Explanation of dominance

Explanation of the term dominance in BDSM

Dominance means being in control, in BDSM mainly to be allowed to control something, a person or event.

Dominance is more a state of mind than anything else, shared between the dominant and its partner, and therefore difficult to describe, since it may be experienced very differently by different persons, or by the same persons at different occasions. The reason for indulging in dominance may be the feeling of trust from the partner, need to control, some kind of revenge, or various combinations thereof. Some elements of dominance may be bondage, discipline or sadomasochism, but a person with the right kind of authority may also dominate someone entirely without such elements. Manifestations of dominance may be e.g. "slave contracts", rules, orders and different training programs, but dominance may also function without any of these manifestations.

The term dominant is often used to designate an active or controlling part in a BDSM relationship, regardless if dominance is a prominent part of the relationship or not.