Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Feederism: An Exaggeration of a Normative Mate Selection Preference?

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Archives of Sexual Behavior Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Quinsey and Lalumière (1995) suggested that some, if not most, paraphilias are exaggerated manifestations of more normative and functional mate selection preferences. The present study tested whether Feederism, a fat fetish focused on erotic eating, feeding, and gaining weight, is an exaggeration of a sexual arousal pattern commonly seen in the general population. Thirty participants (15 men and 15 women) recruited from the general population were assessed using penile plethysmography and vaginal photoplethysmography, respectively. None of the participants were self-identified Feeders or Feedees. Participants were shown sexual, neutral, and feeding still images while listening to audio recordings of sexual, neutral, and feeding stories. Participants did not genitally respond to feeding stimuli. However, both men and women subjectively rated feeding stimuli as more sexually arousing than neutral stimuli. We discuss the discordance between physiological and self-reported sexual arousal in the context of sex differences in sexual concordance and implications for future research.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Teleiophilia refers to sexual attraction to adults. Gynephilia refers to sexual attraction to females. Androphilia refers to sexual attraction to males (Blanchard et al., 2000).

References

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC: Author.

  • Basson, R. (2000). The female sexual response: A different model. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, 26, 51–65.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Basson, R. (2001). Human sex-response cycles. Journal of Sex and Marital Therapy, 27, 33–43.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baumeister, R. F., & Vohs, K. D. (2004). Sexual economics: Sex as female resource for social exchange in heterosexual interactions. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 8, 339–363.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bestard, A. D. (2008). Feederism: An exploratory study into the stigma of erotic weight gain. Unpublished master’s thesis, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON.

  • Blanchard, R., Barbaree, H. E., Bogaert, A. F., Dickey, R., Klassen, P., Kuban, M. E., & Zucker, K. J. (2000). Fraternal birth order and sexual orientation in pedophiles. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 29, 463–478.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Breslow, N., Evans, L., & Langley, J. (1985). On the prevalence and roles of females in sadomasochistic subculture: Report of an empirical study. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 14, 303–317.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Buss, D. M., & Schmitt, D. P. (1993). Sexual strategies theory: An evolutionary perspective on human mating. Psychological Review, 100, 204–232.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chivers, M. L., Rieger, G., Latty, E., & Bailey, J. M. (2004). A sex difference in the specificity of sexual arousal. Psychological Science, 15, 736–744.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chivers, M. L., Seto, M. C., Lalumière, M. L., Laan, E., & Grimbos, T. (2010). Agreement of self-reported and genital measures of sexual arousal in men and women: A meta-analysis. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39, 5–56.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fedoroff, P., Fishell, A., & Fedoroff, B. (1999). A case series of women evaluated for paraphilic sexual disorders. Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, 8, 127–140.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freund, K. (1990). Courtship disorder. In W. L. Marshall, D. R. Laws, & H. E. Barbaree (Eds.), Handbook of sexual assault: Issues, theories and treatment of the offender (pp. 195–207). New York: Plenum Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freund, K., & Costell, R. (1970). The structure of erotic preference in the nondeviant male. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 8, 15–20.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frisch, R. E. (1987). Body fat, menarche, fitness, and fertility. Human Reproduction, 2, 521–533.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frisch, R. E. (1990). The right weight: Body fat, menarche, and ovulation. Bailliere’s Clinical Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 4, 419–439.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Frisch, R. E. (1994). The right weight: Body fat, menarche, and fertility. Proceedings of the Nutrition Society, 53, 113–129.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gates, K. (2000). Deviant desires: Incredibly strange sex. New York: Juno Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Geary, D. C., Vigil, J., & Byrd-Craven, J. (2004). Evolution of human mate choice. Journal of Sex Research, 41, 27–42.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Giovanelli, D., & Peluso, N. M. (2006). Feederism: A new sexual pleasure and subculture. In S. Seidman, N. Fischer, & C. Meeks (Eds.), Handbook of new sexuality studies (pp. 309–313). New York: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gomes, C. M., & Boesch, C. (2009). Wild chimpanzees exchange meat for sex on a long-term basis. PLoS ONE, 4, e5116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0005116.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Grammer, K., Kruck, K., Juette, A., & Fink, B. (2000). Non-verbal behavior as courtship signals: The role of control and choice in selecting partners. Evolution and Human Behavior, 21, 371–390.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Harris, G. T., Rice, M. E., Quinsey, V. L., Chaplin, T. C., & Earls, C. (1992). Maximizing the discriminant validity of phallometric assessment data. Psychological Assessment, 4, 502–511.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heiman, J. R. (1977). A psychophysiological exploration of sexual arousal patterns in females and males. Psychophysiology, 14, 266–274.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Heiman, J. R. (1980). Female sexual response patterns. Archives of General Psychiatry, 37, 1311–1316.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan, H. S. (1979). Disorders of sexual desire and other new concepts and techniques in sex therapy. New York: Brunner/Mazel.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan, H., & Hill, K. (1985). Hunting ability and reproductive success among male Ache foragers: Preliminary results. Current Anthropology, 26, 131–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kinsey, A. C., Pomeroy, W. B., & Martin, C. E. (1948). Sexual behavior in the human male. Philadelphia: Saunders.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kinsey, A. C., Pomeroy, W. B., Martin, C. E., & Gebhard, P. H. (1953). Sexual behavior in the human female. Philadelphia: Saunders.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kulick, D. (2005). Porn. In D. Kulick & A. Meneley (Eds.), Fat: The anthropology of an obsession (pp. 77–92). New York: Penguin Group.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laan, E., & Everaerd, W. (1995). Determinants of female sexual arousal: Psychophysiological theory and data. Annual Review of Sex Research, 6, 32–76.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laan, E., Everaerd, W., & Evers, A. (1995). Assessment of female sexual arousal: Response specificity and construct validity. Psychophysiology, 32, 476–485.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Laan, E., & Janssen, E. (2007). How do men and women feel? Determinants of subjective experience of sexual arousal. In E. Janssen (Ed.), The psychophysiology of sex (pp. 278–290). Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laws, D. R., & O’Donohue, W. (Eds.). (1997). Sexual deviance: Theory, assessment, and treatment. New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ludwig, E. (2008, March). Super-size me: These men and women are hot for partners with more than a little meat on their bones. Men Style. Retrieved from http://men.style/details/features/landing?id=content_5548.

  • Marlowe, F. (2001). Male contribution to diet and female reproductive success among foragers. Current Anthropology, 42, 755–760.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, L., Rozin, P., & Fiske, A. P. (1998). Food sharing and feeding another person suggest intimacy: Two studies of American college students. European Journal of Social Psychology, 28, 423–436.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murray, S. (2004). Locating aesthetics: Sexing the fat woman. Social Semiotics, 14, 237–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Quinsey, V. L., & Lalumière, M. L. (1995). Evolutionary perspectives on sexual offending. Sexual Abuse: A Journal of Research and Treatment, 7, 301–315.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sandroni, P. (2001). Aphrodisiacs past and present: A historical review. Clinical Autonomic Research, 11, 303–307.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Saville, D. J. (1990). Multiple comparison procedures: The practical solution. American Statistician, 44, 174–180.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simmons, R. E. (1988). Food and the deceptive acquisition of mates by polygynous male harriers. Behavioral Ecology Sociobiology, 23, 83–92.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, E. A. (2004). Why do good hunters have higher reproductive success? Human Nature, 15, 343–364.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suschinsky, K. D., & Lalumière, M. L. (2011). Prepared for anything? An investigation of female genital arousal to rape cues. Psychological Science, 22, 159–185.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Suschinsky, K. D., Lalumière, M. L., & Chivers, M. L. (2009). Sex differences in patterns of genital sexual arousal: Measurement artifacts or true phenomena? Archives of Sexual Behavior, 38, 559–573.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Swami, V., & Furnham, A. (2009). Big and beautiful: Attractiveness and health ratings of the female body by male “fat admirers”. Archives of Sexual Behaviors, 38, 201–208.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Terry, L. L., & Vasey, P. L. (2011). Feederism in a woman. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 639–645.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • van Noordwijk, M. A., & van Schaik, C. P. (2009). Intersexual food transfer among orangutans: Do females test males for coercive tendency? Behavioral Ecology Sociobiology, 63, 883–890.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vohs, K. D., Catanese, K. R., & Baumeister, R. F. (2004). Sex in “his” versus “her” relationships. In J. H. Harvey, A. Wenzel, & S. Sprecher (Eds.), The handbook of sexuality in close relationships (pp. 455–476). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Walen, S. R., & Roth, D. (1987). A cognitive approach. In J. H. Geer & W. T. O’Donohue (Eds.), Theories of human sexuality (pp. 335–362). New York: Plenum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wincze, J. P., Venditti, E., Barlow, D., & Mavissakalian, M. (1980). The effects of a subjective monitoring task in the physiological measure of genital response to erotic stimulation. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 9, 533–545.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wolchik, S. A., Braver, S. L., & Jensen, K. (1985). Volunteer bias in erotica research: Effects of intrusiveness of measure and sexual background. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 14, 93–107.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgment

A version of this article was presented at the University of Lethbridge Workshop, The Puzzle of Sexual Orientation: What Is It and How Does It Work?, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, June 2010.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB, Canada

    Lesley L. Terry, Kelly D. Suschinsky, Martin L. Lalumière & Paul L. Vasey

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Saskatchewan, 9 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5A5, Canada

    Lesley L. Terry

Authors
  1. Lesley L. Terry
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kelly D. Suschinsky
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Martin L. Lalumière
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Paul L. Vasey
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lesley L. Terry.

Appendix: Example Feeding Story

Appendix: Example Feeding Story

We met a month ago at the office when he started as the new account manager. We occasionally made small chat in passing and I was surprised when he invited me over for dinner. As I enter his apartment, the smell of fresh bread and spice overwhelms me. He rushes back to the kitchen where he is stirring a pot. He smiles and asks me to come in and sit while he finishes up. He is making pasta and homemade sauce. I walk over and peer into the pot he is stirring. The deep red sauce is thick and I can see that he has laced it with fresh herbs and meat as it laps against the sides of the pot with each stroke. He turns and cuts another Italian sausage. The knife pierces the skin and juice runs onto the cutting board as he masterfully cuts it into equal disks. He holds a piece on a fork out to me: “Careful it’s hot.” I pull it off with my teeth and the juice runs over my tongue as I chew. He tosses the rest into the pot and stirs it a bit more. Cupping his hand under it, he holds up the spoon and brings it to me. I taste the spicy sauce as I slip it off the spoon into my mouth. It is delicious. I try to decipher the different spices he has used: basil, garlic, and something else. He takes a taste as well and closes his eyes. He looks at me and smiles: “It’s ready!” He goes to the sink and drains the pasta and the steam swells up over him. He places my meal down on the table in front of me and I hold back the urge to devour it instantly. He quickly turns and goes back to the kitchen and pulls out the fresh bread from the oven. I am delighted. He brings it to the table and breaks it open. Steam escapes from the ends. He sits beside me and smiles. He lifts his fork with pasta and sausage on it and puts it to my lips, “Bon appétit!” he says.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Terry, L.L., Suschinsky, K.D., Lalumière, M.L. et al. Feederism: An Exaggeration of a Normative Mate Selection Preference?. Arch Sex Behav 41, 249–260 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-9925-7

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-9925-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation