A beautiful noise

Abstract

BackgroundSexual arousal is accompanied by some typical physiological reaction patterns. Another typical feature of sexual intercourse is the sounds produced commonly by women [coital vocalizations (CV)]. The literature on this aspect of female sexuality is meager. It will be useful to add some knowledge to this field as absence of CV usually reflects a defect in the sexual relations, which can have a negative impact on both partners. Participants and methods One hundred married women attending the outpatient clinic of Benha University Hospital, Egypt, participated in this study. A self-report questionnaire, designed by the investigators, was used. It included 20 questions covering different aspects of CV. ResultsThe most common type of CV was moan/groan, followed by words. CV were mainly produced by women, most commonly occurring during thrusting, and most women believed that CV accelerated their husbands' ejaculation. Also, most women believed that CV increased desire for further sexual activity and increased satisfaction with intercourse. CV did not change with age in most women. Sexual performance appeared to be more gratifying for the women in group I (CV producers) than for the women in group II (nonvocalizers). This is evidenced by the higher figures for sexual activity obtained from group I, for example higher coital frequency, more frequent desire, and a better ability to lubricate and to reach an orgasm. However, there was no statistically significant difference in these figures between both groups. ConclusionWe got the impression that women producing CV seem to be better sexual partners. They enjoy the act more and bring more joy and satisfaction to their partners. Clinically, the wife, in cases of sexual dysfunction, should be informed of the importance of CV and may be advised to vocalize for herself and her partner's satisfaction.

Why do people make noises in bed?

“…Speech is also reported in addition to nonverbal moans, often in the form of expletives or simple words 26 . The most consistently reported pattern is that women are more vocal than men 3,20,21,26 , and this is also true in non-human primates, especially in promiscuous species 27,28 . Men reportedly appreciate female sexual sounds 3,20 , perhaps more so than do women 29 .…”

“…The most consistently reported pattern is that women are more vocal than men 3,20,21,26 , and this is also true in non-human primates, especially in promiscuous species 27,28 . Men reportedly appreciate female sexual sounds 3,20 , perhaps more so than do women 29 . As for their function, sexual vocalizations may be seen as elaborations of the breathing patterns associated with physical activity 17 .…”

“…Yet, there are compelling reasons to learn more about them. Sexual behaviors and dysfunctions are of enormous clinical and societal importance, as evidenced by the fact that much of human sexual research is medical in nature 2,3 . The study of human nonverbal vocalizations in general, such as laughs and screams, is a rapidly expanding field yielding important theoretical insights into the evolution of vocal communication 4 and language 5,6 , human social psychology 7 , and vocal development 8 .…”

“…This continuity is great news for research on human nonverbal behaviors, including sexual vocalizations, because insights from other species can be instrumental for understanding humans. Indeed, copulation calls and their likely functions have been discussed extensively in non-human primates, whereas in humans so far there are no studies of sexual vocalizations "in the wild" and only a few attempts to analyze the soundtracks of films used for sexual education 17 or pornography 18,19 , as well as some questionnaire-based surveys 3,20,21 . Isolated sexual vocalizations obtained from social media have been tested in a few studies on human nonverbal vocalizations [22][23][24][25] , but these are short individual syllables, not sequences of vocalizations unfolding dynamically through the sexual response cycle.…”

“…The second objective is to identify the acoustic predictors of perceived authenticity in human sexual vocalizations. Self-reports indicate that women routinely fake orgasms and vocalize in an exaggerated manner to please their partner or quickly terminate a sexual encounter 3,20,21,26 . However, this does not imply that all sexual vocalizations are fake, and there may be detectable differences between spontaneous and volitional affective expressions 43,44 .…”