Some definitions for "kink" that have popped up over the years are:
- An unconventional sexual taste or behavior (Merriam-Webster's collegiate dictionary, 2020)
- An unusual behavior, something most people would deem "abnormal" or "bizarre" - not inherently "sexual" (Decoding Desire, 2014)
- "Kink" is a broad term that refers to a wide variety of consensual, non-traditional sexual, sensual, and intimate behaviors such as sadomasochism, domination and submission, erotic roleplaying, fetishism, and erotic forms of discipline (Aaron, 2018)
Some definitions of "fetish" that have popped up over the years are:
- "to do" / "a thing made by art" (Fernandez & Lastovicka, 2011)
- Used by anthropologists and historians to observe different societies and their relationship to material objects (Fernandez & Lastovicka, 2011)
- An inanimate object or body part causes sexual arousal (Fernandez & Lastovicka, 2011) (Freud)
- A ritualized use of eroticized objects of desire (Krafft-Ebing)
- A body part on the human body or inanimate object with intense sensations (Krafft-Ebing)
- The attribution of erotic or sexual significance to some nonsexual inanimate object or to a nongenital body part; an inanimate object venerated for its alleged magical powers. Fetishism involves a paraphilia condition in which the fetishist is dependent on a fetish object, substance, or part of the body in order to achieve sexual arousal and orgasm. The erotic symbolism of a fetish results from associations usually developed unconsciously during the prepubertal or early adolescent period. (Francoeur, Cornog, Scherzer, & Perper, 1995)
- "Fetish" is a more narrow term that describes people with an erotic or intimate interest in specific non-genital body parts, fabrics, smells, fluids, costumes and other non-human objects. (Aaron, 2018)
While similar, these two words are not quite the same. The people on the internet and everyday conversation use these two terms are interchangeable, synonymous things when this is not quite the case. "Kink" is typically seen as someone "unusual" or "abnormal" to the average person off the street (bondage, roleplaying, certain acts of BDSM just to give some examples). It is not inherently "sexual" (sexual here meaning: anything involving penetration, having an orgasm as the primary goal of the activity, etc.). "Fetish" is seen as something where the primary goal is to have an orgasm or to experience sexual-relating feelings and sensation (the "feel good" feelings that come when someone touches a certain spot on the body, such as caressing the back of a knee or rubbing a feather on someone).
Sexologists, a field of study specific to human sexuality, all have slightly varying definitions of "kink" and "fetish". One thing sexologists can agree on though is that the line between "fetish" and "sexual attraction" seems to be getting thinner with how exactly to define the differences between the two. Regardless, it is important to remember that there is a slight difference between "kink" and "fetish".
References:
Aaron, M. (2018, May 30). Growing Up Kinky: Research Shows How Kink Identity Is Formed. Retrieved February 2020, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/standard-deviations/201805/growing-kinky-research-shows-how-kink-identity-is-formed
Decoding Desire. (2014).
Fernandez, K. V., & Lastovicka, J. L. (2011). Making Magic: Fetishes in Contemporary Consumption. Journal of Consumer Research, 38(2), 278–299. doi: 10.1086/659079
Francoeur, R. T., Cornog, M., Scherzer, N. A., & Perper, T. (1995). The complete dictionary of sexology (New Expanded). New York: Continuum.
Kink. 2020. in Merrian-Webster.com. Retrieved February 2020, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/kink
Rosen, D. (n.d.). Secrets of the Sexual Fetish: How Sin Became the New Normal. Retrieved February 2020, from http://logosjournal.com/2016/rosen/
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