When it comes to experiencing orgasm during sex, there's a big gap between men and women that's hard to ignore, analyzes Caitlin Riley in Yahoo! Life article.

According to a 2017 study, published by the Archives of Sexual Behavior, 95 percent of heterosexual men usually or always experience orgasm during sex, while the percentage of women is significantly lower – just 65 percent.

While the researchers note this noticeable gap, other studies suggest that this does not mean that these women have a harder time reaching orgasm – they can do it on their own.

A separate survey of more than 800 female students found that 39 percent of them said they always had an orgasm during masturbation, while only 6 percent said they always had an orgasm during sex with their partner.

In fact, research suggests that women aren't satisfied with just penetrative sex during sex with men, which means many don't experience orgasm with their partners at all.

Why is there a so-called orgasm gap?

Lori Mintz, sexual psychologist and author of the book "Being Clitorally Literate: Why Orgasm Equality Matters and How to Get It", studied why women are less likely to orgasm during sex.

"Our cultural ignorance is based on ignoring and devaluing the most reliable form of female orgasm, which is clitoral stimulation, and expecting women to orgasm the same way men do, only through penetration," she says.

"The clitoris, not the vagina, is equivalent to the penis." Depending on the type of study, you may get different numbers, but in my research, 96 percent of women needed clitoral stimulation, alone or in combination with penetration, to experience orgasm. Only 4 percent of them experience an orgasm from penetration alone."

Although it is true that women who have sex with other women experience orgasm more often, this does not mean that the penis is to blame for its lack. Mintz puts the blame on "poor sex education," because young people may be relying on pornography to learn about pleasure and sexual intimacy, which can lead to inaccurate depictions of how women achieve orgasm.

In pornography, women usually experience orgasm immediately after the act of penetration, without any foreplay, which in real life for most women will not only not lead to climax, but will also result in pain.

How does our culture contribute to the orgasm gap?

We need to try to get past the idea that penetrative sex is the only type of sex between a man and a woman because, culturally, that's what is usually valued.

"We use the words sex and intercourse as if they were one and the same. If we were to overestimate the female orgasm as we overestimate the male orgasm, we would call the foreplay sex and the afterplay – intercourse.. We call the female genitals the vagina, and linguistically we erase the part of ourselves that gives us the greatest pleasure, which is the clitoris." says Mintz.

Becoming "clitically literate," that is, paying attention to the clitoris, whether it's oral sex or manual stimulation, is one way to help bridge the orgasm gap, according to Mintz. She adds that the gap is greatest in promiscuous culture, as opposed to serious relationships.

However, whether you're having sex with a longtime partner or a brand new person, women don't always find it easy to communicate their needs in the bedroom. The sex therapist Deb Laino explains that women have long been discouraged from asking for what they want because of the stigma against women who enjoy sex, being called "easy" and other derogatory names for expressing their desires.

"Women need to explore their bodies and connect with what makes them feel good about it." "Changing the sexual culture so that it is not only focused on satisfying the man, but also on satisfying both parties, can help women seek what they need to orgasm, without shame or guilt." , says Laino.

Mintz believes the orgasm gap is a reflection of patriarchy and sexism.

"It's so deeply ingrained in the very fabric of our culture that sometimes we don't even notice."

How to bridge the gap?

Dr. Laura Purdy from the American Sexual Health Online Support Network also emphasizes that communication is of great importance.

Their recent survey found that 39 percent of people don't talk to their partner about how to better achieve orgasm.

That's why she recommends communication before, during and after sex, so that everyone can better enjoy their sexual experience.