Exhibitionism
Encyclopedia
Buttocks
The buttocks are two rounded portions of the anatomy, located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, and many other bipeds or quadrupeds, and comprise a layer of fat superimposed on the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius muscles. Physiologically, the buttocks enable weight to...
of a man or woman, or the breasts of a woman – in a public or semi-public circumstance, in crowds or groups of friends or acquaintances, or to strangers. When legal authorities become involved,and the behavior is threatening or anti-social, it may be defined as indecent exposure
Indecent exposure
Indecent exposure is the deliberate exposure in public or in view of the general public by a person of a portion or portions of his or her body, in circumstances where the exposure is contrary to local moral or other standards of appropriate behavior. Indecent exposure laws vary in different...
, depending on the specific laws of the jurisdiction involved, and can be subject to the arrest and prosecution of the exhibitionist.
Non-threatening exhibitionism may be physically expressed in two basic ways. The first, colloquially referred to as flashing, involves the exposure of a person's "private parts
Intimate part
An intimate, personal, or private part is a place on the human body which is customarily kept covered by clothing in public venues and conventional settings, as a matter of decency, decorum, and respectfulness...
" to another person or group of people, in a non-threatening manner, in a situation where these would not normally be exposed, such as in a social gathering or in a public place. The act of flashing, particularly when done by females involving the breasts but also when involving her vagina
Vagina
The vagina is a fibromuscular tubular tract leading from the uterus to the exterior of the body in female placental mammals and marsupials, or to the cloaca in female birds, monotremes, and some reptiles. Female insects and other invertebrates also have a vagina, which is the terminal part of the...
and also her buttocks
Buttocks
The buttocks are two rounded portions of the anatomy, located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, and many other bipeds or quadrupeds, and comprise a layer of fat superimposed on the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius muscles. Physiologically, the buttocks enable weight to...
, may be at least partially sexual in intention, i.e. to prompt the sexual arousal
Sexual arousal
Sexual arousal, or sexual excitement, is the arousal of sexual desire, during or in anticipation of sexual activity. Things that precipitate human sexual arousal are called erotic stimuli, or colloquially known as turn-ons. There are many potential stimuli, both physical or mental, which can cause...
of those being flashed, in turn giving the flasher an ego
EGO
See also Egoism Ego is a Latin word meaning "I", cognate with the Greek "Εγώ " meaning "I", often used in English to mean the "self", "identity" or other related concepts.It may also refer to:...
boost. However, flashing may also simply be intended to attract the non-aroused "attention" of another or others, for rewards (such as beads during Mardi Gras
Mardi Gras
The terms "Mardi Gras" , "Mardi Gras season", and "Carnival season", in English, refer to events of the Carnival celebrations, beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday...
in New Orleans), or for shock value
Shock value
Shock value is the potential of an action , image, text, or other form of communication to provoke a reaction of disgust, shock, anger, fear, or similar negative emotions.-Shock value as humor:...
. This form of exhibitionism can also be expressed in the context of a like-minded group who share the desire to expose themselves to each other. This can occur formally or informally, in nudist clubs or in small groups sharing a hot tub
Hot tub
A hot tub is a large tub or small pool full of heated water and used for soaking, relaxation, massage, or hydrotherapy. In most cases, they have jets for massage purposes. Hot tubs are usually located outdoors, and are often sheltered for protection from the elements, as well as for privacy....
or skinny-dipping together.
Exhibitionism is not automatically a compulsion
Compulsive behavior
Compulsive behavior is behavior which a person does compulsively—in other words, not because they want to behave that way, but because they feel they have to do so....
, but some people do have a distinct psychological tendency to sexually expose themselves, whether it is to "flash" (the nonthreatening form) or to "indecently expose" (the threatening form). When it is a compulsion, it is a condition sometimes called apodysophilia.
History
Public exhibitionism by women has been recorded since classical times, often in the context of women shaming groups of men into committing, or inciting them to commit, some public action. The ancient Greek historian HerodotusHerodotus
Herodotus was an ancient Greek historian who was born in Halicarnassus, Caria and lived in the 5th century BC . He has been called the "Father of History", and was the first historian known to collect his materials systematically, test their accuracy to a certain extent and arrange them in a...
gives an account of exhibitionism from the fifth century BC in The Histories
Histories (Herodotus)
The Histories of Herodotus is considered one of the seminal works of history in Western literature. Written from the 450s to the 420s BC in the Ionic dialect of classical Greek, The Histories serves as a record of the ancient traditions, politics, geography, and clashes of various cultures that...
. Herodotus writes that:
When people travel to Bubastis for the festival, this is what they do. Every baris carrying them there overflows with people, a huge crowd of them, men and women together. Some of the women have clappers, while some of the men have pipes which they play throughout the voyage. The rest of the men and women sing and clap their hands. When in the course of their journey they reach a community - not the city of their destination, but somewhere else - they steer the bareis close to the bank. Some of the women carry on doing what I have already described them as doing, but others shout out scornful remarks to the women in the town, or dance, or stand and pull up their clothes to expose themselves. Every riverside community receives this treatment.
Types of exposure
- AnasyrmaAnasyrmaAnásyrma , also called anasyrmós, is the gesture of lifting up the skirt or kilt. It is used in connection with certain religious rituals, eroticism, and lewd jokes, see e.g. Baubo. The term is used in describing corresponding works of art...
: the lifting of the skirtSkirtA skirt is a tube- or cone-shaped garment that hangs from the waist and covers all or part of the legs.In the western world, skirts are usually considered women's clothing. However, there are exceptions...
when not wearing underwear, to expose genitals. - Flashing: chiefly the momentary display of bare female breasts by a woman with an up-and-down lifting of the shirt and/or braBrassiereA brassiere is an undergarment that covers, supports, and elevates the breasts. Since the late 19th century, it has replaced the corset as the most widely accepted method for supporting breasts....
. It can also involve the exposure of a man's or woman's genitalia. - Martymachlia: a paraphiliaParaphiliaParaphilia is a biomedical term used to describe sexual arousal to objects, situations, or individuals that are not part of normative stimulation and that may cause distress or serious problems for the paraphiliac or persons associated with him or her...
which involves sexual attractionSexual attractionSexual attractiveness or sex appeal refers to an individual's ability to attract the sexual or erotic interest of another person, and is a factor in sexual selection or mate choice. The attraction can be to the physical or other qualities or traits of a person, or to such qualities in the context...
to having others watch the execution of a sexual act. - MooningMooningMooning is the act of displaying one's bare buttocks by removing clothing, e.g., by lowering the backside of one's trousers and underpants, usually bending over, whether also exposing the genitals or not...
: the display of bare buttocksButtocksThe buttocks are two rounded portions of the anatomy, located on the posterior of the pelvic region of apes and humans, and many other bipeds or quadrupeds, and comprise a layer of fat superimposed on the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius muscles. Physiologically, the buttocks enable weight to...
by pulling down of trousersTrousersTrousers are an item of clothing worn on the lower part of the body from the waist to the ankles, covering both legs separately...
and underwear. There tends to be a genderGenderGender is a range of characteristics used to distinguish between males and females, particularly in the cases of men and women and the masculine and feminine attributes assigned to them. Depending on the context, the discriminating characteristics vary from sex to social role to gender identity...
ed double standardDouble standardA double standard is the unjust application of different sets of principles for similar situations. The concept implies that a single set of principles encompassing all situations is the desirable ideal. The term has been used in print since at least 1895...
here: with males, the act is most often done for the sake of humor, disparagement, and/or mockery than for sexual excitement, whereas with females, the reverse tends to be true, and sexual arousalSexual arousalSexual arousal, or sexual excitement, is the arousal of sexual desire, during or in anticipation of sexual activity. Things that precipitate human sexual arousal are called erotic stimuli, or colloquially known as turn-ons. There are many potential stimuli, both physical or mental, which can cause...
(or at least sexual attention) of those mooned is the intent. - StreakingStreakingStreaking is the act of running nude through a public place.-History:On 5 July 1799, a Friday evening at 7 o'clock, a naked man was arrested at the Mansion House, London, and sent to the Poultry Compter...
: the act of running nude through a public place. - CandaulismCandaulismCandaulism is a sexual practice or fantasy in which a man exposes his female partner, or images of her, to other people for their voyeuristic pleasure. According to Gugitz, the term is derived from ancient King Candaules who made a plot to show his unaware naked wife to his servant Gyges of Lydia...
: when a person exposes his/her partner in a sexually explicit manner.
Some researchers have claimed that telephone scatalogia is a variant of exhibitionism, even though it has no in-person physical connotations.
Psychological aspects
Exhibitionism as a disorder was first described in a scientific journal in 1877 by a French physician and psychiatrist Charles LasègueCharles Lasègue
Charles Lasègue, full name Ernest-Charles Lasègue was a French physician who was born in Paris. In 1847 he received his medical doctorate from the University of Paris, and during the following year was sent to Southern Russia by the French government to research an epidemic of cholera...
(1809–1883).
Exhibitionism can be considered a psychological
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
disorder
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
if it interferes with the quality of life or normal
Normality
Normality may refer to:* The property of conforming to a norm; see normality , assimilation * Normality The state of dynamic equilibrium between all the bio-psycho-social parameters of the individual and the surrounding bio-psycho-social environment...
functioning capacity of the individual. Exhibitionism is referred to in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 4th Edition (class 302.4). Many psychiatric definitions of exhibitionism broadly define it as "sexual gratification, above and beyond the sexual act itself, that is achieved by risky public sexual activity and/or bodily exposure." Beyond bodily exposure, it can also include "engaging in sex where one may possibly be seen in the act, or caught in the act."
A research team asked a sample of 185 exhibitionists, "How would you have preferred a person to react if you were to expose your privates to him or her?" The most common response was "Would want to have sexual intercourse" (35.1%), followed by "No reaction necessary at all" (19.5%), "To show their privates also" (15.1%), "Admiration" (14.1%), and "Any reaction" (11.9%). Only very few exhibitionists chose "Anger and disgust" (3.8%) or "Fear" (0.5%).
In popular culture
- In the manga version of the film Big Tits ZombieBig Tits Zombieis a 2010 Japanese fantasy-horror film. It was adapted from the manga Kyonyū Dragon by Rei Mikamoto, and stars several known faces from Japan's adult movie industry, most notably Sora Aoi. It is directed by Japanese cult satirist Takao Nakano and much of the action is shot in 3D...
, the main protagonist, Rena, suffers from exhibitionism, but gets angry if men touch her. - In the zombie manga Becchin and Mandara (Velveteen and Mandala in the English version) by Jiro MatsumotoJiro MatsumotoJiro Matsumoto is a Japanese manga artist known for his work on Freesia, Uncivilized Planet, Keep on Vibrating, Wendy, Avant-Pop Mars, Little Feet, A Revolutionist in the Afternoon and Tropical Citron...
, Becchin flashes a group of zombies via anasyrma. Also, the caretaker frequently exposes his genitals as a running gag throughout the manga.
See also
- Clothed male, naked femaleClothed male, naked femaleClothed male, naked female is a genre of erotica featuring one or more nude women and one or more clothed men. Such a scenario is described as a sexual fantasy by some men and some women...
- Clothed female, naked maleClothed female, naked maleClothed female, naked male is a genre of erotica featuring one or more nude men and one or more clothed women. It is sometimes described as a sexual fantasy, by women or men, depicting such a exhibitionist or physique worship scenario...
- Courtship disorderCourtship disorderCourtship disorder is a theoretical construct in sexology in which a certain set of paraphilias are seen as specific instances of anomalous courtship instincts in men. The specific paraphilias are exhibitionism, voyeurism, telephone scatologia, frotteurism, and biastophilia...
- Dogging (sexual slang)Dogging (sexual slang)Dogging is a British English euphemism for engaging in sexual acts in a public or semi-public place or watching others doing so. There may be more than two participants; both group sex and gang banging can be included. As observation is encouraged, voyeurism and exhibitionism are closely associated...
- Exhibitionist narcissism
- Human sexual behaviorHuman sexual behaviorHuman sexual activities or human sexual practices or human sexual behavior refers to the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts from time to time, and for a wide variety of reasons...
- Human sexualityHuman sexualityHuman sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
- List of sexology topics
- ReflectopornReflectopornReflectoporn is a form of exhibitionism in which a man or woman strips and then takes a photograph of an object with a reflective surface in such a way that his or her naked body can be seen in the reflection. The photograph is then posted in a public forum...
- Sexual fetishismSexual fetishismSexual fetishism, or erotic fetishism, is the sexual arousal a person receives from a physical object, or from a specific situation. The object or situation of interest is called the fetish, the person a fetishist who has a fetish for that object/situation. Sexual fetishism may be regarded, e.g...
- Sexually liberal feminism
- Sheela na GigSheela Na GigSheela na gigs are figurative carvings of naked women displaying an exaggerated vulva. They are found on churches, castles and other buildings, particularly in Ireland and Britain, sometimes together with male figures. One of the best examples may be found in the Round Tower at Rattoo, in County...
- VoyeurismVoyeurismIn clinical psychology, voyeurism is the sexual interest in or practice of spying on people engaged in intimate behaviors, such as undressing, sexual activity, or other activity usually considered to be of a private nature....
External links
- Exhibitionism explained briefly on AllPsych