What scholarly studies examine stigma toward pegging specifically versus general anal sex across genders?
Executive summary
Recent academic work documents stigma toward anal sex broadly and develops validated scales (e.g., the Anal Sex Stigma Scales) tested with cisgender MSM and adapted across settings, but direct, peer‑reviewed scholarship that isolates stigma toward “pegging” specifically (the gendered act of a woman anally penetrating a man with a strap‑on) is sparse in the indexed sources provided here (see the Anal Sex Stigma Scales development and validations) [1] [2]. A few qualitative and media‑oriented pieces discuss pegging and its taboo status, and at least one recent qualitative pegging study and analyses of pegging in cultural commentary exist, but most rigorous stigma research treats anal sex as a category rather than parsing pegging as a distinct object of measurement [3] [4] [5].
1. What peer‑reviewed stigma research exists about anal sex as a category?
Several rigorous, peer‑reviewed projects have defined and measured “anal sex stigma” and linked it to health outcomes. The Anal Sex Stigma Scales were developed through interviews and large online samples of cisgender men who have sex with men and yield subscales for self‑stigma, provider stigma, and omission of information; the work shows associations between anal sex stigma and health‑seeking behavior relevant to HIV prevention [1] [6]. A later validation effort focused on Black sexual minority men living with HIV found higher anal sex stigma correlated with internalized homophobia, depression, and lower community connectedness [2]. These studies treat anal sexuality as the unit of analysis rather than distinguishing specific practices like pegging [1] [2].
2. Evidence on stigma’s effects — why researchers study anal sex stigma
Anal‑sex‑focused stigma research has practical motivations: among MSM, anal sex stigma has been shown to impede engagement with HIV prevention and care by promoting concealment and discomfort discussing anal sexuality with providers, thereby reducing testing and prevention uptake [6] [7]. Systematic and methodological reviews of sexual‑behavior stigma and measurement further underscore that stigma around anal practices can distort reporting and limit health services engagement, which is why generalized measures of anal sex stigma have been prioritized [8] [7].
3. Is there scholarship that treats pegging as a distinct stigma object?
Available reporting in the provided search results shows mostly non‑empirical articles and a few small qualitative works that focus on pegging as a cultural or lived‑experience phenomenon rather than as a formally measured stigma construct. A qualitative study analyzing “most amazing” pegging experiences was published and documents experiences and community meanings around pegging, which signals emerging academic attention to the practice specifically [3]. Cultural analyses—reviews and essays—have discussed pegging’s taboo status in media and popular discourse [4] [5]. But large quantitative stigma scales and major stigma‑health models in the provided sources do not appear to have peg‑specific modules [1] [6].
4. Where scholars have indirectly addressed pegging: BDSM, role reversal, and heteronormativity
Some scholarly work examines role reversal, anoreceptive heterosexual males, and BDSM intersections that touch on the social meanings similar to pegging (e.g., subverting heteronormative anoreception roles), suggesting researchers borrow adjacent constructs rather than label “pegging” explicitly in stigma measures [4]. These studies illuminate how gendered power, heteronormativity, and community norms shape stigma around receptive anal roles for men — dimensions relevant to pegging yet not always named as such [4].
5. Geographic and population gaps — who’s studied and who isn’t
Much of the validated scale work focuses on MSM populations in the U.S. and adaptations/validations in other countries (e.g., Italy) that measure general attitudes toward anal sex and related fears like pain or social stigma [9] [1]. The Black SMM validation highlights intersectional burdens (race, HIV status) [2]. Available materials do not show large, representative studies that measure pegging stigma across cishet men, cishet women, trans people, or nonbinary groups — available sources do not mention broad population surveys that single out pegging [1] [3].
6. What this means for your research question and next steps
If you want studies that explicitly compare “pegging stigma” versus general anal‑sex stigma across genders, the literature in these results suggests two approaches: (a) use established anal sex stigma scales and add pegging‑specific items in new surveys to permit direct comparison (in line with how the Anal Sex Stigma Scales were developed) [1], or (b) pursue qualitative work to capture meanings, gendered reactions, and intersectional differences — an approach already used for pegging experiences [3] [4]. The provided sources do not list many peer‑reviewed quantitative papers that isolate pegging stigma as a standalone, validated construct [1] [3].
Limitations and competing perspectives: authors of validated scales argue for treating anal sexuality as a measurable domain for public‑health reasons [1] [6], while cultural commentators and small qualitative studies stress gendered taboos and identity politics specific to pegging [5] [3]. Available sources do not mention any large‑scale, multi‑gender quantitative comparison that isolates pegging stigma; therefore, conclusions about pegging‑specific stigma must currently rely on qualitative accounts and adaptation of existing anal‑stigma measures [3] [1].