BDSM practices typically include kink, fetish, roleplay and fantasy activities. Nevertheless, kink and fetishism are two different (although strongly related) phenomena, and in this article we’ll explain the differences.
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The term kink used in a sexual sense refers to a broad variety of sexual practices, behavior, concepts, fantasies, and/or preferences that are considered unconventional, that is, fall outside the spectrum of what’s generally thought to be “sexually normal.” Hence, although BDSM activities are generally considered kinky, not all kinky behavior falls under the BDSM umbrella.
In addition, it’s important to realize that what is kinky for one person may not be kinky for another. What’s kink and what not is likewise culturally defined while also shifting in time, that is, certain sexual behavior can be entirely normal today, but wasn’t normal (meaning it was considered “kinky”) a hundred years ago.
Some examples of sexual realms, themes, or domains that are considered kinky include typical BDSM activities such as bondage, discipline, dominance, submission, sadism, and masochism, but also roleplay, cosplay, fetishisms, exhibitionism, voyeurism, body modification, and sensory deprivation.
As for fetishism, a fetish is considered kinky, but kinky is not necessary fetishism. In fact, fetishism is a sexual fixation on a non-sexual object (such as on certain types of clothing or perhaps on specific tools and equipment, and so on), on secretions (such as urine, feces, or vomit), or on a body part (such as the feet or the hands) that is necessary for the person to become aroused and enjoy sex. A kink, on the other hand, is a broader term that is about alternative sexual interests, preferences or fantasies, but which are not a necessity to become sexually aroused.
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Fetishism can also refer to sexual interest in specific activities, types of people, substances, or situations, and not only to specific non-sexual objects, human secretions, or body parts.
In the context of fetishism and kink, you may sometimes also encounter the term paraphilia, which is defined as “an intense and persistent sexual arousal or attraction to anything that’s not sexual by itself.” As you can see, it’s more or less a synonym for a fetish, and as a paraphilia is likewise “an unconventional sexual interest” it’s also used to designate a kink.
Anyway, on the whole, you will find that there is no broad consensus for definitive boundaries and distinctions between kinks, fetishes, and paraphilias. Therefore, in daily language it’s very common that people use these terms interchangeably.
