Editing Voyeurism (section)

==Characteristics==
People engage in voyeuristic behaviours for diverse reasons, but statistics can indicate which groups are likelier to engage in the act.

Early research indicated that voyeurs were more mentally healthy than other groups with [[paraphilia]]s.<ref name="pmid795401" /> Compared to the other groups studied, it was found that voyeurs were unlikely to be alcoholics or drug users. More recent research shows that, compared to the general population, voyeurs were moderately more likely to have psychological problems, use alcohol and drugs, and have higher sexual interest generally.<ref name="pmid16900414" /> This study also shows that voyeurs have a greater number of sexual partners per year, and are more likely to have had a same-sex partner than most of the populations.<ref name="pmid16900414" /> Both older and newer research found that voyeurs typically have a later age of first sexual intercourse.<ref name="pmid795401" /><ref name="pmid16900414" /> However, other research found no difference in sexual history between voyeurs and non-voyeurs.<ref name="pmid2064539" /> Voyeurs who are not also exhibitionists tend to be from a higher [[socioeconomic status]] than those who do show exhibitionist behaviour.<ref name="pmid16900414" />

===Gender differences===
[[File:Collection of Etruscan, Greek and Roman antiquities from the cabinet of the Honourable William Hamilton (1766) (14780380622).jpg|thumb|right|200px|Sex between male youths spied on by man and woman. The Dinos Painter, fifth century BCE.]]
[[File:Woman_spying_on_male_lovers.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Woman spies on male couple, 18th-century, Qing-Dynasty.]]

Research shows that, like almost all paraphilias, voyeurism is more common in men than in women.<ref name="pmid16900414" /> However, research has found that men and women both report roughly the same likelihood that they would hypothetically engage in voyeurism.<ref name="RyeMeaney2007">{{cite journal |doi=10.1300/J514v19n01_06 |title=Voyeurism: It Is Good as Long as We Do Not Get Caught |year=2007 |last1=Rye |first1=B. J. |last2=Meaney |first2=Glenn J. |journal=International Journal of Sexual Health |volume=19 |pages=47–56|s2cid=216148367 }}</ref> There appears to be a greater gender difference when actually presented with the opportunity to perform voyeurism. There is very little research done on voyeurism in women, so very little is known on the subject which limits the degree to which it can generalize to normal female populations.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hurlbert |first1=David |title=Voyeurism in an adult female with schizoid personality: A case report |journal=Journal of Sex Education & Therapy |volume=18 |pages=17–21 |year=1992|doi=10.1080/01614576.1992.11074035 }}{{Page needed|date=April 2013}}</ref>

A 2021 study found that 36.4% of men and 63.8% of women were strongly repulsed by the idea of voyeurism. Men were more likely to be mildly or moderately aroused than women, but there was little gender difference among those who reported strong arousal. Men reported slightly higher willingness to commit voyeurism but, when risk is introduced, willingness diminishes in both sexes proportionally to the risk involved. Individual differences in [[sociosexuality]] and sexual compulsivity were found to contribute to the sex differences in voyeurism.<ref>{{cite journal |title=Sex Differences in Voyeuristic and Exhibitionistic Interests: Exploring the Mediating Roles of Sociosexuality and Sexual Compulsivity from an Evolutionary Perspective |year=2021 |pmid=34231108|last1=Thomas |first1=A. G. |last2=Stone |first2=B. |last3=Bennett |first3=P. |last4=Stewart-Williams |first4=S. |author5=Kennair LEO |journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior |volume=50 |issue=5 |pages=2151–2162 |doi=10.1007/s10508-021-01991-0 |pmc=8275528 }}</ref>

===Contemporary perspectives===
[[File:Lady Godiva clock -Broadgate -Coventry-21July2008.jpg|thumb|alt=|The Lady Godiva Clock in [[Coventry]] displays her naked ride through the city and [[Peeping Tom]]'s voyeurism.]]
[[File:Warren_Cup_BM_GR_1999.4-26.1_n1.jpg|thumb|alt=|A man spies on two males having intercourse in side A of the [[Warren Cup]]]]
[[Lovemap]] theory suggests that voyeurism exists because looking at naked others shifts from an ancillary sexual behaviour to a primary sexual act.<ref name="RyeMeaney2007" /> This results in a displacement of sexual desire making the act of watching someone the primary means of sexual satisfaction.

Voyeurism has also been linked with [[obsessive–compulsive disorder]] (OCD). When treated by the same approach as OCD, voyeuristic behaviours significantly decrease.<ref name="pmid10097802">{{cite journal |doi=10.1023/A:1018737504537 |year=1999 |last1=Abouesh |first1=Ahmed |last2=Clayton |first2=Anita |journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior |volume=28 |pages=23–30 |pmid=10097802 |title=Compulsive voyeurism and exhibitionism: A clinical response to paroxetine |issue=1|s2cid=463910 }}</ref>