What large-scale surveys reveal about the most common female sexual fantasies?
Executive summary
Large-scale, peer-reviewed and broad online surveys consistently find that most women report sexual fantasies as common (about 90–97% in survey literature) and that content clusters around sensual/genital themes, power/submission scenarios, and socially “forbidden” situations; representative studies include a multi-country university sample (n=307) and larger community surveys such as a 1,516-person Quebec internet study and several validated questionnaire projects [1] [2] [3]. Specific prevalences vary by study and method—for example, one undergraduate study reported 62% having at least one rape-related fantasy [4] while cluster analyses from other work identify dimensions labeled genital, sensual, sexual power, sexual suffering and forbidden activity [5].
1. What the big surveys actually measured — and what they didn’t
Large-scale work uses structured questionnaires (e.g., the Wilson Sex Fantasy Questionnaire, FSFQ, and newer SDEF tools) to list dozens of possible scenarios and ask frequency/intensity; that design produces reliable clusters but depends on which items researchers include, wording, and sample (students vs. community) [1] [5] [3]. Some projects aimed at scale and psychometrics surveyed 1,000–1,700+ people (e.g., the SDEF2 work in Italy, n=1,773) and validated factors such as fantasy frequency, normality attitudes and sharing—yet cultural sampling and questionnaire length shape what appears “most common” [3].
2. The recurring themes: sensuality, power, and the forbidden
Across decades of questionnaire-based work, common female fantasy content falls into several repeatable dimensions: genital/sensual scenarios (romance, oral sex), themes of sexual power or submission, fantasies involving suffering or forced elements, and “forbidden” activities; factor-analytic work formalized these five dimensions (genital, sensual, sexual power, sexual suffering, forbidden) [5] [2]. Review and replication studies emphasize that many fantasies deemed “unusual” are actually common when measured systematically [2].
3. Prevalence examples that get attention — with important caveats
Some headline numbers recur: a university study of undergraduates reported 62% of women had experienced a rape fantasy on at least one occasion [4]; other research summarized in media and review articles reports sizable minorities endorsing fantasies involving restraint, role play or coercive-feeling scenarios [6] [7]. These figures come from methods that range from checklists to narrative prompts; the meaning of “rape fantasy” varies across studies (eroticized coercion in a fantasy vs. endorsement of actual assault), so prevalence figures cannot be read as approval of real-world violence [4] [6].
4. Gender differences and myths — what the data show
Surveys that compare men and women find both overlap and differences: many fantasies are common to both sexes, but patterns differ in frequency and preferred content (e.g., some studies find women report more submission-themed fantasies while men report different power-related scenarios); representative internet samples and psychometric studies stress substantial overlap and caution against treating any single fantasy as uniquely male or female [2] [3]. Critics and researchers note cultural bias and sampling limits make sweeping gender claims unreliable [8].
5. Measurement limits, sampling bias, and cultural context
The research record includes student samples, national internet samples, and clinic-validated instruments; each has limits. Student samples can over-represent younger adults [1] [4]. Internet surveys can reach thousands (increasing power) but are shaped by who opts into sexual-topic polls [2] [9]. Cross-cultural replication is incomplete: authors explicitly warn culture influences content and that more diverse, representative sampling is needed to define what is “typical” worldwide [8] [3].
6. How researchers interpret coercive-feeling fantasies
Academic work distinguishes fantasy content from real-world endorsement. Studies finding eroticized coercion or forced-sex themes place those fantasies on an erotic–aversive continuum and emphasize that imagining a coercive scenario does not equal wanting assault in reality; many women in those studies described fantasies involving resistance mixed with arousal rather than endorsement of harm [4] [6]. Media summaries sometimes compress nuance, producing misleading headlines—consult original methods and definitions to understand what was actually asked [6] [2].
7. Bottom line for readers seeking reliable takeaways
Available large-scale and psychometric research shows erotic fantasies are near-universal, with consistent thematic clusters (sensual, power/submission, forbidden). Exact rankings and prevalences differ by questionnaire, sample, and cultural setting; statements that single fantasies are rare or uniquely deviant are contradicted by multiple empirical efforts that find substantial commonality across many fantasy types [3] [2]. Available sources do not mention a single, globally representative list that definitively ranks “the most common” fantasies across all cultures [8].
Limitations: this summary relies on the provided sources and their reported methods; for a complete picture consult original articles and cross-cultural replications referenced above [1] [3] [2].