Young Women's Experiences and Perceptions of Cunnilingus during Adolescence

Abstract

Recent studies indicate that cunnilingus may be as prevalent as fellatio among American adolescents. Despite this approximate equivalence in rates, there is an imbalance in the amount and type of attention paid to fellatio and cunnilingus. Furthermore, there has been little empirical examination of young women's experiences and perceptions of cunnilingus during adolescence. Two studies in response to this gap in knowledge were conducted. In Study 1, regression analyses indicated that a young woman's sexual assertiveness was linked to having more lifetime cunnilingus partners, as well as more cunnilingus experiences in the past three months. Study 2 explored young women's perceptions of cunnilingus and their speculations about their male partners’ perceptions thereof. Linear mixed modeling revealed that participants had highly favorable impressions of cunnilingus, which they believed their male partners shared. These findings are considered in terms of positive adolescent sexual development and cultural norms regarding female sexuality.

Acknowledgments

This research was supported, in part, by the Les Brun Pilot Study Program through the Buffalo Center for Social Research, University at Buffalo, School of Social Work. A preliminary version of this article was presented at the 35th annual conference of the Association for Women in Psychology, Portland, OR, February 2010. We are indebted to Eugene M. Maguin for statistical consultation and to Alyssa N. Zucker and Sapana Donde for data collection.

Notes

Note. SOS = Sexual Opinion Survey; SAQ = Sexual Awareness Questionnaire.

^a Indicates family income between $120,001 and $140,000.

^b Indicates family income between $140,001 and $160,000.

*p ≤ .01. **p ≤ .001.

Note. SOS = Sexual Opinion Survey; SAQ = Sexual Awareness Questionnaire.

*p ≤ .05. **p ≤ .01. ***p ≤ .001.

Note. SOS = Sexual Opinion Survey; SAQ = Sexual Awareness Questionnaire.

^a R ² = .22.

^b R ² = .04.

*p ≤ .05. **p ≤ .001.