-spot#Society and culture}}
Accounts that the vagina is capable of producing orgasms continue to be subject to debate because, in addition to the vagina's low concentration of nerve endings, reports of the G-spot's location are inconsistent—it appears to be nonexistent in some women and may be an extension of another structure, such as the [[Skene's gland]] or the clitoris, which is a part of the Skene's gland.<ref name="O'Connell" /><ref name="Pappas" /><ref name="Kilchevsky" /><ref name="Balon, Segraves">{{cite book |vauthors = Balon R, Segraves RT |title = Clinical Manual of Sexual Disorders |publisher = [[American Psychiatric Association|American Psychiatric Pub]] |date = 2009 |access-date = January 24, 2014 |page = 258 |isbn = 978-1-58562-905-3 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=YuP3Hb0TMLQC&pg=PA258 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140627021747/http://books.google.com/books?id=YuP3Hb0TMLQC&pg=PA258 |archive-date = June 27, 2014 }}</ref> In a January 2012 ''[[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]]'' review examining years of research into the existence of the G-spot, scholars state that "[r]eports in the public media would lead one to believe the G-spot is a well-characterized entity capable of providing extreme sexual stimulation, yet this is far from the truth".<ref name="Kilchevsky" />

Possible explanations for the G-spot were examined by Masters and Johnson, who were the first researchers to determine that the clitoral structures surround and extend along and within the labia. In addition to observing that the majority of their female subjects could only have clitoral orgasms, they found that both clitoral and vaginal orgasms had the same stages of physical response. On this basis, they argue that clitoral stimulation is the source of both kinds of orgasms,<ref name="Archer, Lloyd" /><ref name="Masters and Johnson" /> reasoning that the clitoris is stimulated during penetration by friction against its hood; their notion that this provides the clitoris with sufficient sexual stimulation has been criticized by researchers such as [[Elisabeth Lloyd]].<ref name="Lloyd" />

Australian [[Urology|urologist]] Helen O'Connell's 2005 research additionally indicates a connection between orgasms experienced vaginally and the clitoris, suggesting that clitoral tissue extends into the anterior wall of the vagina and that therefore clitoral and vaginal orgasms are of the same origin.<ref name="O'Connell" /> Some studies, using [[medical ultrasound]], have found physiological evidence of the G-spot in women who report having orgasms during vaginal intercourse,<ref name="Acton" /><ref name="Buss, Meston">{{cite book |vauthors = Buss DM, Meston CM |title = Why Women Have Sex: Understanding Sexual Motivations from Adventure to Revenge (and Everything in Between) |publisher = [[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]] |date = 2009 |access-date = January 24, 2014 |pages = 35–36 |isbn = 978-1-4299-5522-5 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=slyflT85lXIC&pg=PA35 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055118/https://books.google.com/books?id=slyflT85lXIC&pg=PA35 |url-status = live }}</ref> but O'Connell suggests that the clitoris's interconnected relationship with the vagina is the physiological explanation for the conjectured G-spot. Having used [[Magnetic resonance imaging|MRI]] technology which enabled her to note a direct relationship between the legs or roots of the clitoris and the erectile tissue of the "clitoral bulbs" and corpora, and the distal [[urethra]] and vagina, she stated that the vaginal wall is the clitoris; that lifting the skin off the vagina on the side walls reveals the bulbs of the clitoris—triangular, crescental masses of erectile tissue.<ref name="O'Connell" /> O'Connell et al., who performed dissections on the female genitals of [[cadaver]]s and used photography to map the structure of nerves in the clitoris, were already aware that the clitoris is more than just its glans and asserted in 1998 that there is more erectile tissue associated with the clitoris than is generally described in anatomical textbooks.<ref name="Sloane" /><ref name="Archer, Lloyd" /> They concluded that some females have more extensive clitoral tissues and nerves than others, especially having observed this in young cadavers as compared to elderly ones,<ref name="Sloane" /><ref name="Archer, Lloyd" /> and therefore whereas the majority of females can only achieve orgasm by direct stimulation of the external parts of the clitoris, the stimulation of the more generalized tissues of the clitoris via intercourse may be sufficient for others.<ref name="O'Connell" />

French researchers Odile Buisson and Pierre Foldès report similar findings to that of O'Connell's. In 2008, they published the first complete 3D sonogram via medical [[ultrasound]] of the stimulated clitoris, and republished it in 2009 with new research, demonstrating the ways in which erectile tissue of the clitoris engorges and surrounds the vagina, arguing that women may be able to achieve vaginal orgasm via stimulation of the G-spot because the highly innervated clitoris is pulled closely to the anterior wall of the vagina when the woman is sexually aroused and during vaginal penetration. They assert that since the front wall of the vagina is inextricably linked with the internal parts of the clitoris, stimulating the vagina without activating the clitoris may be next to impossible.<ref name="Pappas" /><ref name="Acton">See here [https://books.google.com/books?id=amNcvrLCGZEC&pg=PT98] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055137/https://books.google.com/books?id=amNcvrLCGZEC&pg=PT98|date=February 27, 2023}} for the 2009 King's College London's findings on the G-spot and [https://books.google.com/books?id=kP9bCflZpVkC&pg=PA145 page 145] {{webarchive|url=http://archive.wikiwix.com/cache/20151028201436/https://books.google.com/books?id=kP9bCflZpVkC&pg=PA145|date=October 28, 2015}} for ultrasound/physiological material with regard to the G-spot. {{cite book |author=Ashton Acton |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=slyflT85lXIC&pg=PA35 |title=Issues in Sexuality and Sexual Behavior Research: 2011 Edition |date=2012 |publisher=[[ScholarlyEditions]] |isbn=978-1-4649-6687-3 |access-date=January 24, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055118/https://books.google.com/books?id=slyflT85lXIC&pg=PA35 |archive-date=February 27, 2023 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Carroll2">{{cite book |last = Carroll |first = Janell L. |title = Discovery Series: Human Sexuality |edition = 1st |publisher = [[Cengage]] |isbn = 978-1-111-84189-8 |date = 2013<!-- NOTE: Copyright date is 2013 inside of the book. --> |page = 103 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gU3SZSh-eXsC&pg=PT135 |access-date = October 21, 2015 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055158/https://books.google.com/books?id=gU3SZSh-eXsC&pg=PT135 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Buisson and Foldès 2009">{{cite journal |last1 = Buisson |first1 = Odile |last2 = Foldès |first2 = Pierre |title = The clitoral complex: a dynamic sonographic study |journal = [[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]] |volume = 6 |issue = 5 |pages = 1223–31 |date = 2009 |pmid = 19453931 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2009.01231.x |s2cid = 5096396 }}</ref> In their 2009 published study, the "coronal planes during [[Perineum|perineal]] contraction and finger penetration demonstrated a close relationship between the root of the clitoris and the anterior vaginal wall". Buisson and Foldès suggest "the special sensitivity of the lower anterior vaginal wall could be explained by pressure and movement of clitoris's root during a vaginal penetration and subsequent perineal contraction".<ref name="Acton" /><ref name="Buisson and Foldès 2009" />

Supporting a distinct G-spot is a study by [[Rutgers University]], published 2011, which was the first to map the female genitals onto the sensory portion of the brain;<ref name="Komisaruk 2" /> brain scans showed that the brain registered distinct feelings between stimulating the clitoris, the cervix and the vaginal wall&nbsp;– where the G-spot is reported to be&nbsp;– when several women stimulated themselves in a [[Functional magnetic resonance imaging|functional magnetic resonance]] (fMRI) machine.<ref name="Komisaruk 2" /><ref name="Pappas" /> "I think that the bulk of the evidence shows that the G-spot is not a particular thing," stated [[Barry Komisaruk]], head of the research findings. "It's not like saying, 'What is the thyroid gland?' The G-spot is more of a thing like New York City is a thing. It's a region, it's a convergence of many different structures."<ref name="Kilchevsky" /> Commenting on Komisaruk's research and other findings, [[Emmanuele&nbsp;A. Jannini]], a professor of endocrinology at the University of Aquila in Italy, acknowledges a series of essays published in March 2012 in ''[[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]]'', which document evidence that vaginal and clitoral orgasms are separate phenomena that activate different areas of the brain and possibly suggest key psychological differences between women.<ref name="Pappas" />

==== Other factors and research ====

Regular difficulty reaching orgasm after ample sexual stimulation, known as [[anorgasmia]], is significantly more common in women than in men ([[#Dysfunction and satisfaction|see below]]).<ref name="Anorgasmia" /> In addition to sexual dysfunction being a cause for women's inability to reach orgasm, or the amount of time for sexual arousal needed to reach orgasm being variable and longer in women than in men, other factors include a lack of communication between sexual partners about what is needed for the woman to reach orgasm, feelings of sexual inadequacy in either partner, a focus on only penetration (vaginal or otherwise), and men generalizing women's trigger for orgasm based on their own sexual experiences with other women.<ref name="Weiten" /><ref name="Wallen K, Lloyd EA" /><ref name="Flaherty" />

Scholars state "many couples are locked into the idea that orgasms should be achieved only through intercourse [vaginal sex]" and that "[e]ven the word ''[[foreplay]]'' suggests that any other form of sexual stimulation is merely preparation for the 'main event.'...Because women reach orgasm through intercourse less consistently than men, they are more likely than men to have [[Fake orgasm|faked an orgasm]]".<ref name="Weiten" /> Sex counselor [[Ian Kerner]] states, "It's a myth that using the penis is the main way to pleasure a woman." He cites research concluding that women reach orgasm about 25 percent of the time with intercourse, compared with 81 percent of the time during oral sex ([[cunnilingus]]).<ref name="Rob Baedeker">{{cite web |last = Rob |first = Baedeker |title = Sex: Fact and Fiction |website = [[WebMD]] |pages = 2–3 |access-date = November 28, 2012 |url = http://men.webmd.com/features/sex-fact-fiction?page=2 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140112134913/http://men.webmd.com/features/sex-fact-fiction?page=2 |archive-date = January 12, 2014 }}</ref>

In the first large-scale empirical study worldwide to link specific practices with orgasm, reported in the ''[[Journal of Sex Research]]'' in 2006, demographic and sexual history variables were comparatively weakly associated with orgasm. Data was analyzed from the Australian Study of Health and Relationships, a national telephone survey of sexual behavior and attitudes and sexual health knowledge carried out in 2001–02, with a representative sample of 19,307 Australians aged 16 to 59. Practices included "vaginal intercourse alone (12%), vaginal + manual stimulation of the man's and/or woman's genitals (49%), and vaginal intercourse + manual + oral (32%)" and the "[e]ncounters may also have included other practices. Men had an orgasm in 95 percent of encounters and women in 69 percent. Generally, the more practices engaged in, the higher a woman's chance of having an orgasm. Women were more likely to reach orgasm in encounters including cunnilingus".<ref name="Richters J">{{cite journal |title = Sexual practices at last heterosexual encounter and occurrence of orgasm in a national survey |journal = [[The Journal of Sex Research]] |date = August 2006 |pmid = 17599244 |doi = 10.1080/00224490609552320 |volume = 43 |issue = 3 |pages = 217–26 |vauthors = Richters J, Visser R, Rissel C, Smith A |s2cid = 7469378 }}</ref> Other studies suggest that women exposed to lower levels of prenatal [[androgen]]s are more likely to experience orgasm during vaginal intercourse than other women.<ref name="Wallen K, Lloyd EA" />

==== Exercise-induced ====

Kinsey, in his 1953 book ''Sexual Behavior in the Human Female'', states that exercise could bring about sexual pleasure, including orgasm.<ref name=1990Rev>{{cite journal |last1 = Butt |first1 = DS |title = The sexual response as exercise. A brief review and theoretical proposal |journal = Sports Medicine |date = June 1990 |volume = 9 |issue = 6 |pages = 330–43 |pmid = 2192423 |doi = 10.2165/00007256-199009060-00002 |s2cid = 6035585 }}</ref> A review in 1990 on the sexual response as exercise states that the field was poorly researched and that [[Aerobic exercise|aerobic]] or [[Isotonic contraction|isotonic]] exercise that resembles sexual activity or sexual positions can induce sexual pleasure, including orgasm.<ref name=1990Rev/> A 2007 review of the relationship between [[pelvic floor]] dysfunction and sexual problems in men and women finds that they are commonly linked and suggests that [[physical therapy]] strengthening the pelvic floor could help address the sexual problems but that it was not well studied enough to recommend.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Rosenbaum |first1 = TY |title = Pelvic floor involvement in male and female sexual dysfunction and the role of pelvic floor rehabilitation in treatment: a literature review |journal = The Journal of Sexual Medicine |date = January 2007 |volume = 4 |issue = 1 |pages = 4–13 |pmid = 17233772 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2006.00393.x }}</ref> Starting in at least 2007, the term, "coregasm" was used in popular media to refer to exercise-induced orgasm<ref name=2012primary/><ref>{{cite magazine |last1 = Campbell |first1 = Alan |title = MH The Fitness Insider: Exciting Fitness News: The Coregasm |url = http://thefitnessinsider.menshealth.com/2007/03/back_in_our_dec.html |magazine = Men's Health |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070610045647/http://thefitnessinsider.menshealth.com/2007/03/back_in_our_dec.html |archive-date = June 10, 2007 |date = March 29, 2007 }}</ref> or in academic parlance termed ''exercise-induced sexual pleasure'',<ref name=twsTand11>Volume 26, 2011, Debby Herbenick, [https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14681994.2011.647902 Exercise-induced orgasm and pleasure among women] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200106154009/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14681994.2011.647902 |date=January 6, 2020 }}, retrieved March 16, 2020, "...A secondary purpose was to understand and assess women's experiences of exercise-induced sexual pleasure (EISP)..."</ref> and an extensive discussion of the "yogasm" occurred in a 2011 ''[[Daily Beast]]'' posting.<ref name=2012primary/><ref>{{cite news |last1 = Crocker |first1 = Lizzie |title = Are Yogasms Real? |url = http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/09/28/yogasms-on-the-rise-instructors-say-yoga-related-orgasms-are-real.html |newspaper = The Daily Beast |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110928212544/http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/09/28/yogasms-on-the-rise-instructors-say-yoga-related-orgasms-are-real.html |archive-date = September 28, 2011 |date = September 28, 2011 }}</ref> A paper published in 2012 presents results of an online survey of women who had experienced an orgasm or other sexual pleasure during exercise.<ref name=2012primary>{{cite journal |last1 = Herbenick |first1 = Debby |last2 = Fortenberry |first2 = J. Dennis |author-link1 = Debby Herbenick |title = Exercise-induced orgasm and pleasure among women |journal = Sexual and Relationship Therapy |date = March 2012 |volume = 26 |issue = 4 |pages = 373–388 |doi = 10.1080/14681994.2011.647902 |s2cid = 145405546 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1 = Herbenick |first1 = Debby |title = SURVEY: Pleasure/Orgasm During Exercise? |url = http://mysexprofessor.com/sex-in-the-news/survey-pleasureorgasm-during-exercise/ |publisher = mysexprofessor.com |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150709195335/http://mysexprofessor.com/sex-in-the-news/survey-pleasureorgasm-during-exercise/ |archive-date = July 9, 2015 |date = November 8, 2010 |access-date = December 22, 2016 |url-status = dead }}</ref> The paper was widely discussed in popular media when it was published.<ref name="twsBostonGlobe1">{{cite news |author = Deborah Kotz |date = March 22, 2012 |newspaper = Boston Globe |url = http://archive.boston.com/2012/03/22/coregasm/KYQsgEeS8c9iAWDcZNAoiI/story.html |title = Orgasms when you exercise? Research suggests it's possible |access-date = August 31, 2016 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160915060604/http://archive.boston.com/2012/03/22/coregasm/KYQsgEeS8c9iAWDcZNAoiI/story.html |archive-date = September 15, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref name="twsWashPost1">{{cite news |author = Jennifer LaRue Huget |date = March 22, 2012 |newspaper = Washington Post |url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-checkup/post/research-looks-into-exercise-induced-orgasm-phenomenon/2010/12/20/gIQA54BRSS_blog.html |title = Research looks into 'exercise-induced orgasm' phenomenon |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160917053650/https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-checkup/post/research-looks-into-exercise-induced-orgasm-phenomenon/2010/12/20/gIQA54BRSS_blog.html |archive-date = September 17, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref name="twsHealth1">{{cite web |author = Kristine Thomason |date = March 22, 2016 |publisher = Health magazine |url = http://news.health.com/2016/03/22/yes-you-can-have-an-orgasm-while-working-out/ |title = Yes, You Can Have an Orgasm While Working Out |access-date = August 31, 2016 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20161020013826/http://news.health.com/2016/03/22/yes-you-can-have-an-orgasm-while-working-out/ |archive-date = October 20, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref><ref name="twsCosmo1">{{cite magazine |author = Heather Wood Rudulph |date = June 1, 2015 |magazine = Cosmopolitan |url = http://www.cosmopolitan.com/health-fitness/interviews/a41281/coregasm-debby-herbenick-orgasm/ |title = The Truth About Having an Orgasm at the Gym: Sex researcher Debby Herbenick says both men and women can experience "coregasms" |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160913225210/http://www.cosmopolitan.com/health-fitness/interviews/a41281/coregasm-debby-herbenick-orgasm/ |archive-date = September 13, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> The authors of the paper said that research on the relationship between exercise and sexual response was still lacking.<ref name=2012primary/>

=== Male ===

==== Variability ====

In men, the most common way of achieving orgasm is by physical sexual stimulation<!-- NOTE: "Sexual stimulation" can mean or include non-physical stimulation; because it takes physical sexual stimulation of the genitals for most people to orgasm, the wording "physical sexual stimulation" is more accurate than "sexual stimulation." --> of the [[Human penis|penis]].<ref name="Rosenthal" /> This is usually accompanied by [[ejaculation]], but it is possible, though rare, for men to orgasm without ejaculation (known as a "dry orgasm").<ref name="Crooks and Baur" /> [[Preadolescence|Prepubescent]] boys have dry orgasms.<ref name="Carroll, prepubescent boys">{{cite book |vauthors = Carroll JL |title = Sexuality Now: Embracing Diversity |isbn = 978-1-111-83581-1 |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2012 |pages = 147 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=RY0n2CGS5EcC&pg=PT191 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055149/https://books.google.com/books?id=RY0n2CGS5EcC&pg=PT191 |url-status = live }}</ref> Dry orgasms can also occur as a result of [[retrograde ejaculation]],<ref name="E. Jones">{{cite book |vauthors = Jones RE, Lopez KH |title = Human Reproductive Biology |isbn = 978-0-12-382185-0 |publisher = [[Academic Press]] |date = 2013 |page = 146 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=M4kEdSnS-pkC&pg=PA146 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055152/https://books.google.com/books?id=M4kEdSnS-pkC&pg=PA146 |url-status = live }}</ref> or [[hypogonadism]].<ref name="Mulhall">{{cite book |vauthors = Mulhall JP, Incrocci L, Goldstein I, Rosen R |title = Cancer and Sexual Health |isbn = 978-1-60761-916-1 |publisher = [[Springer Science & Business Media]] |date = 2011 |page = 41 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=GpIadil3YsQC&pg=PA41 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055205/https://books.google.com/books?id=GpIadil3YsQC&pg=PA41 |url-status = live }}</ref> Men may also ejaculate without reaching orgasm,<ref name="Mulhall" /><ref name="Peterson">{{cite book |vauthors = Peterson D |title = The Wiley Handbook of Sex Therapy |isbn = 978-1-118-51041-4 |publisher = [[John Wiley & Sons]] |date = 2017 |page = 182 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=qk1aDgAAQBAJ&pg=PT182 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055206/https://books.google.com/books?id=qk1aDgAAQBAJ&pg=PT182 |url-status = live }}</ref> which is known as [[anorgasmia|anorgasmic ejaculation]].<ref name="Peterson" /> They may also achieve orgasm by stimulation of the [[prostate]] ([[#Anal and prostate stimulation|see below]]).<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Wibowo">{{cite journal |title = Multiple Orgasms in Men—What We Know So Far |url = https://www.researchgate.net/publication/293195654 |last1 = Wibowo |first1 = Erik |last2 = Wassersug |first2 = Richard J. |date = 2016 |journal = Sexual Medicine Reviews |volume = 4 |issue = 2 |doi = 10.1016/j.sxmr.2015.12.004 |pmid = 27872023 |pages = 136–148 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170111023132/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/293195654_Multiple_Orgasms_in_Men-What_We_Know_So_Far |archive-date = January 11, 2017 }}</ref>

==== Two-stage model ====

The traditional view of male orgasm is that there are two stages: emission accompanying orgasm, almost instantly followed by a refractory period. The refractory period is the recovery phase after orgasm during which it is physiologically impossible for a man to have additional orgasms.<ref name="Morrow">{{cite book |author = Ross Morrow |title = Sex Research and Sex Therapy: A Sociological Analysis of Masters and Johnson |publisher = [[Routledge]] |date = 2013 |page = 91 |isbn = 978-1-134-13465-6 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=wqG07-UF0yoC&pg=PA91 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055216/https://books.google.com/books?id=wqG07-UF0yoC&pg=PA91 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Carroll, Refractory period">{{cite book |author = Janell L. Carroll |title = Sexuality Now: Embracing Diversity |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2015 |page = 275 |isbn = 978-1-305-44603-8 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=cy9-BAAAQBAJ&pg=PT275 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055226/https://books.google.com/books?id=cy9-BAAAQBAJ&pg=PT275 |url-status = live }}</ref> In 1966, Masters and Johnson published pivotal research about the phases of sexual stimulation.<ref name="M&J">{{Cite book |publisher = Little, Brown |isbn = 978-0-316-54987-5 |page = [https://archive.org/details/humansexualrespo00will/page/366 366] |last1 = Masters |first1 = William H. |first2 = Virginia E. |last2 = Johnson |author3 = Reproductive Biology Research Foundation (U.S.) |title = Human Sexual Response |date = 1966 |url = https://archive.org/details/humansexualrespo00will/page/366 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title = Masters and Johnson |url = http://health.discovery.com/centers/sex/sexpedia/mandj.html |publisher = The Discovery Channel |access-date = May 28, 2006 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060518002107/http://health.discovery.com/centers/sex/sexpedia/mandj.html <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = May 18, 2006 |url-status = dead }}</ref> Their work included women and men and—unlike Kinsey in 1948 and 1953<ref name="Andersen">{{cite book |title = Sociology: Understanding a Diverse Society |isbn = 978-0-495-00742-5 |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2007 |page = 338 |access-date = January 3, 2012 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=UILcQZS6Bi4C&pg=PA338 |author1 = Margaret L. Andersen |author2 = Howard Francis Taylor }}</ref>—tried to determine the physiological stages before and after orgasm.

Masters and Johnson state in the first stage, "accessory organs contract and the male can feel the ejaculation coming; two to three seconds later the ejaculation occurs, which the man cannot constrain, delay, or in any way control" and in the second stage, "the male feels pleasurable contractions during ejaculation, reporting greater pleasure tied to a greater volume of ejaculate".<ref name="Dunn">{{Cite journal |author = Dunn ME, Trost JE |title = Male multiple orgasms: a descriptive study |journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior |volume = 18 |issue = 5 |pages = 377–87 |date = October 1989 |pmid = 2818169 |doi = 10.1007/BF01541970 |last2 = Trost |s2cid = 13647953 }}</ref> They report "for the man the resolution phase includes a superimposed refractory period" and "many males below the age of 30, but relatively few thereafter, have the ability to ejaculate frequently and are subject to only very short refractory periods during the resolution phase". Masters and Johnson equate male orgasm and ejaculation and maintain the necessity for a refractory period between orgasms.<ref name="Dunn" />

==== Multiplicity ====

There has been little scientific study of multiple orgasms in men.<ref name="Wibowo" /> Dunn and Trost define multiple male orgasms as "two or more orgasms with or without ejaculation and without, or with only very limited, de-tumescence (loss of erection) during one and the same sexual encounter".<ref name="Crooks and Baur" /> Although it is rare for men to achieve multiple orgasms,<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Schill">{{cite book |vauthors = Schill WB, Comhaire FH, Hargreave TM |title = Andrology for the Clinician |isbn = 0-495-81294-3 |publisher = [[Springer Science & Business Media]] |date = 2006 |pages = 105 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5Ts_AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA105 |access-date = April 15, 2019 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055229/https://books.google.com/books?id=5Ts_AAAAQBAJ&pg=PA105 |url-status = live }}</ref> some men have reported having multiple consecutive orgasms, particularly without ejaculation.<ref name="Crooks and Baur" /> There may not be an obvious refractory period, and the final orgasm may cause a refractory period.<ref name="Wibowo" /> Multiple orgasms are more commonly reported in very young men than in older men.<ref name="Crooks and Baur" /> In younger men, the refractory period may only last a few minutes but last more than an hour in older men.<ref name="E. Jones" />

An increased infusion of [[oxytocin]] during ejaculation is believed to be chiefly responsible for the refractory period, and the amount by which oxytocin is increased may affect the length of each refractory period.<ref>Panksepp, Jaak (2004). ''Textbook of biological psychiatry.'' [[John Wiley & Sons|Wiley-IEEE]]. p. 129.</ref> A scientific study to successfully document natural, fully ejaculatory, multiple orgasms in an adult man was conducted at Rutgers University in 1995. During the study, six fully ejaculatory orgasms were experienced in 36 minutes, with no apparent refractory period.<ref name="Rosenthal" />

=== Anal and prostate stimulation ===
{{See also|Pegging (sexual practice)|Prostate massage|l1=Pegging}}
[[File:Thefingeringofhorusandseth.png|thumb|"The Majesty of Seth said to the Majesty of Horus, How beautiful are thy buttocks! How flourishing (?).... The Majesty of Horus said, Wait that I may tell it... to their palace. The Majesty of Horus said to his mother Isis... Seth desires (?) to have intercourse with me. And she said to him, Take care, do not approach him for that; when he mentions it to thee a second time, say thou to him, It is altogether too difficult for me because of (my) nature (?), since thou art too heavy for me; my strength will not be equal to thine, thou shalt say to him. Then, when he shall have given thee strength, do thou place thy fingers between thy buttocks. Lo, it will give... Lo, he will enjoy it exceedingly (?)... this seed which has come forth from his generative organ, without letting the sun see it... Come thou."<ref name="x898">{{cite book | last=Griffiths | first=John Gwyn | title=The Conflict of Horus and Seth from Egyptian and Classical Sources | publisher=Liverpool, U.P | date=1960 | isbn=0-85323-071-4 | page=42}}</ref><ref name="w769">{{cite web | title=Hieratic papyri from Kahun and Gurob (principally of the middle kingdom) : Griffith, F. Ll. (Francis Llewellyn), 1862-1934 : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive | website=Internet Archive | date=2016-10-23 | url=https://archive.org/details/hieraticpapyrifr00grifuoft/page/n23/mode/2up | access-date=2024-09-25}}</ref>]]
In both sexes, pleasure can be derived from the nerve endings around the anus and the anus itself, such as during [[anal sex]]. Men can achieve orgasms through [[prostate]] stimulation alone.<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Answer" /> The prostate is the male homologue (variation) to the Skene's glands (which are believed to be connected to the female G-spot),<ref name="Goodman">{{cite book |author = Michael P. Goodman |title = Female Genital Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery |isbn = 978-1-118-84847-0 |publisher = [[John Wiley & Sons]] |date = 2016 |pages = 18–19 |access-date = March 25, 2018 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=-p6ECwAAQBAJ&pg=PA18 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180506053119/https://books.google.com/books?id=-p6ECwAAQBAJ&pg=PA18 |archive-date = May 6, 2018 }}</ref> and can be sexually stimulated through anal sex, perineum massage or a vibrator.<ref name="Jamnicky">{{cite book |vauthors = Jamnicky L, Nam R |title = Canadian Guide to Prostate Cancer |isbn = 978-1-118-51565-5 |publisher = [[John Wiley & Sons]] |date = 2012 |page = 167 |access-date = March 25, 2018 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=EFJhvLJeWX4C&pg=PT167 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180506053120/https://books.google.com/books?id=EFJhvLJeWX4C&pg=PT167 |archive-date = May 6, 2018 }}</ref> Much of the available information about prostate-induced orgasms comes from anecdotal reports by individuals, and the exact mechanisms by which such orgasms are produced are unclear; some sources suggest this occurs via stimulation of nerves in the [[Prostatic plexus (nervous)|prostatic plexus]] surrounding the organ, others suggest it is via nerves within the prostate itself, and others say changes in the brain ([[neuroplasticity]]) are required to derive pleasure from prostate stimulation. Regardless, prostate-induced orgasms are often reported to be intensely pleasurable.<ref name="Levin 2018">{{cite journal |last1 = Levin |first1 = R. J. |title = Prostate-induced orgasms: A concise review illustrated with a highly relevant case study |journal = Clinical Anatomy |date = 2018 |volume = 31 |issue = 1 |pages = 81–85 |pmid = 29265651 |doi = 10.1002/ca.23006 |doi-access = free }}</ref> Prostate stimulation can produce a deeper orgasm, described by some men as more widespread and intense, longer-lasting, and allowing for greater feelings of ecstasy than orgasm elicited by penile stimulation only.<ref name="Rosenthal" /><ref name="Levin 2018" /><ref name="Answer" /> The practice of [[pegging (sexual practice)|pegging]] (consisting of a woman penetrating a man's anus with a [[strap-on dildo]]) stimulates the prostate. It is typical for a man to not reach orgasm as a receptive partner solely from anal sex.<ref name="W. Ross">{{cite book |author = Michael W. Ross |title = Psychopathology and Psychotherapy in Homosexuality |isbn = 978-0-86656-499-1 |publisher = [[Psychology Press]] |date = 1988 |pages = 49–50 |access-date = December 22, 2013 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=DWN2-QpbvY8C&pg=PA50 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055205/https://books.google.com/books?id=DWN2-QpbvY8C&pg=PA50 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="McConaghy">{{cite book |author = Nathaniel McConaghy |title = Sexual Behavior: Problems and Management |isbn = 978-0-306-44177-6 |publisher = [[Springer Science & Business Media]] |date = 1993 |page = 186 |access-date = March 25, 2018 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=t31pR2FybjMC&pg=PA186 |quote = In homosexual relations, most men do not reach orgasm in receptive anal intercourse, and a number report not reaching orgasm by any method in many of their sexual relationships, which they nevertheless enjoy. |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180506053119/https://books.google.com/books?id=t31pR2FybjMC&pg=PA186 |archive-date = May 6, 2018 }}</ref>

For women, penile-anal penetration may also indirectly stimulate the clitoris by the shared sensory nerves, especially the [[pudendal nerve]], which gives off the [[inferior anal nerves]] and divides into the [[perineal nerve]] and the [[dorsal nerve of clitoris|dorsal nerve of the clitoris]].<ref name="Answer" /> The G-spot area, which is considered to be interconnected with the clitoris,<ref name="O'Connell" /><ref name="Answer" /><ref name="Kilchevsky" /> may also be indirectly stimulated during anal sex.<ref name="Zdrok">{{cite book |first = Victoria |last = Zdrok |title = The Anatomy of Pleasure |publisher = Infinity Publishing |date = 2004 |pages = 100–102 |access-date = July 5, 2013 |isbn = 978-0-7414-2248-4 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Cx62zwSwbcsC&pg=PA100 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055211/https://books.google.com/books?id=Cx62zwSwbcsC&pg=PA100 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Taormino">See [https://books.google.com/books?id=bG8XqRO6rRQC&pg=PA3 page 3] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055218/https://books.google.com/books?id=bG8XqRO6rRQC&pg=PA3 |date=February 27, 2023 }} for women preferring anal sex to vaginal sex, and [https://books.google.com/books?id=bG8XqRO6rRQC&pg=PA15 page 15] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055221/https://books.google.com/books?id=bG8XqRO6rRQC&pg=PA15 |date=February 27, 2023 }} for reaching orgasm through indirect stimulation of the G-spot. {{cite book |author = Tristan Taormino |author-link = Tristan Taormino |title = The Ultimate Guide to Anal Sex for Women |isbn = 978-1-57344-221-3 |publisher = Cleis Press |date = 1997 |pages = 282 pages |access-date = November 6, 2011 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=hLv1ohTIiicC |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055225/https://books.google.com/books?id=hLv1ohTIiicC |url-status = live }}</ref> Although the anus has many nerve endings, their purpose is not specifically for inducing orgasm, and so a woman achieving orgasm solely by anal stimulation is rare.<ref name="Tarrant">{{cite book |author = Shira Tarrant |title = Politics: In the Streets and Between the Sheets in the 21st Century |isbn = 978-1-317-81475-7 |publisher = [[Routledge]] |date = 2015 |pages = 247–248 |access-date = March 11, 2017 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=t6nwCQAAQBAJ&pg=PT247 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055147/https://books.google.com/books?id=t6nwCQAAQBAJ&pg=PT247 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Valdez">{{cite book |author = Natasha Janina Valdez |title = Vitamin O: Why Orgasms Are Vital to a Woman's Health and Happiness, and How to Have Them Every Time! |isbn = 978-1-61608-311-3 |publisher = [[Skyhorse Publishing]] Inc. |date = 2011 |page = 79 |access-date = November 6, 2011 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=5PsNKTB87isC&pg=PT79 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055148/https://books.google.com/books?id=5PsNKTB87isC&pg=PT79 |url-status = live }}</ref> Direct stimulation of the clitoris, a G-spot area, or both, while engaging in anal sex can help some women enjoy the activity and reach orgasm during it.<ref name="Carroll" /><ref name="Taormino" />

The aforementioned orgasms are sometimes referred to as ''anal orgasms'',<ref name="Valdez" /><ref name="Wasserman">{{cite book |author = Marlene Wasserman |title = Pillowbook: creating a sensual lifestyle |isbn = 978-1-77020-009-8 |publisher = Oshun |date = 2007 |access-date = November 6, 2011 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=BC74fx9DrqoC&pg=PA95 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055149/https://books.google.com/books?id=BC74fx9DrqoC&pg=PA95 |url-status = live }}</ref> but sexologists and sex educators generally believe that orgasms derived from anal penetration are the result of the relationship between the nerves of the anus, rectum, clitoris or G-spot area in women, and the anus's proximity to the prostate and relationship between the anal and rectal nerves in men, rather than orgasms originating from the anus itself.<ref name="Answer" /><ref name="Taormino" /><ref name="Valdez" />

=== Nipple stimulation ===

For women, stimulation of the [[breast]] area during sexual intercourse or foreplay, or solely having the breasts [[Physical intimacy|fondled]], can create mild to intense orgasms, sometimes referred to as a ''breast orgasm'' or ''nipple orgasm''.<ref name="Komisaruk 2" /> Few women report experiencing orgasm from nipple stimulation.<ref name="Boston" /><ref name="Kinsey">{{cite book |vauthors = Kinsey AC, Pomeroy WB, Martin CE, Gebhard PH |title = Sexual Behavior in the Human Female |publisher = [[Indiana University Press]] |isbn = 978-0-253-01924-0 |page = 587 |date = 1998 |access-date = August 12, 2017 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JHWHCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA587 |quote = There are some females who appear to find no erotic satisfaction in having their breasts manipulated; perhaps half of them derive some distinct satisfaction, but not more than a very small percentage ever respond intensely enough to reach orgasm as a result of such stimulation (Chapter 5). [...] Records of females reaching orgasm from breast stimulation alone are rare. }}</ref> Before Komisaruk et al.'s fMRI research on nipple stimulation in 2011, reports of women achieving orgasm from nipple stimulation relied solely on [[anecdotal evidence]].<ref name="Smith">{{cite book |author = Merril D. Smith |title = Cultural Encyclopedia of the Breast |publisher = [[Rowman & Littlefield]] |isbn = 978-0-7591-2332-8 |page = 71 |date = 2014 |access-date = August 12, 2017 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=qrCCBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA71 }}</ref> Komisaruk's study was the first to map the female genitals onto the sensory portion of the brain; it indicates that sensation from the nipples travels to the same part of the brain as sensations from the vagina, clitoris and cervix, and that these reported orgasms are genital orgasms caused by nipple stimulation and may be directly linked to the genital sensory cortex ("the genital area of the brain").<ref name="Smith" /><ref name="Lehmiller">{{cite book |author = Justin J. Lehmiller |title = The Psychology of Human Sexuality |publisher = [[John Wiley & Sons]] |isbn = 978-1-118-35132-1 |page = 120 |date = 2013 |access-date = August 12, 2017 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=pQRgAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT120 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055151/https://books.google.com/books?id=pQRgAgAAQBAJ&pg=PT120 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Komisaruk 2">{{br}}{{bull}}{{Cite journal |vauthors = Komisaruk BR, Wise N, Frangos E, Liu WC, Allen K, Brody S |title = Women's Clitoris, Vagina, and Cervix Mapped on the Sensory Cortex: fMRI Evidence |journal = [[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]] |date = 2011 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2011.02388.x |volume = 8 |issue = 10 |pages = 2822–30 |pmid = 21797981 |pmc = 3186818 }}{{br}}{{bull}}{{cite news |author = Stephanie Pappas |date = August 5, 2011 |title = Surprise finding in response to nipple stimulation |work = CBS News |url = http://www.cbsnews.com/news/surprise-finding-in-response-to-nipple-stimulation/ |access-date = December 15, 2013 |archive-date = July 1, 2016 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160701074316/http://www.cbsnews.com/news/surprise-finding-in-response-to-nipple-stimulation/ |url-status = live }}</ref>

An orgasm is believed to occur in part because of oxytocin, which is produced in the body during sexual excitement and arousal, and labor. It has also been shown that oxytocin is produced when a man or woman's nipples are stimulated and become erect.<ref name="Komisaruk 2" /><ref>{{Cite journal |vauthors = Levin R, Meston C |title = Nipple/Breast stimulation and sexual arousal in young men and women |journal = The Journal of Sexual Medicine |volume = 3 |issue = 3 |pages = 450–4 |date = May 2006 |pmid = 16681470 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2006.00230.x |citeseerx = 10.1.1.421.7798 }}</ref> Komisaruk also relays that preliminary data suggests that nipple nerves may directly link up with the relevant parts of the brain without uterine mediation, acknowledging the men in his study who showed the same pattern of nipple stimulation activating genital brain regions.<ref name="Komisaruk 2" />

== Medical aspects ==

=== Physiological responses ===

Masters and Johnson were some of the first researchers to study the sexual response cycle in the early 1960s, based on the observation of 382 women and 312 men. They describe a cycle that begins with excitement as blood rushes into the genitals, then reaches a plateau during which they are fully aroused, which leads to orgasm, and finally resolution, in which the blood leaves the genitals.<ref name="M&J" />

In the 1970s, Kaplan added the category of desire to the cycle, which she argues precedes sexual excitation. She states that emotions of anxiety, defensiveness, and the failure of communication can interfere with desire and orgasm.<ref>{{Cite journal |author = Kaplan HS |title = Hypoactive sexual desire |journal = [[Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy]] |volume = 3 |issue = 1 |pages = 3–9 |date = 1977 |pmid = 864734 |doi = 10.1080/00926237708405343 }}</ref> In the late 1980s and after, Rosemary Basson proposed a more cyclical alternative to what had largely been viewed as a linear progression.<ref>{{Cite news |first = Martin |last = Portner |title = The Orgasmic Mind: The Neurological Roots of Sexual Pleasure |date = May 15, 2008 |url = http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-orgasmic-mind |work = Scientific American |access-date = July 16, 2009 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131102222534/http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-orgasmic-mind |archive-date = November 2, 2013 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> In her model, desire feeds arousal and orgasm and is in turn fueled by the rest of the orgasmic cycle. Rather than orgasm being the peak of the sexual experience, she suggests that it is just one point in the circle and that people could feel sexually satisfied at any stage, reducing the focus on climax as an end goal of all sexual activity.<ref>{{Cite journal |author = Basson R |title = The female sexual response: a different model |journal = [[Journal of Sex & Marital Therapy]] |volume = 26 |issue = 1 |pages = 51–65 |date = 2000 |pmid = 10693116 |doi = 10.1080/009262300278641 |doi-access = free }}</ref>

==== Females ====

A woman's orgasm may, in some cases, last a little longer than a man's.<ref name="Rathus" /><ref name=soc/><ref>{{Cite news |title = Women fall into 'trance' during orgasm |work = The Times |date = June 20, 2005 |url = http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article535521.ece |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110715222511/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/article535521.ece |archive-date = July 15, 2011 |access-date = August 6, 2012 |location = London }}</ref> Women's orgasms have been estimated to last on average approximately 20 seconds and to consist of a series of muscular contractions in the pelvic area that includes the vagina, the uterus, and the anus.<ref name="Levin">{{Cite journal |last = Levin |first = Roy J. |author2 = Gorm Wagner |author-link2 = Gorm Wagner |date = 1985 |title = Orgasm in women in the laboratory—quantitative studies on duration, intensity, latency, and vaginal blood flow |journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior |volume = 14 |issue = 5 |pages = 439–449 |doi = 10.1007/BF01542004 |pmid = 4062540 |s2cid = 6967042 }}</ref> For some women, on some occasions, these contractions begin soon after the woman reports that the orgasm has started and continue at intervals of about one second with initially increasing and then reducing intensity. In some instances, the series of regular contractions is followed by a few additional contractions or shudders at irregular intervals.<ref name="Levin" /> In other cases, the woman reports having an orgasm, but no pelvic contractions are measured at all.<ref>{{Cite journal |last = Bohlen |first = Joseph G. |author2 = James P. Held |author3 = Margaret Olwen Sanderson |author4 = Andrew Ahlgren |title = The female orgasm: Pelvic contractions |journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior |date = 1982 |pages = 367–386 |volume = 11 |issue = 5 |doi = 10.1007/BF01541570 |pmid = 7181645 |s2cid = 33863189 }}</ref>

Women's orgasms are preceded by the erection of the clitoris and moistening of the opening of the vagina. Some women exhibit a [[sex flush]], a reddening of the skin over much of the body due to increased blood flow to the skin. As a woman nears orgasm, the clitoral glans retracts under the clitoral hood, and the [[labia minora]] (inner lips) become darker. As orgasm becomes imminent, the outer third of the vagina tightens and narrows, while overall the vagina lengthens and dilates and also becomes congested from engorged soft tissue.<ref>{{cite web |title = Anatomic and physiologic changes during female sexual response |website = Clinical Proceedings |publisher = Association of Reproductive Health Professionals |url = http://www.arhp.org/healthcareproviders/cme/onlinecme/NYNCP/changes.cfm |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080708005232/http://www.arhp.org/healthcareproviders/cme/onlinecme/NYNCP/changes.cfm |archive-date = July 8, 2008 |access-date = February 1, 2007 }}</ref>

Elsewhere in the body, [[myofibroblast]]s of the nipple-[[Areolar connective tissue|areolar]] complex contract, causing erection of the nipples and contraction of the areolar diameter, reaching their maximum at the start of orgasm.<ref>{{cite journal |journal = [[Sexual and Relationship Therapy]] |volume = 21 |issue = 1 |pages = 237–249 |title = The Breast/Nipple/Areola Complex and Human Sexuality |date = May 2, 2006 |last = Levin |first = Roy |quote = Areola corrugation immediately after orgasm physically signals that orgasm has occurred |doi = 10.1080/14681990600674674 |s2cid = 219696836 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> A woman experiences full orgasm when her uterus, vagina, anus, and pelvic muscles undergo a series of rhythmic contractions. Most women find these contractions very pleasurable.

Researchers from the [[University of Groningen|University Medical Center of Groningen]] in the [[Netherlands]] correlated the sensation of orgasm with muscular contractions occurring at a frequency of 8–13&nbsp;Hz centered in the pelvis and measured in the anus. They argue that the presence of this particular frequency of contractions can distinguish between voluntary contraction of these muscles and spontaneous involuntary contractions, and appears to more accurately correlate with orgasm as opposed to other metrics like heart rate that only measure excitation. They assert that they have identified "[t]he first objective and quantitative measure that has a strong correspondence with the subjective experience that orgasm ultimately is" and state that the measure of contractions that occur at a frequency of 8–13&nbsp;Hz is specific to orgasm. They found that using this metric they could distinguish between rest, voluntary muscular contractions, and even unsuccessful orgasm attempts.<ref name = "Kortekaas 2008">{{Cite journal |vauthors = van Netten JJ, Georgiadis JR, Nieuwenburg A, Kortekaas R |title = 8–13 Hz fluctuations in rectal pressure are an objective marker of clitorally-induced orgasm in women |journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior |volume = 37 |issue = 2 |pages = 279–85 |date = April 2008 |pmid = 17186125 |doi = 10.1007/s10508-006-9112-9 |s2cid = 17498707 |url = https://eprints.qut.edu.au/93254/1/Van%20Netten%20Georgiadis%20ms_aseb-06-50.pdf |access-date = May 29, 2020 |archive-date = September 18, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200918023850/https://eprints.qut.edu.au/93254/1/Van%20Netten%20Georgiadis%20ms_aseb-06-50.pdf |url-status = live }}</ref>

Since ancient times in Western Europe, women could be [[Medical diagnosis|medically diagnosed]] with a disorder called [[female hysteria]], the symptoms of which included faintness, nervousness, insomnia, fluid retention, heaviness in abdomen, muscle spasm, shortness of breath, irritability, loss of appetite for food or sex, and "a tendency to cause trouble".<ref name=Maines>{{cite book |author = Maines, Rachel P. |title = The Technology of Orgasm: "Hysteria", the Vibrator, and Women's Sexual Satisfaction |publisher = The Johns Hopkins University Press |location = Baltimore |date = 1998 |isbn = 978-0-8018-6646-3 }}</ref> Women considered to have the condition would sometimes undergo "pelvic massage:" stimulation of the genitals by the doctor until the woman experienced "hysterical paroxysm" (i.e., orgasm). Paroxysm was regarded as a medical treatment and not a sexual release.<ref name=Maines/> The disorder has ceased to be recognized as a medical condition since the 1920s.

==== Males ====

As a man nears orgasm during stimulation of the penis, he feels an intense and highly pleasurable pulsating sensation of [[Neuromuscular junction|neuromuscular]] [[euphoria]]. These pulsating sensations originate from the contractions of pelvic floor muscles that begin in the anal sphincter and travel to the tip of the penis, commonly described as a "throbbing" or "tingling" sensation. They eventually increase in speed and intensity as the orgasm approaches, until a final "plateau" (the orgasmic) pleasure is sustained for several seconds.<ref name="Dunn" />

During orgasm a male experiences rapid, rhythmic contractions of the [[Human anus|anal sphincter]], the prostate, and the [[bulbospongiosus muscle]]s of the penis. The [[sperm]] are transmitted up the [[vasa deferentia]] from the [[testicles]], into the prostate gland as well as through the [[seminal vesicle]]s to produce what is known as [[semen]].<ref name="Dunn" /> The prostate produces a secretion that forms one of the components of ejaculate. Except for in cases of a dry orgasm, contraction of the sphincter and prostate force stored semen to be expelled through [[External urethral orifice (male)|the penis's urethral opening]]. The process takes from three to ten seconds and produces a pleasurable feeling.<ref name="Mah" /><ref name="Dunn" /> Ejaculation may continue for a few seconds after the euphoric sensation gradually tapers off. It is believed that the feeling of "orgasm" varies from one man to another.<ref name="Mah" />  After ejaculation, a refractory period usually occurs, during which a man cannot achieve another orgasm. This can last anywhere from less than a minute to several hours or days, depending on age and other individual factors.<ref name="soc" /><ref name="Schacter" /><ref name="Weiner & Craighead" />

=== Brain ===

There have been very few studies correlating orgasm and brain activity in real time. One study examined 12 healthy women using a [[positron emission tomography]] (PET) scanner while they were being stimulated by their partners. Brain changes were observed and compared between states of rest, sexual stimulation, faked orgasm, and actual orgasm. Differences were reported in the brains of men and women during stimulation. Changes in brain activity were observed in both sexes, as regions associated with behavioral control, fear, and anxiety shut down. Regarding these, [[Gert Holstege]] said in an interview with ''[[The Times]]'', "What this means is that deactivation, letting go of all fear and anxiety, might be the most important thing, even necessary, to have an orgasm."<ref>{{Cite news |first = Mark |last = Henderson |title = Women fall into 'trance' during orgasm |date = June 20, 2005 |url = https://www.thetimes.com/uk/science/article/women-fall-into-trance-during-orgasm-q2vw29lpl0s |work = [[The Times]] |access-date = December 8, 2011 |location = London |archive-date = January 2, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170102070253/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/health/article1964119.ece |url-status = live }}</ref>

While stroking the clitoris, the parts of the female brain responsible for processing fear, anxiety, and behavioral control start to diminish in activity. This reaches a peak at orgasm when the female brain's emotion centers are effectively closed down to produce an almost trance-like state. Holstege is quoted as saying, at the 2005 meeting of the European Society for Human Reproduction and Development: "At the moment of orgasm, women do not have any emotional feelings."<ref>{{Cite news |first = Martin |last = Portner |title = The Orgasmic Mind: The Neurological Roots of Sexual Pleasure |date = May 15, 2008 |url = http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-orgasmic-mind |work = Scientific American |access-date = July 7, 2009 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131102222534/http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=the-orgasmic-mind |archive-date = November 2, 2013 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> A subsequent report by Rudie Kortekaas, et al. states, "Gender commonalities were most evident during orgasm... From these results, we conclude that during the sexual act, differential brain responses across genders are principally related to the stimulatory (plateau) phase and not to the orgasmic phase itself."<ref name="Georgiadis" /> Research has shown that as in women, the emotional centers of a man's brain also become deactivated during orgasm but to a lesser extent than in women. Brain scans of both sexes have shown that the [[pleasure center]]s of a man's brain show more intense activity than in women during orgasm.<ref>''The Scientific American Book of Love, Sex, and the Brain: The Neuroscience of How, When, Why, and Who we love'', Judith Horstman (2011)</ref> Male and female brains demonstrate similar changes during orgasm, with brain activity scans showing a temporary decrease in the [[metabolism|metabolic]] activity of large parts of the [[cerebral cortex]] with normal or increased metabolic activity in the limbic areas of the brain.<ref name="Georgiadis" />

[[EEG]] tracings from volunteers during orgasm were first obtained by Mosovich and Tallaferro in 1954,<ref>{{cite journal |date = 1954 |title = Studies on EEG and sex function orgasm |journal = [[The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry|Diseases of the nervous system]] |volume = 15 |issue = 7 |pages = 218–20 |last1 = Mosovich |first1 = A. |last2 = Tallaferro |first2 = A. |pmid = 13182975 }}</ref> who recorded EEG changes resembling [[petit mal]] or the clonic phase of a [[grand mal]] seizure. Further studies in this direction were carried out by Sem-Jacobsen (1968), Heath (1972), Cohen et al. (1976),<ref>{{cite journal |date = May 1976 |title = Electroencephalographic laterality changes during human sexual orgasm |journal = [[Archives of Sexual Behavior]] |volume = 5 |issue = 3 |quote = Left and right parietal EEGs were recorded while seven subjects experienced sexual climax through self-stimulation |pmid = 952604 |doi = 10.1007/BF01541370 |last1 = Cohen |first1 = Harvey D. |last2 = Rosen |first2 = Raymond C. |last3 = Goldstein |first3 = Leonide |pages = 189–99 |s2cid = 23267494 }}</ref> and others.<ref>{{cite book |last1 = Niedermeyer |first1 = Ernst |first2 = Fernando Lopes da |last2 = Silva |title = Electroencephalography: Basic Principles, Clinical Applications, and Related Fields |edition = 5 |date = 2012 |publisher = [[Lippincott Williams & Wilkins]] |isbn = 978-1-4698-0175-9 |page = 183 |chapter = Polarity and Field Determination |chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OBCpFaNpm9kC&pg=PA161 |access-date = February 1, 2016 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055148/https://books.google.com/books?id=OBCpFaNpm9kC&pg=PA161 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last = Bancroft |first = John |title = Human Sexuality And Its Problems |edition = 3 |date = 2009 |publisher = [[Elsevier Health Sciences]] |isbn = 978-0-443-05161-6 |page = 88 |chapter = Sexual arousal and response the psychosomatic circle |chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=bI-Jau14aLAC&pg=PA55 |access-date = February 1, 2016 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055149/https://books.google.com/books?id=bI-Jau14aLAC&pg=PA55 |url-status = live }}</ref> Sarrel et al. reported a similar observation in 1977. These reports continue to be cited.<ref>As examples, take:
*{{in lang|pl}} [[Kazimierz Imieliński]]. Zarys seksuologii i seksiatrii. [[Warsaw]] 1986, PZWL, {{ISBN|83-200-1047-0}} See also in the following Russian translation: Имелинский К.: Сексология и сексопатология (Sexology a. Sexopathology). [[Moscow]]: Медицина, 1986. — С. 57. (Chapter "Nervous system")
*{{in lang|ru}} [[Abram Svyadoshch]]. Женская сексопатология (Female sexopathology). — 3-е изд., перераб. и доп. — [[Moscow|Москва]]: Медицина, 1988. — С. 17 (the chapter entitled "Orgasm"). {{ISBN|5-225-00188-2}}
*{{in lang|ru}} [[Lev Shcheglov]]. Сексология. Врачу и пациенту. — [[Saint Petersburg]]: Олма-Пресс. — С. 81–82 (#4.3 "The main physiological processes ensuring sex function in humans"). {{ISBN|5-7654-1068-5}}, {{ISBN|5-224-02421-8}}</ref> Unlike them, Craber et al. (1985) failed to find any distinctive EEG changes in four men during masturbation and ejaculation; the authors concluded that the case for the existence of EEG changes specifically related to sexual arousal and orgasm remained unproven.<ref>{{cite journal |date = December 1985 |title = EEG during masturbation and ejaculation |journal = [[Archives of Sexual Behavior]] |volume = 14 |issue = 6 |quote = Examination of the literature shows little agreement among reported results of studies of EEG changes during orgasm. |pmid = 4084049 |last1 = Graber |first1 = B |last2 = Rohrbaugh |first2 = JW |last3 = Newlin |first3 = DB |last4 = Varner |first4 = JL |last5 = Ellingson |first5 = RJ |pages = 491–503 |doi = 10.1007/BF01541750 |s2cid = 31588348 }}</ref> So disagreement arises as to whether the experiment conducted by Mosovich and Tallaferro casts a new light on the nature of orgasm. In some recent studies, authors tend to adopt the opposite point of view that there are no remarkable EEG changes during ejaculation in humans.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Holstege |first1 = Gert |last2 = Georgiadis |first2 = Janniko R. |last3 = Paans |first3 = Anne M. J. |last4 = Meiners |first4 = Linda C. |last5 = Graaf |first5 = Ferdinand H. C. E. van der |last6 = Reinders |first6 = A. A. T. Simone |date = October 8, 2003 |title = Brain Activation during Human Male Ejaculation |journal = [[The Journal of Neuroscience]] |volume = 23 |issue = 27 |page = 9188 |format = PDF, HTML |doi = 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.23-27-09185.2003 |pmid = 14534252 |pmc = 6740826 |url = http://www.jneurosci.org/content/23/27/9185.full.pdf+html |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160101093636/http://www.jneurosci.org/content/23/27/9185.full.pdf%2Bhtml |archive-date = January 1, 2016 |df = mdy-all |doi-access = free }}</ref>

=== Health ===

==== General ====

Orgasm, and sexual activity as a whole, are physical activities that can require exertion of many major bodily systems. A 1997 study in the ''[[BMJ]]'' based upon 918 men aged 45–59 found that after a ten-year follow-up, men who had fewer orgasms were twice as likely to die of any cause as those having two or more orgasms per week.<ref>{{cite journal |title = Sex and Death: Are They Related? Findings from the Caerphilly cohort study |journal = [[BMJ]] |volume = 1997 |issue = 315 |pages = 1641–4 |doi = 10.1136/bmj.315.7123.1641 |date = December 20, 1997 |first1 = George |last1 = Davey Smith |author-link1 = George Davey Smith |first2 = Stephen |last2 = Frenkel |first3 = John |last3 = Yarnell |pmid = 9448525 |pmc = 2128033 }}</ref> A follow-up in 2001 which focused more specifically on [[cardiovascular]] health found that having sex three or more times per week was associated with a 50 percent reduction in the risk of heart attack or stroke. There is some research suggesting that greater resting heart rate variability is associated with orgasms through penile-vaginal intercourse without additional simultaneous clitoral stimulation.<ref name="Pappas" />

A small percentage of men have a disease called [[postorgasmic illness syndrome]] (POIS), which causes severe muscle pain throughout the body and other symptoms immediately following ejaculation. The symptoms last for up to a week.<ref name="Balon2005">{{cite book |title = Handbook of Sexual Dysfunction |publisher = Taylor & Francis |veditors = Balon R, Segraves RT |date = 2005 |isbn = 978-0-8247-5826-4 }}</ref><ref name="Wylie2015">{{cite book |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=oH64CAAAQBAJ&q=Post%20orgaasmic%20illness%20syndrome&pg=PA75 |title = ABC of Sexual Health |publisher = John Wiley & Sons |date = 2015 |page = 75 |isbn = 978-1-118-66556-5 |editor = Wylie KR |access-date = October 21, 2015 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055206/https://books.google.com/books?id=oH64CAAAQBAJ&q=Post%20orgaasmic%20illness%20syndrome&pg=PA75 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="GARD">{{cite encyclopedia |title = Postorgasmic illness syndrome |encyclopedia = Genetic and Rare Diseases Information Center (GARD) |publisher = [[National Institutes of Health]] |access-date = July 30, 2015 |date = 2015 |url = https://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/gard/10809/postorgasmic-illness-syndrome/resources/1 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160305193016/https://rarediseases.info.nih.gov/gard/10809/postorgasmic-illness-syndrome/resources/1 |archive-date = March 5, 2016 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> Some doctors speculate that the frequency of POIS "in the population may be greater than has been reported in the academic literature",<ref name="Ashby2010">{{cite journal |title = Postorgasm illness syndrome--a spectrum of illnesses |vauthors = Ashby J, Goldmeier D |journal = J. Sex. Med. |date = May 2010 |volume = 7 |issue = 5 |pages = 1976–81 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2010.01707.x |pmid = 20214722 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> and that many people with POIS are undiagnosed.<ref name="McMahon2014">{{cite journal |url = https://www.statusplus.net/issm/saopaulo2014/presentations/082.pdf |title = Post-Orgasmic Illness Syndrome |author = McMahon CG |journal = 16th World Meeting on Sexual Medicine |date = October 2014 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160304110554/https://www.statusplus.net/issm/saopaulo2014/presentations/082.pdf |archive-date = March 4, 2016 |df = mdy-all |accessdate = August 11, 2015 }}</ref>

==== Dysfunction and satisfaction ====
{{Further|Orgasm gap}}

The inability to have an orgasm, or regular difficulty reaching orgasm after ample sexual stimulation, is called anorgasmia or inorgasmia.<ref name="Bullough">{{cite book |vauthors = Bullough VL, Bullough B |title = Human Sexuality: An Encyclopedia |publisher = [[Routledge]] |page = 32 |date = 2014 |access-date = December 6, 2014 |isbn = 978-1-135-82502-7 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=-cqlAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA32 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055204/https://books.google.com/books?id=-cqlAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA32 |url-status = live }}</ref> If a male experiences erection and ejaculation but no orgasm, he is said to have [[sexual anhedonia]] (a condition in which an individual cannot feel pleasure from an orgasm) or ejaculatory [[anhedonia]]. Anorgasmia is significantly more common in women than in men,<ref name="Rosenthal 2">{{cite book |first = Martha |last = Rosenthal |title = Human Sexuality: From Cells to Society |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2012 |page = 150 |access-date = October 22, 2013 |isbn = 978-0-618-75571-4 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PT170 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055213/https://books.google.com/books?id=d58z5hgQ2gsC&pg=PT170 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Weiner2">{{cite book |vauthors = Weiner IB, Stricker G, Widiger TA |title = Handbook of Psychology, Clinical Psychology |publisher = [[John Wiley & Sons]] |date = 2012 |access-date = October 22, 2013 |pages = 172–175 |isbn = 978-1-118-40443-0 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=A_NaK3cwQSsC&pg=PA172 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055236/https://books.google.com/books?id=A_NaK3cwQSsC&pg=PA172 |url-status = live }}</ref> which has been attributed to the lack of [[sex education]] about women's bodies, especially in [[Antisexualism|sex-negative]] cultures, such as clitoral stimulation usually being key for women to orgasm.<ref name="Weiner2" />

Approximately 25 percent of women report difficulties with orgasm,<ref name="Carroll 2">{{cite book |author = Janell L. Carroll |title = Discovery Series: Human Sexuality, 1st ed |publisher = [[Cengage]] |pages = 302–303 |isbn = 978-1-111-84189-8 |date = 2012 |access-date = August 25, 2013 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=gU3SZSh-eXsC&pg=PT334 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055149/https://books.google.com/books?id=gU3SZSh-eXsC&pg=PT334 |url-status = live }}</ref> 10% of women have never had an orgasm,<ref name="Plotnik">{{cite book |author1 = Rod Plotnik |author2 = Haig Kouyoumdjian |title = Introduction to Psychology |publisher = [[Cengage]] |date = 2010 |page = 344 |isbn = 978-0-495-90344-4 |quote = Inhibited female orgasm refers to a persistent delay or absence of orgasm after becoming aroused and excited. About 10% of women never reach orgasm... }}</ref> and 40 percent or 40–50 percent have either complained about sexual dissatisfaction or experienced difficulty becoming sexually aroused at some point in their lives.<ref name="Knoepp">{{cite journal |vauthors = Knoepp LR, Shippey SH, Chen CC, Cundiff GW, Derogatis LR, Handa VL |title = Sexual complaints, pelvic floor symptoms, and sexual distress in women over forty |journal = [[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]] |volume = 7 |issue = 11 |pages = 3675–82 |date = 2010 |pmid = 20704643 |pmc = 3163299 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2010.01955.x }}</ref> A 1994 study by Laumann et al. found that 75 percent of men and 29 percent of women always had orgasms with their spouse, while 40 percent of men and 80 percent of women thought their spouse always orgasmed during sex.<ref name="Laumann">{{cite book |isbn = 978-0-226-47020-7 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=72AHO0rE2HoC&pg=PA130 |title = The Social Organization of Sexuality: Sexual Practices in the United States |last1 = Laumann |first1 = Edward O. |page = 130 |date = December 15, 2000 | publisher=University of Chicago Press |access-date = February 1, 2022 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055148/https://books.google.com/books?id=72AHO0rE2HoC&pg=PA130 |url-status = live }}</ref> These rates were different in non-marital straight relationships (cohabitational, long-term and short-term heterosexual relationships), with rates increasing to 81 percent for men and 43 percent for women orgasming during sex with their short-term partners, and 69 percent for men and 83 percent for women thinking their short-term partners always orgasmed.<ref name="Laumann" /> Women are much more likely to be nearly always or always orgasmic when alone than with a partner.<ref name="Kinsey Institute" /> In a 1996 study by Davis et{{nbsp}}al., 62 percent of women in a partnered relationship said they were satisfied with the frequency/consistency of their orgasms.<ref name="Kinsey Institute" /> Additionally, some women express that their most satisfying sexual experiences entail being connected to someone, rather than solely basing satisfaction on orgasm.<ref name="Wincze">{{Cite book |author = John Wincze |title = Enhancing Sexuality: A Problem-Solving Approach to Treating Dysfunction |date = 2009 |publisher = [[Oxford University Press]] |page = 60 |isbn = 978-0-19-971802-3 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=8YxbeHsgiGMC&pg=PA60 |access-date = October 21, 2015 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055151/https://books.google.com/books?id=8YxbeHsgiGMC&pg=PA60 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Gurian">{{cite book |author = Michael Gurian |title = The Wonder of Aging: A New Approach to Embracing Life After Fifty |publisher = [[Simon & Schuster]] |date = 2013 |page = 178 |access-date = December 9, 2014 |isbn = 978-1-4767-0671-9 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=XyS5ebuXJWgC&pg=PT178 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055155/https://books.google.com/books?id=XyS5ebuXJWgC&pg=PT178 |url-status = live }}</ref>

Kinsey's 1953 ''[[Kinsey Reports|Sexual Behavior in the Human Female]]'' shows that over the previous five years of sexual activity, 78 percent of women had orgasms in 60–100 percent of [[Women who have sex with women|sexual encounters with other women]], compared with 55 percent for heterosexual sex.<ref>[[Alfred Kinsey|Kinsey, A.]]; [[Wardell Pomeroy|Pomeroy, W.]]; [[Clyde Martin|Martin, C.]], & [[Paul Gebhard|Gebhard, P.]] ''Sexual Behavior in the Human Female'', Philadelphia: Saunders (1953), {{ISBN|978-0-253-33411-4}}.</ref> Kinsey attributed this difference to female partners knowing more about women's sexuality and how to optimize women's sexual satisfaction than male partners do.<ref name="Weiten" /> Like Kinsey, scholars such as Peplau, Fingerhut, and Beals (2004) and Diamond (2006) found that lesbians have orgasms more often and more easily in sexual interactions than heterosexual women do,<ref name="Weiten" /> and that female partners are more likely to emphasize the emotional aspects of lovemaking.<ref name="Weiten" /> In contrast, research by Diane Holmberg and Karen L. Blair (2009), published in the ''Journal of Sex Research'', found that women in same-sex relationships enjoyed identical sexual desire, sexual communication, sexual satisfaction, and satisfaction with orgasm as their heterosexual counterparts.<ref>{{cite journal |title = Sexual Desire, Communication, Satisfaction, and Preferences of Men and Women in Same-Sex Versus Mixed-Sex Relationships |first1 = Diane |last1 = Holmberg |first2 = Karen Lyndsay |last2 = Blair |pages = 57–66 |doi = 10.1080/00224490802645294 |pmid = 19116863 |issn = 1559-8519 |journal = [[Journal of Sex Research|The Journal of Sex Research]] |volume = 46 |issue = 1 |date = 2009 |url = http://static1.squarespace.com/static/527403c4e4b02d3f058d2f18/t/52743826e4b08c252c719b66/1383348262856/Holmberg+%26+Blair+JSR+Vol+46+Iss+1+2009.pdf |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170125072622/http://static1.squarespace.com/static/527403c4e4b02d3f058d2f18/t/52743826e4b08c252c719b66/1383348262856/Holmberg%2B%26%2BBlair%2BJSR%2BVol%2B46%2BIss%2B1%2B2009.pdf |archive-date = January 25, 2017 |citeseerx = 10.1.1.533.9867 |s2cid = 26863933 }}</ref>

If orgasm is desired, anorgasmia may be attributed to an inability to relax. It may be associated with performance pressure and an unwillingness to pursue pleasure, as separate from the other person's satisfaction; often, women worry so much about the pleasure of their partner that they become anxious, which manifests as impatience with the delay of orgasm for them. This delay can lead to frustration of not reaching orgasmic sexual satisfaction.<ref name="Carroll 2" /> Psychoanalyst [[Wilhelm Reich]], in his 1927 book ''[[Die Funktion des Orgasmus]]'' (published in English in 1980 as ''Genitality in the Theory and Therapy of Neurosis'') was the first to make orgasm central to the concept of mental health, and he defined [[neurosis]] in terms of blocks to having [[orgastic potency]]. Although orgasm dysfunction can have psychological components, physiological factors often play a role. For instance, delayed orgasm or the inability to achieve orgasm is a common side effect of many medications.

Specifically, with simultaneous orgasm and similar practices, many sexologists claim that the problem of [[premature ejaculation]]<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.sexarchive.info/IES/italy.html |title = The International Encyclopedia of Sexuality: Italy |publisher = .hu-berlin.de |date = January 1, 1999 |access-date = October 15, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160305193730/http://www.sexarchive.info/IES/italy.html |archive-date = March 5, 2016 }}</ref> is closely related to the idea encouraged by a scientific approach in the early 20th century when mutual orgasm was overly emphasized as an objective and a sign of true sexual satisfaction in intimate relationships. [[Menopause]] may involve loss of hormones supporting sexuality and genital functionality. Vaginal and clitoral atrophy and dryness affect up to 50–60 percent of postmenopausal women.<ref>{{cite journal |pmid = 10022110 |volume = 281 |issue = 6 |title = Sexual dysfunction in the United States: prevalence and predictors |date = February 1999 |journal = JAMA |pages = 537–44 |vauthors = Laumann EO, Paik A, Rosen RC |doi = 10.1001/jama.281.6.537 |doi-access =  }}</ref> Testosterone levels in men fall as they age. Sexual dysfunction overall becomes more likely with poor physical and emotional health. "Negative experiences in sexual relationships and overall well-being" are associated with sexual dysfunction.<ref>Laumann EO, Paik A, Rosen RC, "Sexual dysfunction in the United States: prevalence and predictors", ''JAMA'', 2007 August, {{cite web |url = http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/561934 |title = Vaginal Atrophy: The 21st Century Health Issue Affecting Quality of Life |access-date = May 25, 2011 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110101113135/http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/561934 |archive-date = January 1, 2011 }}. Retrieved May 24, 2011</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors = Yee LA, Sundquist KJ |date = 2003 |title = Older women's sexuality |url = https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2003/178/12/older-womens-sexuality#i1082816 |journal = The Medical Journal of Australia |volume = 178 |issue = 12 |pages = 640–643 |doi = 10.5694/j.1326-5377.2003.tb05393.x |pmid = 12797854 |s2cid = 33581540 |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170112032713/https://www.mja.com.au/journal/2003/178/12/older-womens-sexuality#i1082816 |archive-date = January 12, 2017 |df = mdy-all |url-access = subscription }}</ref>

== Theoretical biological and evolutionary functions in females ==
{{anchor|Theoretical_biological_and_evolutionary_functions}}

=== Shifts in research ===

The function or functions of the human female orgasm have been debated among researchers.<ref>{{cite book |last1 = Wheatley |first1 = John R |last2 = Puts |first2 = David A |editor1-last = Shackelford |editor1-first = Todd K |editor2-last = Hansen |editor2-first = Ranald D |title = The Evolution of Sexuality |date = 2015 |publisher = Springer International Publishing |chapter = Evolutionary Science of Female Orgasm }}</ref> Researchers have several hypotheses about the role if any, of the female orgasm in the reproductive and therefore evolutionary process.<ref name="Geoffrey Miller" /><ref name="Wallen K, Lloyd EA" /><ref name="Lloyd" /><ref name="Gould" /> The literature started with the argument that female orgasm is a byproduct of shared early male [[ontogeny]], where male orgasm is an [[adaptation]].<ref>Symons, D. (1979). The evolution of human sexuality. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.</ref> Research has shifted to investigate and also support the sire-choice hypothesis, which proposes that female orgasm has been shaped by [[natural selection]] to function in the selection of high-quality sires (male parents) for offspring. Therefore, orgasm increases the chances of conceiving with males of high genetic quality.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Puts |first1 = D. A. |last2 = Dawood |first2 = K. |last3 = Welling |first3 = L. L. |date = 2012 |title = Why women have orgasms: An evolutionary analysis |journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior |volume = 41 |issue = 5 |pages = 1127–1143 |doi = 10.1007/s10508-012-9967-x |pmid = 22733154 |s2cid = 13125596 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Ellsworth |first1 = Ryan M. |last2 = Bailey |first2 = Drew H. |title = Human Female Orgasm as Evolved Signal: A Test of Two Hypotheses |journal = Archives of Sexual Behavior |date = July 12, 2013 |volume = 42 |issue = 8 |pages = 1545–1554 |doi = 10.1007/s10508-013-0152-7 |pmid = 23857519 |s2cid = 42000263 }}</ref> Research by [[Randy Thornhill]] et al. (1995) suggests that female orgasm is more frequent during intercourse with a male partner with low [[fluctuating asymmetry]].<ref>{{Cite journal |title = Human female orgasm and mate fluctuating asymmetry |journal = Animal Behaviour |date = January 1, 1995 |pages = 1601–1615 |volume = 50 |issue = 6 |doi = 10.1016/0003-3472(95)80014-X |first1 = Randy |last1 = Thornhill |first2 = Steven W. |last2 = Gangestad |first3 = Randall |last3 = Comer |s2cid = 44103857 }}</ref>

=== Selective pressure and mating ===

Wallen K and Lloyd EA state, "In men, orgasms are under strong selective pressure as orgasms are coupled with ejaculation and thus contribute to male reproductive success. By contrast, women's orgasms in intercourse are highly variable and are under little selective pressure as they are not a reproductive necessity."<ref name="Wallen K, Lloyd EA" />

[[Desmond Morris]] suggests in his 1967 popular science book ''[[The Naked Ape]]'' that the female orgasm evolved to encourage physical intimacy with a male partner and help reinforce the [[pair bond]]. Morris suggested that the relative difficulty in achieving female orgasm, in comparison to the male's, might be favorable in [[Darwinism|Darwinian]] evolution by leading the female to select [[Mating|mates]] who bear qualities like patience, care, imagination, and intelligence, as opposed to qualities like size and aggression, which pertain to mate selection in other primates. Such advantageous qualities thereby become accentuated within the species, driven by the differences between male and female orgasms. If males were motivated by and taken to the point of, orgasm in the same way as females, those advantageous qualities would not be needed, since self-interest would be enough.

=== Fertility ===

There are theories that the female orgasm might increase fertility.<ref name="Geoffrey Miller" /><ref name="Lloyd" /><ref name="Gould" /> For example, it has been suggested that the 30 percent reduction in the size of the vagina could help clench the penis (much like, or perhaps caused by, the [[pubococcygeus muscle]]s), which would make it more stimulating for the male (thus ensuring faster or more voluminous ejaculation). The British biologists Baker and Bellis have suggested that the female orgasm may have a [[peristalsis]] or "upsuck" action (similar to the [[esophagus]]' ability to swallow when upside down), resulting in the retaining of favorable sperm and making conception more likely.<ref>{{cite journal |doi = 10.1006/anbe.1993.1272 |last1 = Baker |first1 = R. R. |last2 = Bellis |first2 = M. A. |date = 1993 |title = Human sperm competition: Ejaculate manipulation by females and a function for the female orgasm |journal = Animal Behaviour |volume = 46 |issue = 5 |pages = 887–909 |s2cid = 53165064 }}</ref> They posited a role of female orgasm in [[Human sperm competition|sperm competition]].

The observation that women tend to reach orgasm more easily when they are ovulating also has led to the suggestion that it is tied to increasing fertility.<ref>{{cite news |first = David |last = Adam |url = https://www.theguardian.com/science/2005/jun/08/genetics.research |department = Science |date = June 8, 2005 |title = Female orgasm all in the genes |newspaper = [[The Guardian]] |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170302095146/https://www.theguardian.com/science/2005/jun/08/genetics.research |archive-date = March 2, 2017 }}</ref> Evolutionary biologist Robin Baker argues in ''[[Sperm Wars]]'' that occurrence and timing of orgasms are all a part of the female body's unconscious strategy to collect and retain sperm from more evolutionary fit men.<ref>{{Cite book |last = Baker |first = Robin |title = Sperm Wars: Infidelity, Sexual Conflict, and Other Bedroom Battles |publisher = Basic Books |date = 2006 |isbn = 1-56025-848-9 }}</ref> This theory suggests that an orgasm during intercourse functions as a bypass button to a woman's natural cervical filter against sperm and pathogens, and that an orgasm before functions to strengthen the filter.

Desmond Morris proposed that orgasm might facilitate conception by exhausting the female and keeping her horizontal, thus preventing the sperm from leaking out. This possibility sometimes called the "Poleaxe Hypothesis" or the "Knockout Hypothesis",  is now considered unlikely. A 1994 [[TLC (TV channel)|Learning Channel]] documentary on sex had fiber optic cameras inside the vagina of a woman while she had sexual intercourse. During her orgasm, her pelvic muscles contracted and her [[Vaginal portion of cervix|cervix]] repeatedly dipped into a pool of semen in the [[vaginal fornix]], which might ensure that sperm would proceed by the [[external orifice of the uterus]], making conception more likely.<ref>{{cite video |people = [[Desmond Morris]] (host) |date = 1994 |title = [[The Human Animal (TV series)|The Human Animal]] |medium = TV |publisher = The Learning Channel }}</ref>

Evolutionary psychologists Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jethá, in their discussion of the female orgasm, address how long it takes for females to achieve orgasm compared to males, and females' ability to have multiple orgasms, hypothesizing how especially well suited to multiple partners and [[insemination]] this is. They quote [[primate sexuality]] specialist Alan Dixson in saying that the monogamy-maintenance explanation for female orgasm "seems far-fetched" because "females of other primate species, and particularly those with multimale-multifemale [promiscuous] mating systems such as macaques and chimpanzees, exhibit orgasmic responses in the absence of such bonding or the formation of stable family units." On the other hand, Dixson states that "Gibbons, which are primarily monogamous, do not exhibit obvious signs of female orgasm."<ref name="Ryan">{{cite book |title = Sex at Dawn |isbn = 978-0-06-220794-4 |publisher = HarperCollins |date = 2012 |page = 263 |last1 = Ryan |first1 = Christopher |first2 = Cacilda |last2 = Jethá }}</ref>

The [[female promiscuity]] explanation of female sexuality was echoed at least 12 years earlier by other evolutionary biologists, and there is increasing scientific awareness of the female [[proceptive phase]].<ref>{{cite news |last = Browne |first = Anthony |url = https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2000/sep/03/anthonybrowne.theobserver |title = Women are promiscuous, naturally |department = UK News |date = September 2, 2000 |newspaper = [[The Guardian]] |url-status = live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160304225027/http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2000/sep/03/anthonybrowne.theobserver |archive-date = March 4, 2016 }}</ref> Though Dixson classifies humans as mildly polygynous in his survey of primate sexuality, he appears to have doubts, when he writes, "One might argue that ... the female's orgasm is rewarding, increases her willingness to copulate with a variety of males rather than one partner, and thus promotes sperm competition." Ryan and Jethá use this as evidence for their theory that [[partible paternity]] and promiscuity was common for early modern humans.<ref name="Ryan" />

=== Adaptive or vestigial ===

The clitoris is [[homology (biology)|homologous]] to the penis; that is, they both develop from the same embryonic structure.<ref name="Schünke" /><ref name="Francoeur" /> While researchers such as [[Geoffrey Miller (psychologist)|Geoffrey Miller]], [[Helen Fisher (anthropologist)|Helen Fisher]], [[Meredith Small]] and [[Sarah Blaffer Hrdy]] "have viewed the clitoral orgasm as a legitimate adaptation in its own right, with major implications for female sexual behavior and sexual evolution,"<ref name="Geoffrey Miller" /> others, such as [[Donald Symons]] and [[Stephen Jay Gould]], have asserted that the clitoris is [[vestigiality|vestigial]] or nonadaptive and that the female orgasm serves no particular evolutionary function.<ref name="Geoffrey Miller" /><ref name="Gould" /> Gould acknowledged that "most female orgasms emanate from a clitoral, rather than vaginal (or some other), site" and stated that his nonadaptive belief "has been widely misunderstood as a denial of either the adaptive value of female orgasm in general or even as a claim that female orgasms lack significance in some broader sense". He explained that although he accepts that "clitoral orgasm plays a pleasurable and central role in female sexuality and its joys," "[a]ll these favorable attributes, however, emerge just as clearly and just as easily, whether the clitoral site of orgasm arose as a [[Spandrel (biology)|spandrel]] or an adaptation". He said that the "male biologists who fretted over [the adaptionist questions] simply assumed that a deeply vaginal site, nearer the region of fertilization, would offer greater selective benefit" due to their Darwinian, ''[[summum bonum]]'' beliefs about enhanced reproductive success.<ref name="Gould" />

Proponents of the nonadaptive hypothesis, such as Elisabeth Lloyd, refer to the relative difficulty of achieving female orgasm through vaginal sex, the limited evidence for increased fertility after orgasm, and the lack of statistical correlation between the capacity of a woman to orgasm and the likelihood that she will engage in intercourse.<ref name="Lloyd" /><ref name="Chivers">{{cite journal |first1 = Meredith L. |last1 = Chivers |first2 = Michael W. |last2 = Wiedermana |title = A Narrow (But Thorough) Examination of the Evolutionary Significance of Female Orgasm |journal = [[Journal of Sex Research]] |volume = 44 |issue = 1 |pages = 104–105 |date = 2007 |doi = 10.1080/00224490709336797 |df = mdy-all }}</ref> "Lloyd is by no means against evolutionary psychology. Quite the opposite; in her methods and in her writing, she advocates and demonstrates a commitment to the careful application of evolutionary theory to the study of human behavior," stated [[Meredith Chivers|Meredith L. Chivers]]. She added that Lloyd "meticulously considers the theoretical and empirical bases for each account and ultimately concludes that there is little evidence to support an adaptionist account of female orgasm" and that Lloyd instead "views female orgasm as an ontogenetic leftover; women have orgasms because the urogenital neurophysiology for orgasm is so strongly selected for in males that this developmental blueprint gets expressed in females without affecting fitness, just as males have nipples that serve no fitness-related function".<ref name="Chivers" />

A 2005 [[twin study]] found that one in three women reported never or seldom achieving orgasm during sexual intercourse, and only one in ten always orgasmed. This variation in the ability to orgasm, generally thought to be psychosocial, was found to be 34 percent to 45 percent genetic. The study, examining 4000 women, was published in ''[[Biology Letters]]'', a [[Royal Society]] journal.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4616899.stm |title=Female orgasm is 'down to genes{{'-}} |work=[[BBC]] |date=June 7, 2005 |access-date=May 28, 2006 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161021184246/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4616899.stm |archive-date=October 21, 2016  }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Dunn |first1 = Kate M |last2 = Cherkas |first2 = Lynn F |last3 = Spector |first3 = Tim D |title = Genetic influences on variation in female orgasmic function: a twin study |journal = Biology Letters |type = Abstract |date = September 22, 2005 |volume = 1 |issue = 3 |pages = 260–263 |doi = 10.1098/rsbl.2005.0308 |pmc = 1617159 |pmid = 17148182 }}</ref> Elisabeth Lloyd has cited this as evidence for the notion that female orgasm is not adaptive.<ref name="Lloyd" /><ref name="Lloyd2">{{cite web |url = http://mypage.iu.edu/%7Eealloyd/Reviews.html#IsntItObviousThat |title = Reviews |publisher = Mypage.iu.edu |access-date = October 15, 2010 |archive-date = April 1, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200401223451/http://mypage.iu.edu/~ealloyd/Reviews.html#IsntItObviousThat |url-status = dead }}</ref>

Miller, Hrdy, Helen O'Connell, and [[Natalie Angier]] have criticized the "female orgasm is vestigial" hypothesis as understating and devaluing the psychosocial value of the female orgasm.<ref name="Geoffrey Miller" /> Hrdy stated that the hypothesis smacks of [[sexism]].<ref>{{cite news |author = Christopher Shea |title = Orgasmic science |work = The Boston Globe |date = April 24, 2005 }}</ref> O'Connell said, "It boils down to rivalry between the sexes: the idea that one sex is sexual and the other reproductive. The truth is that both are sexual and both are reproductive."<ref name="O'Connell" /> O'Connell used [[Magnetic resonance imaging|MRI]] technology to define the true size and shape of the clitoris, suggesting that it extends into the anterior wall of the vagina ([[#Females|see above]]).

O'Connell describes typical textbook descriptions of the clitoris as lacking detail and including inaccuracies, saying that the work of [[Georg Ludwig Kobelt]] in the early 19th century provides a most comprehensive and accurate description of clitoral anatomy. She argues that the bulbs appear to be part of the clitoris and that the distal urethra and vagina are intimately related structures, although they are not erectile in character, forming a tissue cluster with the clitoris that appears to be the center of female sexual function and orgasm.<ref name="O'Connell" /> By contrast, Nancy Tuana, at the 2002 conference for ''Canadian Society of Women in Philosophy'', argues that the clitoris is unnecessary in reproduction, but that this is why it has been "historically ignored", mainly because of "a fear of pleasure. It is pleasure separated from reproduction. That's the fear". She reasoned that this fear is the cause of the ignorance that veils female sexuality.<ref name="Cairney">{{cite web |last = Cairney |first = Richard |title = Exploring female sexuality |publisher = ExpressNews |date = October 21, 2002 |access-date = December 21, 2011 |url = http://www.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article.cfm?id=3201 |archive-date = December 21, 2011 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111221175533/http://www.archives.expressnews.ualberta.ca/article/2002/10/3201.html }}</ref>

=== Induced Ovulations ===
{{Main article|Induced ovulation (animals)}}

Some spontaneously ovulating species can occasionally undergo mating-induced preovulatory LH surges. These species require mating to stimulate the vagina and cervix, resulting in ovulation in the females. Research suggests that the female orgasm evolved from copulation-induced ovulation.
<ref>{{cite journal |doi = 10.1073/pnas.1910295116 |title = An experimental test of the ovulatory homolog model of female orgasm |date = 2019 |journal = Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |volume = 116 |issue = 41 |pages = 20267–20273 |pmid = 31570579 |bibcode = 2019PNAS..11620267P | vauthors = Pavlicev M, Zupan AM, Barry A, Walters S, Milano KM, Kliman HJ, Wagner GP |doi-access = free |pmc = 6789565 }}</ref>

=== Fringe theories ===

Brody Costa et al. suggest that women's vaginal orgasm consistency is associated with being told in childhood or adolescence that the vagina is the important zone for inducing female orgasms. Other proposed factors include how well women focus mentally on vaginal sensations during penile-vaginal intercourse, the greater duration of intercourse, and their preference for above-average penis length.<ref name="Brody, Weiss">{{cite journal |title = Vaginal orgasm is associated with vaginal (not clitoral) sex education, focusing mental attention on vaginal sensations, intercourse duration, and a preference for a longer penis |journal = [[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]] |pages = 2774–81 |date = August 2010 |pmid = 19732304 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2009.01469.x |volume = 7 |issue = 8 |vauthors = Brody S, Weiss P }}</ref> Costa theorizes that vaginal orgasm is more prevalent among women with a prominent [[tubercle of the upper lip]].<ref name="Brody, Costa">{{cite journal |title = Vaginal orgasm is more prevalent among women with a prominent tubercle of the upper lip |journal = [[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]] |date = June 2011 |pmid = 21676178 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2011.02331.x |volume = 8 |issue = 10 |pages = 2793–9 |vauthors = Brody S, Costa RM }}</ref> His research indicates that "[a] prominent and sharply raised lip tubercle has been associated with greater odds ([[odds ratio]] = 12.3) of ever having a vaginal orgasm, and also with greater past month vaginal orgasm consistency (an effect driven by the women who never had a vaginal orgasm), than less prominent lip tubercle categories." Lip tubercle was not associated with social desirability responding, or with orgasm triggered by masturbation during penile-vaginal sex, solitary or partner clitoral or vaginal masturbation, vibrator, or cunnilingus.<ref name="Brody, Costa" />

An empirical study carried out in 2008 provides evidence for Freud's implied link between the inability to have a vaginal orgasm and psychosexual [[Defence mechanisms|immaturity]]. In the study, women reported their past month's frequency of different sexual behaviors and corresponding orgasm rates and completed the Defense Style Questionnaire (DSQ-40), which is associated with various [[Psychopathology|psychopathologies]]. The study concluded that a "vaginal orgasm was associated with less somatization, dissociation, displacement, autistic fantasy, devaluation, and isolation of affect." Moreover, "vaginally anorgasmic women had immature defenses scores comparable to those of established (depression, social anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and obsessive–compulsive disorder) outpatient psychiatric groups." In the study, a vaginal orgasm (as opposed to a clitoral orgasm) was defined as being triggered solely by penile–vaginal intercourse.<ref>{{cite journal |title = Vaginal orgasm is associated with less use of immature psychological defense mechanisms |journal = [[The Journal of Sexual Medicine]] |pages = 1167–1176 |date = May 2008 |doi = 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2008.00786.x |pmid = 18331263 |author1 = Brody S |author2 = Costa R.M. |volume = 5 |issue = 5 }}</ref> According to [[Wilhelm Reich]], the lack of women's capacity to have a vaginal orgasm is due to a lack of [[orgastic potency]], which he believed to be the result of culture's suppression of genital sexuality.<ref>Reich, Wilhelm (1984) Children of the Future: On the Prevention of Sexual Pathology. New York: Farrar Straus and Giroux, footnote on p. 142: "1949: The statement that the girl's clitoral masturbation is normal is also due to the then prevalent psychoanalytic concept that the little girl had no vaginal genatility. The lack of vaginal genatility was later shown by sex-economy to be an artifact of our culture, which suppresses genitality completely and instills castration anxiety not only in the boy but also in the girl. This creates a true secondary drive in the form of penis envy and predominance of clitoral genitality. Psychoanalytic theory mistook these artificial secondary drives for primary, natural functions."</ref>

== Involuntariness ==

Medical research shows that the genital reflex is also regulated by the spinal cord and not necessarily under conscious control.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=cKjnCQAAQBAJ&dq=genital+reflex&pg=PT45 "Nervous System: A Tutorial Study Guide"]{{Dead link|date=March 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}, by Nicoladie Tam, (2016) {{ISBN|9781301053025}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=I2n5hTAxdTYC&pg=PA431 |title = Spinal Cord Medicine: Principles & Practice |edition = Second |editor = Vernon W Lin |display-editors = etal |page = 431 |isbn = 978-1-935281-77-1 |date = 2010 |publisher = Demos Medical |access-date = January 25, 2022 |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055203/https://books.google.com/books?id=I2n5hTAxdTYC&dq=genital+reflex&pg=PA431 |url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Allard |first1 = Julien |last2 = Truitt |first2 = William A. |last3 = McKenna |first3 = Kevin E. |last4 = Coolen |first4 = Lique M. |date = 2005 |title = Spinal cord control of ejaculation |journal = World Journal of Urology |volume = 23 |issue = 2 |pages = 119–26 |doi = 10.1007/s00345-004-0494-9 |pmid = 15947961 |s2cid = 24610895 }}</ref> An involuntary orgasm may occur as the result of [[sexual assault]] or [[rape]], which may result in feelings of [[shame]] caused by internalization of [[Victim blaming|victim-blaming]] attitudes.<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.anugraha.info/Traningdownload.php?file=20111213044253Trauma.pdf&arg3=resource&op=center |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131227055826/http://www.anugraha.info/Traningdownload.php?file=20111213044253Trauma.pdf&arg3=resource&op=center |url-status = dead |archive-date = December 27, 2013 |access-date = December 26, 2013 |title = Trauma Counseling }} D. John Anthony, Anugraha Publications, Tamil Nadu, India, Sep. 2005.</ref><ref name="Non-consensual">{{Cite journal |author = Levin RJ, van Berlo W |title = Sexual arousal and orgasm in subjects who experience forced or non-consensual sexual stimulation – a review |journal = Journal of Clinical Forensic Medicine |volume = 11 |issue = 2 |pages = 82–8 |date = April 2004 |pmid = 15261004 |doi = 10.1016/j.jcfm.2003.10.008 |last2 = Van Berlo }}</ref> The incidence of those who experience unsolicited sexual contact and experience orgasm is very low, though possibly under-reported due to shame or embarrassment of the victim. Such orgasms may happen to either sex.<ref name="Non-consensual" />

An unwanted orgasm may arise from a [[persistent genital arousal disorder]]. In consensual [[BDSM]] play, [[forced orgasm]] may be practiced to exercise orgasm control.

== Tantric sex ==

[[Tantric sex]], which is not the same as [[Vajrayana|Buddhist tantra (Vajrayana)]], is the ancient Indian spiritual tradition of sexual practices. It attributes a different value to orgasm than traditional cultural approaches to sexuality. Some practitioners of [[Tantra|tantric]] sex aim to eliminate orgasm from sexual intercourse by remaining for a long time in the pre-orgasmic and non-emission state. Advocates of this, such as [[Rajneesh]], claim that it eventually causes orgasmic feelings to spread out to all of one's conscious experience.<ref>{{Cite book |author = Rajneesh, Bhagwan Shree |title = Tantra, Spirituality, and Sex |date = 1983 |isbn = 978-0-88050-696-0 |publisher = Rajneesh Foundation Internat. |location = Rajneeshpuram, Or. }}{{Page needed|date=August 2010}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |author1 = Chia, Mantak |author2 = Abrams, Douglas |title = The Multi-Orgasmic Man |publisher = Harper San Francisco |date = 1996 |isbn = 978-0-06-251336-6 |url = https://archive.org/details/multiorgasmicman00chia }}{{Page needed|date=August 2010}}</ref>

Advocates of tantric and neo-tantric sex who claim that Western culture focuses too much on the goal of climactic orgasm, which reduces the ability to have intense pleasure during other moments of the sexual experience, suggest that eliminating this enables a richer, fuller, and more intense connection.<ref>{{Cite book |author1 = Douglas, N |author2 = Slinger, P |title = Sexual Secrets: The Alchemy of Ecstasy |publisher = Destiny Books |date = 1979 |isbn = 978-0-89281-266-0 |url = https://archive.org/details/sexualsecretsalc00doug }}{{Page needed|date=August 2010}}</ref>

== Literature ==

[[File:Jupiter and Juno - Annibale Carracci - 1597 - Farnese Gallery, Rome.jpg|thumb|''[[Jupiter (mythology)|Jupiter]] and [[Juno (mythology)|Juno]]'', by [[Annibale Carracci]]]]

Orgasm has been widely described in literature over the centuries. In antiquity, [[Latin literature]] addressed the subject as much as [[Greek literature]]: Book III of [[Ovid]]'s ''[[Metamorphoses]]'' retells a discussion between [[Jove]] and [[Juno (mythology)|Juno]], in which the former states: "The sense of pleasure in the male is far / More dull and dead than what you females share."<ref>[[Ovid]], ''[[Metamorphoses|Met]].'' III, 320-21 (translated by Sir Samuel Garth, [[John Dryden]], et al, 1717). In the original in [[Latin]], Ovid writes: ''maior vestra profecto est, / quam quae contingit maribus.''</ref> Juno rejects this thought; they agree to ask the opinion of [[Tiresias]] ("who had known [[Venus (mythology)|Venus]]/Love in both ways," having lived seven years as a female).<ref>''Met''. III, 323 (translated by [[A. S. Kline]], 2000).</ref> Tiresias offends Juno by agreeing with Jove, and she strikes him blind on the spot (Jove lessens the blow by giving Tiresias the gift of foresight, and long life).<ref>''Met.'' III, 335.</ref> Earlier, in the ''[[Ars Amatoria]]'', Ovid states that he abhors sexual intercourse that fails to complete both partners.<ref>{{in lang|pt}} ''Jornal de Letras, Artes e Ideias'', Ano XXV/Number 930. May 24 to June 6, 2006.</ref>

The theme of orgasm survived during [[Romanticism]] and is incorporated in many [[Homoeroticism|homoerotic]] works. In ''FRAGMENT: Supposed to be an Epithalamium of Francis Ravaillac and Charlotte Cordé'', [[Percy Bysshe Shelley]], "a translator of extraordinary range and versatility",<ref>Webb, 1976, p. 2.</ref> wrote the phrase "No life can equal such a death." That phrase has been seen as a metaphor for orgasm,<ref name="Lauritsen">"[http://paganpressbooks.com/jpl/HHREV3.HTM Hellenism and Homoeroticism in Shelley and his Circle] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080708193419/http://paganpressbooks.com/jpl/HHREV3.HTM |date=July 8, 2008 }}", by John Lauritsen (2008). Consulted on December 10, 2009.</ref> and it was preceded by the rhythmic urgency of the previous lines "Suck on, suck on, I glow, I glow!", which has been seen as alluding to [[fellatio]].<ref name="Lauritsen" /> For Shelley, orgasm was "the almost involuntary consequences of a state of abandonment in the society of a person of surpassing attractions".<ref>Plato, 2001.</ref> [[Edward Ellerker Williams]], the last love of Shelley's life, was remembered by the poet in "The Boat on the Serchio", which has been considered as possibly "the grandest portrayal of orgasm in literature":<ref name="Lauritsen" /> Shelley, in this poem, associates orgasm with death when he writes "the death which lovers love".<ref name="Lauritsen" /> In [[French literature]], the term ''[[la petite mort]]'' (the little death) is a famous [[euphemism]] for orgasm;<ref>{{Cite journal |vauthors = Georgiadis J, Kortekaas R, Kuipers R, Nieuwenburg A, Pruim J, Reinders A, Holstege G |title = Regional cerebral blood flow changes associated with clitorally induced orgasm in healthy women |journal = Eur J Neurosci |volume = 24 |issue = 11 |pages = 3305–16 |date = 2006 |pmid = 17156391 |doi = 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2006.05206.x |s2cid = 15731161 |doi-access = free }}</ref> it is the representation of the man who forgets himself and the world during orgasm. [[Jorge Luis Borges]], in the same vision, wrote in one of the several [[footnote]]s of "[[Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius]]" that one of the churches of [[Tlön]] claims [[Platonism|Platonic]]ally that "All men, in the vertiginous moment of coitus, are the same man. All men who repeat a line from [[Shakespeare]] ''are'' William Shakespeare."<ref>Borges, ''Ficciones'', p.28</ref> Shakespeare himself was knowledgeable of this idea: lines "I will live in thy heart, die in thy lap, and be buried in thy eyes" and "I will die bravely, like a smug bridegroom", said respectively by [[Benedick]] in ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'' and by King Lear in [[King Lear|the play of that ilk]],<ref>''MUCH ADO'', v ii 99–101. & ''Lear'', iv vi 201.</ref> is interpreted as "to die in a woman's lap" = "to experience a sexual orgasm".<ref>Partridge, 2001, p.118.</ref> 

Freud with his psychoanalytic projects, in ''[[The Ego and the Id]]'' (1923), speculates that sexual satisfaction by orgasm make [[Eros]] ("life instinct") exhausted and leaves the field open to [[Thanatos]] ("death instinct"), in other words, with orgasm Eros fulfills its mission and gives way to Thanatos.<ref>See [[Sigmund Freud|Freud, Sigmund]]. ''The Ego and the Id''. The Hogarth Press Ltd. London, 1949. Quoted by ''Vida Íntima: Enciclopédia do Amor e do Sexo'', Abril Cultural, Vol. 1, 1981, [[São Paulo]], Brazil, p. 66-67.</ref> Other modern authors have chosen to represent the orgasm without metaphors. In the novel ''[[Lady Chatterley's Lover]]'' (1928), by [[D. H. Lawrence]], we can find an explicit narrative of a sexual act between a couple: "As he began to move, in the sudden helpless orgasm there awoke in her strange thrills rippling inside her..."<ref>[[D. H. Lawrence]], New York: Grove Press, 1969, cited by BANKER-RISHKIN; GRANDINETTI, 1997, p.141</ref> 

[[Robert Macfarlane (writer)|Robert Macfarlane]] in a review of the [[Jilly Cooper]] novel ''[[Pandora (2002 novel)|Pandora]]'' discussed how it has an increased ratio of sex per page than her earlier novels, such as ''[[Riders (novel)|Riders]],'' and that the sex is usually simple and happy, where "mutuality of orgasm is a given"''.''<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=MacFarlane |first=Robert |date=2002-05-05 |title=Laughing all the way to the bonk |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2002/may/05/fiction.features2 |access-date=2025-04-15 |work=The Observer |language=en-GB |issn=0029-7712}}</ref> He also pointed out that in ''Pandora'' there's a far greater range of sexual activities described than in other Cooper novels, that are not just [[Sexual intercourse|vaginal penetration]] by a penis.<ref name=":0" />

== Other animals ==
{{See also|Animal sexual behaviour}}

The mechanics of male orgasm are similar in most male mammals.<ref>{{cite journal |last1 = Fox |first1 = C. A. |last2 = Fox |first2 = Beatrice |date = 1971 |title = A comparative study of coital physiology, with special reference to the sexual climax |journal = Journal of Reproduction and Fertility |volume = 24 |issue = 3 |pages = 319–336 |doi = 10.1530/jrf.0.0240319 |pmid = 4926898 |df = mdy-all |doi-access = free }}</ref> Females of all mammal and some non-mammal species, such as alligators,<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.crocodilian.com/crocfaq/faq-8.html |title = Crocodilian Captive Care FAQ (Caiman, Alligator, Crocodile) |publisher = Crocodilian.com |date = March 5, 1996 |access-date = October 15, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170309214115/http://www.crocodilian.com/crocfaq/faq-8.html |archive-date = March 9, 2017 }}</ref> have clitorises.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Doody|first1=J. Sean|last2=Dinets|first2=Vladimir|last3=Burghardt|first3=Gordon M.|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|year= 2021|title=The Secret Social Lives of Reptiles|page=49|access-date=January 3, 2024|isbn=978-1-4214-4068-2|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=C1MvEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA49}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last = Balcombe |first = Jonathan |title = Pleasurable Kingdom: Animals and the Nature of Feeling Good |publisher = [[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]] |isbn = 978-1-4039-8602-3 |year = 2007 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=JTb7_XfgelYC&pg=PA111 |access-date = 27 October 2015 |archive-date = 15 June 2013 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130615061205/http://books.google.com/books?id=JTb7_XfgelYC&pg=PA111 |url-status = live }}</ref> There has been ongoing research about the [[sexuality of dolphins]], one of many species which engage in sexual intercourse for [[Non-reproductive sexual behavior in animals|reasons other than reproduction]].<ref>National Geographic's ''Dolphins: The wild side'' documentary (1999). "Sex is as frequent as it is casual, a social tool used to strengthen and maintain bonds. But beneath the harmony lies a darker side of dolphins. Gangs of strong males pick on younger or smaller dolphins.", quote from [https://web.archive.org/web/20090815060458/http://www.nationalgeographic.com/tv/press/990202.html National Geographic website]</ref> The duration of orgasm varies considerably among different mammal species.<ref name="KomisarukWhipple2009">{{cite book |author1 = Barry R. Komisaruk |author2 = Beverly Whipple |author3 = Sara Nasserzadeh |author4 = Carlos Beyer-Flores |title = The Orgasm Answer Guide |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Kkts3AX9QVAC&q=(cervidae%7Ccanidae%7Cfelidae%7Cbovidae%7Cmammal)+orgasm&pg=PA60 |access-date = February 17, 2013 |date = November 17, 2009 |publisher = JHU Press |isbn = 978-0-8018-9395-7 |pages = 60– |archive-date = February 27, 2023 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230227055203/https://books.google.com/books?id=Kkts3AX9QVAC&q=%28cervidae%7Ccanidae%7Cfelidae%7Cbovidae%7Cmammal%29+orgasm&pg=PA60 |url-status = live }}</ref>

== See also ==

{{Portal bar|Anatomy|Human sexuality|Medicine}}

{{Div col|colwidth=20em}}
* [[Birthgasm]]
* [[Child sexuality]]
* [[Coitus reservatus]]
* [[Eroto-comatose lucidity]]
* [[Female ejaculation]]
* [[Female sexual arousal disorder]]
* [[Forced orgasm]]{{snds}}a [[BDSM]] term
* ''[[Kama Sutra]]''{{snds}}an ancient text on human sexual behavior
* ''[[La petite mort]]''{{snds}}"the little death" in French (a euphemism for orgasm)
* [[Orgasm gap]]
* [[Persistent genital arousal disorder]]
* [[Sex position]]
* [[Sexual function]]
* [[Venus Butterfly]]
{{Div col end}}

==References==

{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==

* Banker-Riskin, Anita; Grandinetti, Deborah (1997). ''Simultaneous Orgasm: And Other Joys of Sexual Intimacy''. [[Hunter House Publishers|Hunter House]]. {{ISBN|0-89793-221-8}}, {{ISBN|978-0-89793-221-9}}.
* Gabriele Froböse, Rolf Froböse, Michael Gross (Translator): ''Lust and Love: Is it More than Chemistry?'' Publisher: [[Royal Society of Chemistry]], {{ISBN|0-85404-867-7}}, (2006).
* {{Cite book |last1 = Komisaruk |first1 = Barry R. |last2 = Beyer-Flores |first2 = Carlos |last3 = Whipple |first3 = Beverly |date = 2006 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=7rfLcoQ2koQC |title = The Science of Orgasm |location = Baltimore, MD |publisher = The Johns Hopkins University Press |isbn = 978-0-8018-8895-3 |oclc = 614506284 }}
* PARTRIDGE, Eric (2001). ''Shakespeare's bawdy: Classics Series Routledge classics''. 2nd ed., [[Routledge]]. {{ISBN|0-415-25400-0}}, {{ISBN|978-0-415-25400-7}}.
* [[Plato]] (2001). ''The Banquet''. (P.B. Shelley, Trans., J. Lauritsen, Ed., Foreword). Provincetown, MA: [[Pagan Press]].
* WEBB, Timothy (1976). ''The violet in the crucible: Shelley and translation'', 1976. Oxford: [[Clarendon Press]].

== External links ==

* [http://menshealth.about.com/od/sexualhealth/a/male_orgasm.htm Men's Health: Male Orgasm] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101093636/http://menshealth.about.com/od/sexualhealth/a/male_orgasm.htm |date=January 1, 2016 }}
* [http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/menshealth/feature/helpwithorgasms.htm Net Doctor: Female Orgasm] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151013070159/http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/menshealth/feature/helpwithorgasms.htm |date=October 13, 2015 }}
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jx0dTYUO5E TED Talk] by [[Mary Roach]] on 10 things you didn't know about orgasm
{{sister bar|d=yes|commonscat=yes}}
{{Reproductive physiology}}
{{Sex}}
{{Human sexuality}}
{{Post-orgasmic diseases}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Orgasm| ]]
[[Category:Human sexuality]]
[[Category:Sexual acts]]
[[Category:Euphoriants]]