Taking as its starting point the social construction of sexualities, this article examines the means through which men construct and perform a group of sexualities and sexual identities, referred to collectively here as gay SM. Following the presentation of the findings of a socio-historical study of gay SM in the UK from the 1950s to the present, this article gives a preliminary description of gay SM ‘sexual identity practices’ that are the mechanism that allows men not only to construct and perform their sexualities and sexual identities but also to change and discard them. The article concludes with recommendations for future research.
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