READERS

9 Oct 2014

QUESTION: What is the evolutionary basis for some humans liking bondage/S&M?

ANSWERS

(Add your own in comments)

BDSM is a technique to allow you to achieve reproductive success. In animals, normally a dominant partner is the one to spread his or her genes, so it makes sense to be attracted to dominance as you are mating with the head of the group.


In contrast, if you are a low ranking member, one of the few ways you may be able to become attractive to someone else is to make them feel powerful and in control.


BDSM is an extreme manifestation of those urges.



Animals have a natural desire to feel good about themselves, and have a natural drive towards power and social standing and feeling powerful helps them achieve those goals. Consequently being submissive becomes a mating strategy. On the one hand it satisfies someone dominant's need to feel dominant. On the other hand it allows someone who is submissive to be able to mate.


This paper says a bit more :
The sexual arousal by lower- and/or higher-ranking partner appears to be a manifestation of a successful reproductive strategy, e.g. behavior connected to natural human behavior. Moreover, the sexual arousal by overemphasized hierarchy (e.g. dominant-slave play) considered to be a part of sadomasochistic sex (or so called BDSM) may represent an overemphasised manifestation of this reproductive strategy


High hierarchical status is associated with increased reproduction success in mammals. However the subordinate males are not totally eliminated from reproduction due to mate choice and alternative male strategies. Thus; the sexual arousal by higher-ranking or lower-ranking partner in humans may represent a proximate mechanism for realizing a reproductive strategy.LINK HERE

Will Wister, 1000s of hours studying psychology.
.



Can't say I ever saw myself answering a question like this!  But I'll defer to Isabella Sinclaire, an extremely articulate dominatrix who takes Q&A on our site.  The question she received was:


Q: "Are there any common-thread life themes amongst your clients who derive
pleasure from pain and humiliation?  Do they frequently have issues with
 their mothers or other authoritative women in their lives?"   


And her answer was ...


A:  "There is the life long debate of nature v/s nurture and vice versa. I've seen it from both perspectives. Childhood trauma and unusual scenarios play a strong part in how we develop as adults but it isn't textbook black and white. What one child perceives as a trauma may not affect another child that experiences the same trauma. Playing hiding seek in your mom's closet around her shoes doesn't make you a shoe fetishist. But it may trigger innate, hardwired desires in someone.  Being humiliated by your older sisters hot friend doesn't make you into humiliation.  Being spanked as a form of discipline as a child doesn't make you develop the urge to spank or be spanked in everyone who was spanked but many who like it, attribute it to childhood.  The scenarios can go on and on. 

From my understanding, a humans nervous system isn't fully developed until early 20's so pretty much anything thing that happens to you as a child can affect your interests, emotions and desires as an adult and in ways that beyond anyone's control."

Also, no affiliation but I heard an NPR interview recently with Melissa Forbes, a former dominatrix who ultimately left the business and wrote a book about it called "Whip-Smart."  I haven't read it yet but I was impressed with her interview and suspect it might help answer some of your questions:


Frank Hajdu, Co-Founder of Jobstr.com


Remember that evolution is indifferent to activities that don't affect survival, so survival irrelevant traits will occur and not be selected out.

I don't know if there is any evidence pro or con there being a  genetic predisposition towards S&M.

George Sawyer, Teaching courses on esoteric sexuality and sensuality since 1989

No comments:

Practice makes perfect

Resulting form the lack of effectiveness in work while wearing shackles, I did promise Mistress to practice more at home when I have time an...