And here are the unexpected conclusions we came to.
In scientific parlance, the sounds humans and other mammals make during sexual intercourse are called female copulatory vocalizations. There is no male equivalent, as in nature, males primarily reproduce silently.
In human society, women are also more likely to provide the audio accompaniment to sex. But men aren’t always as silent as guerrillas. Let’s explore what motivates both men and women to break the silence in bed and anywhere else where passion strikes.
The ancient instinct of survival speaks within us.
Let’s return to mammals, or more precisely, to our relatives, the monkeys. Biologists have discovered that female primates don’t make sounds out of pleasure.
Their screams are part of a strategy aimed at the survival of their offspring.
Female chimpanzees, genetically closest to humans, are champions of female sexual wiles. They scream only if they have successfully seduced an alpha male. They copulate silently with low-ranking partners. Chimpanzees also behave quietly when stronger and more respected females in the troop are nearby.
What benefits do females gain from this strategy? First, they protect their future offspring by advertising their relationship with a tough guy to other males and claiming him as the father of their children. Second, they stimulate male competition and attract new suitors. It’s not a given that they’ll get pregnant with an alpha male. By securing the support of the strongest male, they can then quietly conceive with someone less powerful. Third, they protect themselves from aggression from other females. After all, competition for a high-status male is intense among chimpanzees, just like in humans.
Similar, albeit less complex, behavior is observed in other polygamous primates, such as macaques and baboons. In short, it’s all calculation and no passion.
This is how women boost a man’s self-esteem and bring him closer to orgasm.
Contrary to popular belief among young men, a girl’s scream in bed is, in most cases, not an instinctive reaction to an unforgettable vaginal orgasm, but a kind of manipulation (which makes us related to chimpanzees).
More than 90% of men admit that they are turned on by their partner’s moans in bed.
And women, according to surveys, are happy to make the effort: 87% of them shout loudly to please they loved one and boost his self-esteem. However, this performance doesn’t exclude their own pleasure.
The second most common reason for female screaming is the desire to speed up a man’s orgasm. 66% of women admitted that they sometimes use moaning to speed up the process. The reasons vary: boredom, discomfort, fatigue, pain, the need to get some sleep before a morning meeting, or thoughts of the hungry cat waiting at home. But you wouldn’t want to offend a nice guy by saying, “Hurry up!”
We follow the lead of cinema
Perhaps women would be quieter, and men wouldn’t perceive screams as proof of their mastery in bed, if it weren’t for cinema. Directors use moans in the frame to enhance sex scenes and emphasize the moment of orgasm. This same sound technique is also used in pornographic films.
Scientists haven’t yet bothered to study the connection between erotic scenes and our behavior in the bedroom. But many experts have no doubt that we owe the myth “the louder the scream, the more intense the orgasm” to pornography in particular and pop culture in general.
Sex is not an easy job
We’ve covered female moans and screams. Now let’s move on to panting, grunting, groaning, and sighing. According to Barry Komisaruk, author of The Science of Orgasm, the involuntary sounds that accompany sex are related to physical tension.
It’s the man who has to exert himself the most. His body needs more oxygen, so he begins to breathe more frequently. And injections with vowels like “ooh!”, “ah!”, and “aaah!” promote increased ventilation.
Sounds help us communicate without wasting energy.
So, does this mean that bedroom noises have nothing to do with passion and intimacy? Not quite. New York University anthropology professor James Higham argues that sounds are the simplest and most succinct form of communication a person can use.
Passion abhors complex language and tedious instructions. It’s much more natural to direct your partners and communicate your pleasure through moans or loud sighs. This kind of communication fosters mutual understanding, you feel each other better, and sex is more emotional than in the dead of silence.
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