In many cultures around the world, there exist societal expectations for what constitutes appropriate sexual behavior during intercourse. These expectations vary from culture to culture but generally take the form of scripted patterns of interaction between partners that have been learned through socialization processes. Such normative behaviors are often referred to as "sexual scripts," which serve to guide individuals in their approach to romantic relations. Sexual scripts can be divided into three categories based on the role they play in society: procreative, relational, and recreational.
The procreative script is typically used to describe interactions between married couples who engage in consensual sexual activity for the purpose of producing offspring. In this context, the male partner initiates sexual encounters while the female responds passively, allowing him to penetrate her vaginally until orgasm occurs. This script has been attributed to patriarchal attitudes towards female sexuality and emphasizes male dominance within relationships.
The relational script describes interactions between partners who prioritize emotional connection during sex. It involves prolonged foreplay followed by a combination of oral, anal, and vaginal sex, with an emphasis on both partners' pleasure. The goal of this type of script is intimacy and closeness, rather than simply achieving orgasm. This script reflects a more egalitarian view of sexuality and may be more common among progressive Western nations.
Finally, the recreational script describes encounters where partners aim to create a pleasurable experience without any particular goal beyond fulfillment. Activities such as BDSM, threesomes, and swinging fall under this category, and are generally seen as taboo in many cultures due to their lack of focus on traditional roles or goals. These types of scripts tend to be less common in mainstream culture but have gained popularity in recent years as people become more open-minded about sexual exploration.