Episode 352: Inside the World of Financial Domination

8 snips

Dec 10, 2024

Jessica van Meir, a PhD candidate at Harvard Kennedy School and co-founder of MintStars, explores the alluring world of financial domination. She discusses the psychological reasons behind findom, highlighting how it intertwines with themes of power, control, and modern economic issues. Jessica explains the rise in popularity of these relationships amid financial crises and how they reflect and challenge traditional gender dynamics. Listeners are invited to rethink perceptions of findom alongside its implications for financial independence and societal norms.

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INSIGHT

FINDOM Definition

Financial domination (FINDOM) is a BDSM fetish.
Submissives derive pleasure from sending money to dominant partners.

INSIGHT

FINDOM's Appeal

FINDOM's appeal lies in the submissive's enjoyment of losing control and responsibility.
It provides relief and a sense of humiliation, similar to other D/s dynamics.

INSIGHT

FINDOM and Other Kinks

FINDOM often intersects with other BDSM practices like foot fetishes, chastity, and humiliation.
The lines between transactional domination and the kink of paying can be blurred.

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Financial domination or findom involves a submissive (usually a man) who gives money or control of their finances to a dominant partner (usually a woman). The sub is not expecting anything in return—it’s about submitting, giving up control, sometimes being humiliated, and being aroused by all of this. So why are people into findom, and why does it seem to be growing in popularity?

My guest today is Jessica van Meir, a PhD candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School who studies sex work. Jessica is co-founder of MintStars, a subscription platform for content creators, models, and their fans. She also co-authored a chapter in the new book Sex Work Today: Erotic Labor in the 21st Century that explores the rise of financial kinks.

Some of the specific questions we answer in this episode include:

Who’s into findom and why?
How is findom similar to or different from sugar dating?
What’s the connection between findom, our growing economic crises, and capitalism?
How can findom serve as a way of coping with financial precarity?
How does findom both challenge and reinforce traditional gender power dynamics?

To learn more about Jessica, follow her on the socials at @jessicavanmeir.bsky.social

You can get 30% off Sex Work Today when you input code NYUP30 at checkout on nyupress.org.

Got a sex question? Send me a podcast voicemail to have it answered on a future episode at speakpipe.com/sexandpsychology.

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Credits: Precision Podcasting (Podcast editing) and Shutterstock/Florian (Music). Image created with Canva; photos used with permission of guest.