Consent within BDSM is when a participant gives their permission for certain acts or types of relationships. It bears much in common with the concept of

informed consent Informed consent is an applied ethics principle that a person must have sufficient information and understanding before making decisions about accepting risk. Pertinent information may include risks and benefits of treatments, alternative treatme ...

and is simultaneously a

personal Personal may refer to: Aspects of persons' respective individualities * Privacy * Personality * Personal, personal advertisement, variety of classified advertisement used to find romance or friendship Companies * Personal, Inc., a Washington, ...

ethic Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

al and

social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives fro ...

issue. It is an issue that attracts much attention within

BDSM BDSM is a variety of often Eroticism, erotic practices or Sexual roleplay, roleplaying involving Bondage (BDSM), bondage, Discipline (BDSM), discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given ...

, resulting in competing models of consent such as safe, sane and consensual and

risk-aware consensual kink Risk-aware consensual kink (RACK, also risk-accepted consensual kink) is an acronym used by some of the BDSM community to describe a philosophical view that is generally permissive of certain risky sexual behaviors, as long as the participants a ...

. Observers from outside the BDSM community have also commented on the issue of consent in BDSM, sometimes referring to legal consent which is a separate and largely unrelated matter. However, the presence of explicit consent within BDSM can often have implications for BDSM and the law and, depending on the country the participants are in, may make the differences between being prosecuted or not. Where an act has been previously consented to, the consent can be terminated at any point, and by any participant, through using a

safeword In BDSM, a safeword is a code word, series of code words or other signal used by a person to communicate their physical or emotional state, typically when approaching, or crossing, a physical, emotional, or moral boundary. Some safewords are use ...

. Within the

BDSM community BDSM is a variety of often erotic practices or roleplaying involving bondage, discipline, dominance and submission, sadomasochism, and other related interpersonal dynamics. Given the wide range of practices, some of which may be engaged in ...

, it is generally considered a high risk activity to engage in BDSM without a

. Acts undertaken with a lack of explicit consent may be considered

abusive Abuse is the act of improper usage or treatment of a person or thing, often to unfairly or improperly gain benefit. Abuse can come in many forms, such as: physical or verbal maltreatment, injury, assault, violation, rape, unjust practices, ...

and those who ignore the use of a safeword may be shunned within the BDSM subculture. One study has shown that BDSM negotiations to establish consent consist of four parts covering style of play, body parts, limits and safewords.

Consensual non-consent

Consensual non-consent (CNC), also referred to as a "power exchange kink" within the BDSM community, is a type of erotic roleplay that plays out as though it is

non-consensual Consent occurs when one person voluntarily agrees to the proposal or desires of another. It is a term of common speech, with specific definitions used in such fields as the law, medicine, research, and sexual consent. Consent as understood in ...

but has in fact been consented to. Consensual non-consent includes any form of BDSM play where it has been agreed in advance that the standard means of revoking consent, for example saying "stop", "no", or "don't", will not apply. The majority of BDSM practitioners who participate in consensual non-consent activities will use prearranged

s as a means of revoking consent.

Models and philosophy

BDSM communities share a common language of consent. Various models are expressed as acronyms representing differing approaches towards a philosophy of consent.

SSC

Safe, sane, and consensual (SSC) is the most recognizable and popular model of consent in BDSM circles, though not without criticism. It means that everything is based on safe activities, that all participants are of sufficiently sound mind in their conduct, and that all participants do consent.

RACK

Risk-aware consensual kink (RACK) is the second most popular consent model. It is generally permissive of certain risky sexual behaviors, as long as the participants are fully aware of the risks. It was created to overcome perceived shortcomings of SSC.

Other models

Other less well known models of consent in BDSM include CCC, which stands for Committed, Compassionate, Consensual and the 4 C's — Caring, Communication, Consent, Caution.

Legal aspects

The 2007 conviction of Glenn Marcus on counts of

sex trafficking Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Perpetrators of the crime are called sex traffickers or pimps—people who manipulate victims to engage in various forms of commercial sex with paying customers. Se ...

and

forced labor Forced labour, or unfree labour, is any work relation, especially in modern or early modern history, in which people are employed against their will with the threat of destitution, detention, or violence, including death or other forms of ...

renewed much debate on the issue of consent in BDSM, both within and outside the community. In a similar case of an accusation made by a participant that the activities had not been consensual, in April 2007 two UK men were convicted of

false imprisonment False imprisonment or unlawful imprisonment occurs when a person intentionally restricts another person's movement within any area without legal authority, justification, or the restrained person's permission. Actual physical restraint is n ...

in a case where a third party who had been treated like a dog asserted the matter had not been consensual."Man was forced to live like a dog"
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BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...

.
Analysis of consent issues on BDSM forum
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References

{{BDSM Autonomy BDSM terminology Consent Sexual ethics Sexual misconduct