Cyber Dating and Sexual Fantasies in Men Who Have Sex with Men from Spain: Analyzing the Intersection of Technology, Intimate Relationships, and Violence on Scruff

Prior research on rape culture has largely focused on heterosexual women and has underexamined men who have sex with men (MSM) in digital contexts and there is little work on midlife users of Scruff. This study addresses these gaps by analyzing how sexual scripts on Scruff intersect with intimacy, gendered positioning, and technology facilitated sexual violence among Spanish MSM. By using a mixed methods discourse analysis, we examined 300 profiles posted by men aged 40 to 50 years who reside in the Madrid region of Spain. The analysis identified three recurring clusters of scripts. First, many profiles staged feminized self-presentations that commodified femininity and aligned passivity with desirability. Second, rape themed fantasies framed male sexual entitlement as exciting and largely unproblematic. Third, dominant top identities assumed control and initiative while constructing feminized partners as available and violable. Together, these patterns show how enactments of masculinity and femininity are closely tied to the authorization of sexual aggression and the downplaying of harm, and how femmephobia reworks heteronormative gender hierarchies within MSM spaces. At the same time, some profiles invite readings that emphasize consensual kink or playful exaggeration, underscoring the interpretive complexity of online profiles. The study contributes to debates on masculinities, platform mediated intimacies, and technology facilitated sexual violence by documenting how MSM sexual scripts reiterate gendered power asymmetries. Implications include the need for consent focused sexual health education tailored to MSM.