Surveys that ask women about vibrators find that it is a widespread practice: many have used one at some point, both alone and with a partner.
The main limitation
Almost all are one-off surveys of volunteers, and two of the studies come from the same US national sample.
In practice
What the studies show is descriptive: how many women use them and how they score on a questionnaire. They do not prove that a vibrator produces any particular outcome.
What kind of studies there are
Descriptive or expert opinion 4
We classify each study by its design. A synthesis of many studies or a randomised trial supports firmer conclusions than a survey or an expert opinion. The design does not tell you whether a result is good or bad.
What the studies say overall
Surveys that ask women about vibrators find that it is a widespread practice: many have used one at some point, both alone and with a partner. In a sample of women who have sex with women in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, most had used one.
Several studies link use with better scores on the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI) questionnaire, which covers domains such as desire, arousal, lubrication and orgasm.
In the study of women with female partners, the difference appeared in those who had used the vibrator with their partner in the past month, not in those who only used it when masturbating.
Where they disagree
The fact that users score higher does not mean the vibrator is the cause: women who are more comfortable with their sexuality may also be the ones who use them most. These studies cannot separate one from the other.
Limits of the evidence
Almost all are one-off surveys of volunteers, and two of the studies come from the same US national sample. Randomised trials with the general population are lacking.
The studies, one by one
We have gathered 4 verified studies. Each summary is our own; the quotation in inverted commas is taken word for word from the original abstract, in English.
What they found: 74.1% of participants said they had used vibrators. (Schick et al., 2012)
Population Women in the US, UK, Canada and Australia who had had at least one sexual encounter with a woman in the previous yearJournalSex Transm Infect
Verbatim quotation from the original abstract (in English)
“Participants indicated a wide diversity of sexual behaviours with the majority of women reporting a history of genital rubbing (99.8%), vaginal fingering (99.2%), genital scissoring (90.8%), cunnilingus (98.8%) and vibrator use (74.1%).” Schick et al., 2012
What they found: Using vibrators with a female sexual partner in the past month was associated with higher scores in several domains of sexual function than not using them or using them only during masturbation. (Schick et al., 2011)
Population Women in the United States and United Kingdom who had had sex only with women in the previous yearJournalJ Sex Med
Verbatim quotation from the original abstract (in English)
“In contrast to lifetime use, participants who used a vibrator with a female sexual partner in the previous month scored higher on several of the FSFI domains than women who reported no vibrator use or vibrator use only during solo masturbation in the past month.” Schick et al., 2011
What they found: Recent vibrator use was significantly related to several aspects of sexual function, and users scored higher in most domains. (Herbenick et al., 2009)
Population American women aged 18 to 60JournalJ Sex Med
Verbatim quotation from the original abstract (in English)
“Vibrator use was significantly related to several aspects of sexual function (i.e., desire, arousal, lubrication, orgasm, pain, overall function) with recent vibrator users scoring higher on most sexual function domains, indicating more positive sexual function.” Herbenick et al., 2009
What they found: Vibrator use was related to positive sexual function, as measured by the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI). (Herbenick et al., 2010)
Population Women aged 18 to 60 in the United StatesJournalJ Sex Marital Ther
Verbatim quotation from the original abstract (in English)
“Most vibrator users indicated comfort using them with a partner and vibrator use was related to positive sexual function as measured by the Female Sexual Function Index (FSFI).” Herbenick et al., 2010
What the studies show is descriptive: how many women use them and how they score on a questionnaire. They do not prove that a vibrator produces any particular outcome.
The fact that use is common means there is nothing odd about being curious about them or talking about the subject with a partner.
Everyone responds differently: what appears in a group does not predict what will happen in your case.
