Can Kink Lead to a Happier Life?

Links to Files

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/can_kink_lead_to_a_happier_life

Permanent Link

http://hdl.handle.net/11603/40240

Collections

UMBC Faculty Collection
UMBC Sociology, Anthropology, and Public Health Department

Author/Creator

Author/Creator ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3711-2754

Date

2025-08-25

Type of Work

articles
Text

Department

Program

Citation of Original Publication

Larson, Vicki, Arielle Kuperberg, and Alicia M. Walker. “Can Kink Lead to a Happier Life?” Greater Good, August 25, 2025. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/can_kink_lead_to_a_happier_life.

Rights

This item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.

Subjects

bondage
discipline
sadism
masochism

Abstract

Once considered a mental disorder, today kink is having a moment. Recent movies like Babygirl tell tales of a high-powered woman exploring the world of dominance and submission. In the FX/Hulu series Dying for Sex, based on a true story, a woman who has terminal cancer is introduced to kink with different men. And then, of course, we have 2011’s hugely popular romance trilogy and movie franchise Fifty Shades of Grey. As a result, the once-fringe practice is slowly becoming normalized.