homehome Home chatchat Notifications


Women are just as aroused by pornography as men, largest study of its kind shows

Myth: busted.

Mihai Andrei
July 17, 2019 @ 1:29 pm

share Share

A review of 61 brain scanning studies contradicts the widespread belief that men enjoy sexual imagery more than women.

Although there was never really strong science behind this idea, men are typically seen as being more interested in sex than women. Questionnaire-based studies have suggested that men find erotic images more arousing than women do, which seemed to play into the same narrative — women are more likely to require an emotional connection before they can become aroused.

The first brain scan studies seemed to validate the questionnaires. Despite major differences from individual to individual, some studies seemed to suggest that men are more interested in pornography. However, a more scrutinous look can find some important shortcomings for these studies. Most importantly, they work with small sample sizes and are prone to drawing conclusions from data which may be owed to random variations.

In order to fix that issue, a team led by Hamid Noori at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen analyzed the results from all the brain-scanning studies that have ever been published on this issue. In total, the studies had a combined sample sized of 2,000 — still not massive, but sufficient to draw some more reliable conclusions.

They found no important differences between how men and women react to pornographic images.

“Neuroimaging studies suggest differences in the underlying biology of sexual arousal associated with sex and sexual orientation, yet their findings are conflicting,” the study reads. “Following a thorough statistical review of all significant neuroimaging studies, we offer strong quantitative evidence that the neuronal response to visual sexual stimuli, contrary to the widely accepted view, is independent of biological sex.”

Women do watch less pornography than men (a roughly 80%-20% split), but that is owed to non-biological factors. For starters, the entire market is tailored for men, and the stigma of watching pornography is also greater for women than men.

Of course, this study also has significant shortcomings, which the researchers also admit. For starters, the study was limited to functional neuroimaging experiments — brain scans that only show activity at the level of large anatomical structures, meaning there could still be differences at smaller levels that don’t get picked up. There is also a lack of reporting on null results, which can tweak the results, and the quality of the considered studies varied significantly.

Overall though, this makes a lot of sense. Humans, like all mammals, react to sexual visual stimuli. But there is another consideration: just because there is a biological reaction doesn’t necessarily mean you’re “turned on” — our brains are often more complicated than our genital desires.

For instance, men can be physically aroused and have erections without being turned on. In some cases, even unwanted stimulation (rape) can produce unwanted arousal, in both men and women. Our sexual arousal is not just a button you can switch on or off.

The study has been published in PNAS.

share Share

Coolness Isn’t About Looks or Money. It’s About These Six Things, According to Science

New global study reveals the six traits that define coolness around the world.

Ancient Roman Pompeii had way more erotic art than you'd think

Unfortunately, there are few images we can respectably share here.

Wild Orcas Are Offering Fish to Humans and Scientists Say They May Be Trying to Bond with Us

Scientists recorded 34 times orcas offered prey to humans over 20 years.

No Mercury, No Cyanide: This is the Safest and Greenest Way to Recover Gold from E-waste

A pool cleaner and a spongy polymer can turn used and discarded electronic items into a treasure trove of gold.

This $10 Hack Can Transform Old Smartphones Into a Tiny Data Center

The throwaway culture is harming our planet. One solution is repurposing billions of used smartphones.

Doctors Discover 48th Known Blood Group and Only One Person on Earth Has It

A genetic mystery leads to the discovery of a new blood group: “Gwada negative.”

More Than Half of Intersection Crashes Involve Left Turns. Is It Time To Finally Ban Them?

Even though research supports the change, most cities have been slow to ban left turns at even the most congested intersections.

A London Dentist Just Cracked a Geometric Code in Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man

A hidden triangle in the vitruvian man could finally explain one of da Vinci's greatest works.

The Story Behind This Female Pharaoh's Broken Statues Is Way Weirder Than We Thought

New study reveals the ancient Egyptian's odd way of retiring a pharaoh.

China Resurrected an Abandoned Soviet 'Sea Monster' That's Part Airplane, Part Hovercraft

The Soviet Union's wildest aircraft just got a second life in China.