Secret of the female orgasm uncovered by psychologists

The secret of the female orgasm may have been revealed by scientists in a pioneering study.

Researchers led by the University of Essex found that women climax more frequently if they have high levels of an inward-looking sense known as interoception.

Dr Megan Klabunde, from the Department of Psychology, discovered women who noticed and attend to internal bodily signals– like heartbeats, breathing, and sensual touch sensations - have more frequent orgasms.

Dr Klabunde says this is one of the first times healthy female orgasms have been studied and they are important for women’s well-being and boost relationship satisfaction.

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It is hoped the results can help women improve the lives of women - and their partners - around the world.

Dr Klabunde said: “Our study empirically demonstrates that women need to get out of their heads and into their bodies in order to have more frequent and satisfying orgasms.

“Orgasms are more frequent and satisfying when a woman is able to focus on how her body is feeling.

“This study is important because most research looking at orgasms in women have focused on their dysfunction.

“Focusing only on orgasmic dysfunction in women is a problem because there is very little research demonstrating the normal process of orgasm for women, let alone demonstrating ways for women to enrich their orgasms.

“Better understanding the process to orgasm for women could lead to their increased well-being in addition to boosting relationship satisfaction for women and their partners.”

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The study with 360 women completed questionnaires about their sexual experiences and interoception levels.

Researchers asked about both solo and partnered encounters and found women achieved orgasm approximately 20% more frequently on their own and found similar rates for orgasm satisfaction.

Dr Klabunde’s research team also found high levels of interoception were linked to how satisfying orgasms are.

Dr Klabunde said: “The ability for women to focus their attention on their internal bodily sensations, and trust these sensations, was also associated with increased orgasm satisfaction.

“Therefore, it is important for women and their partners to trust the woman’s internal bodily experiences during sexual encounters.

“This is critical for fostering orgasmic satisfaction for both solo but also especially for partnered sexual contexts.”

The paper - Interoceptive Awareness and Female Orgasm Frequency and Satisfaction – was published in a special edition of Brain Sciences on Interoception and Women’s Health.

Dr Klabunde worked with psychology undergraduate student Emily Dixon on the research.