Voyeurism
Voyeurism is a practice in which an individual derives sexual pleasure from observing other people. Such people may be engaged in sexual acts, or be nude or in underwear, or dressed in whatever other way the "voyeur" finds appealing.
Voyeuriste.jpg
Young girl watches secretly while two male actors make love. Silk painting; China, Qing Dynasty.
Voyeuristic practices may take a number of forms but its characteristic feature is that the voyeur does not directly interact with the object of their voyeurism (often unaware that they are being observed), instead observing the act from a distance, peeping through an opening, and/or using techniques like binoculars, a mirror, camera (including camera phone and video camera), etc., and this stimulus becomes part of a masturbation fantasy during or after the observation.
Some voyeurs derive sexual pleasure from looking up skirts or trousers, known as an upskirt. This can be accomplished by camera or simply by a chance viewing when a person sits down. Some voyeurs also derive pleasure by looking down shirts and viewing breasts, particularly when a person is bending over. This is commonly referred to as a downblouse.
When done openly it may be tolerated or even appreciated, especially if the person(s) viewed is/are exhibitionist. However, non-consensual voyeurism is an invasion of privacy.
Voyeurism is considered to be deviant and even a sex crime in some cultures, most frequently practiced by males, and is tolerated to some degree in certain societies depending upon the circumstances (e.g., adolescent "Peeping Toms"). In the United Kingdom, non-consensual voyeurism became a criminal offence on May 01, 2004, under the Sexual Offences Act 2003.
Some institutions such as gyms and schools, have banned camera phones because of the privacy issues they raise in areas like locker rooms. Saudi Arabia, banned the sale of camera phones nationwide for a period of time, but reallowed their sale in 2004. South Korea requires that all camera phones sold in the country make a clearly audible sound whenever a picture is taken.
See also
- glory hole
- paraphilia
- Ira Levin's novel Sliver (1991)
- the John Landis movie National Lampoon's Animal House (1978)
- the Porky's movie series (1982, 1983, and 1985)
- the Voyeur computer game series (1994, 1996)
- upskirt
- downblouse
Sexual criminals
- Masashi Tashiro Peeped under a woman's skirt with a video camera in a station.
- Kazuhide Uekusa Attempted to peep under a high school girl's skirt with a hand mirror at the escalator of JR Shinagawa Station.