The Female Orgasm Researchers
An ever-growing list of all the posts I’ve written about orgasm researchers I find most groundbreaking, influencial, and particularly forward thinking for their time. I have a couple more to add and hope to get to them soon.
Masters and Johnson were a research team that released the first and still largest study of the body during arousal and orgasm. In their 1966 book “Human Sexual Response,” they showed the world things like how vaginal lubrication actually happens, the way the pelvic muscles rhythmically contract during orgasm to release the muscle tension and blood congestion brought on by physical sexual arousal, and how very similar the male and female orgasm is.
Shere Hite conducted a huge, long form survey of women all over the US asking about the physical details of their masturbation practices, orgasms, and sexual experiences in a 1976 book called “The Hite Report: A Nationwide Study of Female Sexuality.” She showed us how very few women orgasmed during partnered (and particularly penetrative) sex, how very easily and reliably they orgasmed during masturbation, and how important it was to the sex lives of all men and women that we work to redefine how sex is done.
Masters and Johnson
Their Research Footage - I got to view some of Master and Johnson’s research footage of a woman orgasming during my time at the Kinsey Institute Library, and I describe it here.
Their 1968 Playboy Interview - I summarize all the lady-gasm and research relevant parts of this long interview. It’s got some very interesting insights about their research.
Their 1979 Playboy Interview - I summarize all the lady-gasm and research relevant parts of this long interview. It’s also got some very, very interesting insights about their research.
A Book Critiquing Their Work - I summarize the relevant parts of a book, “Sex Research and Sex Therapy: A Sociological Analysis of Masters and Johnson” by Ross Morrow (2008) that critiques in detail M&J's research and particularly their sex therapy work.
Virginia Johnson Tribute - She died in 2013 at age 88.
Masters of Sex - initial thoughts - Masters, Johnson and their research were the topic of a Showtime series.
Summary of their book Human Sexual Response (1966) in parts:
Shere Hite
2008 Article By Shere Hite - She wrote a piece for On Issues Magazine called, “Female Orgasm Today: The Hite Report's Research Then and Now”
The Disappearance of Shere Hite - A review of the fabulous 2023 documentary by Nicole Newnham about Sher Hite’s life and work
Hyping the Hite Report - One of the earliest post I wrote in 2009 was about how important and undervalued this book was.
Shere Hite Tribute - She died at age 77 in 2020.