Body Image and Sexual Pleasure in Women and Genderqueer Individual's Sexual Experiences

Abstract

Past research has shown there is a relationship between body image, sexual behavior, and pleasure. However, the majority of this research has centered on heterosexual participants. In this analysis, the author considers how this relationship between body image, sexual behavior, and pleasure may look within women and genderqueer individuals who are all AFAB (assigned female at birth) with 26 out of 30 participants identifying as LGBTQIA+. The author examines perceptions of body size, body hair, and genitals to consider how intersections of social structures – specifically internalized sexism, racism, and misogyny – influence the participants’ experience of sexual interactions. Both resistance and embodiment of traditional gender norms, even as queer women and genderqueer individuals, were examined in these narratives. The majority of the moments where traditional gender norms are examined describe situations when the participants were sexually interacting with cis-gendered men.

Citation

Ciaralli, S.R. (2024), "Body Image and Sexual Pleasure in Women and Genderqueer Individual's Sexual Experiences", Hernández-Medina, E. and Maíllo-Pozo, S. (Ed.) Embodiment and Representations of Beauty (Advances in Gender Research, Vol. 35), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 91-115. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1529-212620240000035011