It is sometimes done before spectators, which includes performances of erotic humiliation both in person and through pornography and webcam modeling.
Despite being carried out for erotic purposes, it is not necessary for erotic humiliation to be sexual in nature; as is the case with many other sexual activities, it is the feelings obtained from the experience that are desired, and that result in the arousal of those engaging in the practice, regardless of the nature of the actual activity.
It most often involves or engenders feelings of submission for the recipient(s) of the humiliation, and dominance for the individual(s) administering it.
Humiliation can become ritualized, and unlike some sexual variations, it can also be carried out easily over long distances (for instance online).
While fantasy and fascination with erotic humiliation is a prevalent part of BDSM and other sexual roleplay practices, relatively little has been written on it.
It can be as basic as the desire to kiss and massage feet as a precursor to sex; and it can be complex, involving roleplay and public displays of subservience.
Some sexual humiliation involves physical inflicting pain, but much of it is far more concerned with ridicule, mocking, degradation, and embarrassment.
Humiliation in general stimulates the same brain regions that are associated with physical pain, the inference being that humans evolved to remember social rewards and punishments as strongly as they recall physical reward or pain in response to their environment.
As with any form of pain experimentation in a sexual context, consent and (paradoxically) a high degree of awareness and communication are needed to ensure that the result is desirable, rather than abusive.
The desire to be beneath the other partner during intercourse, the idea of "getting caught" (as in having sex in the garden or woods), and simulated rape are emotional games that emphasise status, vulnerability, and control.
These practices can be conducted through chat, webcam, e-mail, BDSM contact websites, and proprietary virtual spaces such as Second Life or FetLife.