Demographic and psychosocial features of participants in bondage and discipline, ‘sadomasochism’ or dominance and submission (BDSM): Data from a national survey
About 2 in 100 sexually active Australians surveyed reported BDSM activity in the prior year. The study did not find evidence that BDSM participation itself meant coercion, sexual difficulty, or mental disorder.
Orgasmaphoria editorial perspective
About this source
Use for carefully bounded population context and to challenge blanket pathology claims; do not use it as a current prevalence estimate for other countries.
Why it matters: This source demonstrates that kink is shaped by learnable community practices, negotiation, and wide variation. That helps readers separate consensual BDSM from abuse and replace stereotypes with better questions.
Purpose and scope
Examines demographic, behavioral, and psychosocial correlates of BDSM involvement.
Representative Australian telephone sample of 19,307 people aged 16–59; analyses of sexually active respondents.
Findings or central themes
1.8% of sexually active respondents reported BDSM involvement in the previous year; the study found no association with sexual coercion or sexual difficulties and no evidence supporting a pathology framing for most participants.
Strengths
Large population-based sample and weighted analysis.
Limitations
Data were collected in 2001–2002, measures are self-reported, and findings may not generalize beyond Australia or to current terminology.
Do not use this source to claim: Do not use this source for diagnosis, individual prediction, universal claims, or advice beyond its stated scope.
Citation and access
Juliet Richters, Richard O. de Visser, Chris E. Rissel, Andrew E. Grulich, Anthony M. A. Smith (2008). Demographic and psychosocial features of participants in bondage and discipline, ‘sadomasochism’ or dominance and submission (BDSM): Data from a national survey. The Journal of Sexual Medicine DOI: 10.1111/j.1743-6109.2008.00795.x
Public abstract
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