Dacryphilia (also known as dacrylagnia) is a form of paraphilia in which one is aroused by tears or sobbing.[1][2][3]

The term comes from the Greek words dacry- meaning "tears", and philia meaning "love".[4]

Dacryphilia is an underexplored aspect of non-normative sexual interests. Psychologists Richard Greenhill and Mark D. Griffiths from Nottingham Trent University conducted the first empirical study on dacryphilia, published in March 2015. The study, comprising online interviews, included six females and two males, three of them were also involved in BDSM.[5] The researchers identified three themes: compassion, curled lips, and dominance/submission. The paraphilia may be experienced by those who do not consider themselves a dominant or submissive, and are motivated by compassion.[6] Half of the participants, all women, associated dacryphilia with the arousal from comforting a crier due to compassion and shared a fantasy of meeting someone who has faced hardships and providing them comfort.[7] Individuals with dacryphilia may find arousal when their partner cries during a movie or from the normal emotional vulnerability and strong feelings of love that may make a partner cry during intercourse.[6]

References

  1. ^ Holmes, Ronald M. (5 November 2001). Sex Crimes: Patterns and Behavior. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. p. p. 244. ISBN 0-7619-2417-5. OCLC 48883594.
  2. ^ Aggrawal, Anil (2009). Forensic and Medico-legal Aspects of Sexual Crimes and Unususal Sexual Practices. Boca Raton: CRC Press. p. 373. ISBN 978-1-4200-4308-2.
  3. ^ Greenhill, Richard; Griffiths, Mark (2016). "Sexual interest as performance, intellect and pathology: A critical discursive case study of dacryphilia". Psychology & Sexuality. 7 (4): 265–278. doi:10.1080/19419899.2016.1200118. S2CID 148432017. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  4. ^ "Definition/Meaning of dacryphilia". EngYes. Retrieved 2019-05-10.
  5. ^ Greenhill, Richard; Griffiths, Mark (2015). "Compassion, Dominance/Submission, and Curled Lips: A Thematic Analysis of Dacryphilic Experience". International Journal of Sexual Health. 27 (3): 337–350. doi:10.1080/19317611.2015.1013596. S2CID 56210653. Retrieved 15 July 2021.
  6. ^ a b Mark D. Griffiths (14 January 2016). "Can Crying Be Sexually Arousing? A brief look at dacryphilia". Psychology Today.
  7. ^ Bloom, Jessica (2016-01-12). "Getting Wet with Crying Fetishists". Vice. Retrieved 2024-01-06.


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