Both: What do you think causes people to develop sexual paraphilias?

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[–]theory_of_thisan actual straight crossdresser 3 insightful - 6 fun3 insightful - 5 fun4 insightful - 6 fun -  (5 children)

checks hand ratio

Good question. To me the flat universal occurrence of the phenomena implies a natural cause. You can look at sexuality in Roman history and see sexual practices we recognise today but interpreted in different ways. There is an interaction between the environment and biology. Things that are universally found are highly likely to be natural even if they are dealt with differently.

Though the essentialist biological differences have to come down to few reasons rather than lots of reasons. That means lots of different apparent forms are triggered by a few elements rather than all having individual natural triggers. For instance linking the higher male numbers to a higher sex drive and/or a higher level of innate aggression.

In other words, sex drive fully accounted for the sex difference in paraphilic interests.

Paraphilic Interests: An Examination of Sex Differences in a Nonclinical Sample

Maybe.

Another aspect of the gender variation I wonder about is the active and passive element.

Sexual arousal by dominance and submission in relation to increased reproductive success in the general population

Results: Sexually dominant men aged 35-44 years had more biological male children. Both the sexually dominant men aged 35-44 years and sexually submissive women aged 35-44 years perceived themselves as being more attractive.

Conclusion: We suggest that sexual arousal by dominance is likely to be the means by which the mating strategy is accomplished.

Don't blame me for what this report says. I'm just looking things up.

I'm generally looking at popular erotic culture. Yes I agree that is culturally dependent. Again don't blame me for what is popular erotic work with women.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Best-Sellers-Kindle-Store-Erotic-Fiction/zgbs/digital-text/362277031

I think it contains what are often classed as paraphilias. I often think the clinical paraphilias are extreme versions of preferences found in common sexual activity. It isn't a binary thing. Saying but they shouldn't like it is something else.

[–]anxietyaccount8 9 insightful - 4 fun9 insightful - 3 fun10 insightful - 4 fun -  (4 children)

You can look at sexuality in Roman history and see sexual practices we recognise today but interpreted in different ways.

The way that sexuality in ancient Rome was perceived is honestly not that different to how many men see it today in 2021. They still may think that giving pleasure to a woman is demeaning, and that being penetrated makes you "gayer" than the person doing the penetrating. I don't understand why people are so fascinated by sexuality in Ancient Rome/Greece. It's just sexist to me.

I'm generally looking at popular erotic culture. Yes I agree that is culturally dependent. Again don't blame me for what is popular erotic work with women.

See, I can only speak for my own self, but as a radfem and a straight woman, my own taste actually changed. All women are pretty much taught that men who are super dominant, rich, etc, are the most attractive. A lot of portrayals of these kinds of men are actually very unrealistic, for example books will show a man being sadistic and a literal rapist, but at the same time he will eventually love the woman protagonist. Sadistic men in real life don't tend to be so "perfect", obviously.

I guarantee you, the reason so many women like this sort of thing is simply because of societal influence.

Both the sexually dominant men aged 35-44 years and sexually submissive women aged 35-44 years perceived themselves as being more attractive.

This is just... isn't it SO obvious as to why that would be true?

[–]theory_of_thisan actual straight crossdresser 4 insightful - 6 fun4 insightful - 5 fun5 insightful - 6 fun -  (3 children)

See, I can only speak for my own self, but as a radfem and a straight woman, my own taste actually changed.

When you say you changed? What changed?

I guarantee you, the reason so many women like this sort of thing is simply because of societal influence.

That's the big question to me.

[–]anxietyaccount8 9 insightful - 3 fun9 insightful - 2 fun10 insightful - 3 fun -  (2 children)

When you say you changed? What changed?

Mainly that I realized traits such as being compassionate were infinitely more important to making a good or attractive man, than what I was taught. People always said "a REAL man has to always take charge and be the perfect masculine example". But many men who are so hung up on their masculinity are misogynistic. So it changed my mind.

[–]theory_of_thisan actual straight crossdresser 4 insightful - 6 fun4 insightful - 5 fun5 insightful - 6 fun -  (1 child)

That doesn't sound that radical though.

[–]anxietyaccount8 9 insightful - 2 fun9 insightful - 1 fun10 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Well in my perception it was radical because I held a more conservative viewpoint before.