Episode 13: The Orgasm Gap, and How to Close It
November 6, 2020 by Justin Lehmiller
In sexual encounters between men and women, research has consistently found that there’s a sizable orgasm gap, such that men tend to reach orgasm with far greater frequency than their female partners. For example, when people reflect on their sexual experience over the past month, heterosexual men report orgasming 95% of the time, compared to just 65% of the time for heterosexual women. Interestingly, however, there’s no difference in orgasm rates when comparing gay men to lesbians, suggesting that this situation is unique to situations where women are having sex with men.
So why does the orgasm gap exist in the first place? And what can we do to close it?
For this episode of the podcast, I interviewed Dr. Laurie Mintz, who has studied the orgasm gap extensively. In addition to running a sex therapy practice for individuals and couples, Dr. Mintz is a professor and sexuality educator at the University of Florida. She is a prolific researcher and author, having published more than 50 academic journal articles and two books, with her latest being Becoming Cliterate.
We cover a lot of ground in this episode, including:
- Where does the orgasm gap come from?
- What steps can we take to help close this gap?
- How does a lack of comprehensive sex education contribute to the orgasm gap and to some of the most common sexual problems people experience?
- How does one know when it’s time to consult a sex therapist?
- What are the biggest myths and misconceptions people have about sex?
- Is it really true that women reach their sexual “peak” later than men?
- Is it really true that sex is a more emotional experience for women but a more physical experience for men?
To learn more about Laurie’s work and books, check out her website here.
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Credits: LEGIT Audio (Podcast editing) and Shutterstock/Florian (Music). Image created with Canva; photos and book covers used with guest permission.
Dr. Justin Lehmiller
Founder & Owner of Sex and PsychologyDr. Justin Lehmiller is a social psychologist and Research Fellow at The Kinsey Institute. He runs the Sex and Psychology blog and podcast and is author of the popular book Tell Me What You Want. Dr. Lehmiller is an award-winning educator, and a prolific researcher who has published more than 50 academic works.
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