Editing Sexual consent (section)

===Verbal vs. nonverbal===
[[File:Kiss at Feb Club NYC 20100202.7D.02686.L1.C45.BW SML (4469827485).jpg|thumb|right|200px|While different consent policies have differing views on whether non-verbal cues count as consent, some rules do permit seeking consent through non-verbal communication.]]
There can be verbal or nonverbal consent, or a mix of the two types, depending on different policies and laws. According to ''Bustle'' writer Kae Burdo, the maxim "only verbal consent counts" is limited, in that it fails to accommodate parties that can only consent non-verbally, such as people with disabilities and those in BDSM communities . <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bustle.com/articles/154179-what-nobody-talks-about-when-they-talk-about-consent |title=What Nobody Talks About When They Talk About Consent |last=Burdo |first=Kae |date= 25 April 2016|website=www.bustle.com |publisher=Bustle |access-date=21 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref> Dartmouth College's rules on consent state that a communication in intimate encounters is often nonverbal cues such as smiling, nodding, and touching another person; however, it states that "...body language often isn't enough" because interpreting body language is risky, so the best option is to use "explicit verbal communication".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dartmouth.edu/consent/communication/whendo.html|title=How Do I Know If I Have Consent? |author=<!--Not stated--> |date= |website=www.dartmouth.edu |publisher=Dartmouth |access-date=21 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref> ''The New York Times'' reports that men typically use nonverbal indicators to determine consent (61 percent say they perceive consent through a partner's [[body language]]), but women typically wait till a partner verbally asks them before they indicate consent (only 10 percent say they indicate consent through body language), a differing approach that may lead to confusion in heterosexual couples' encounters.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/education/edlife/affirmative-consent-are-students-really-asking.html |title= Affirmative Consent: Are Students Really Asking?|last=Keenan |first= Sandy|date=28 July 2015 |website=www.nytimes.com |publisher=New York Times |access-date=21 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref>

Mary Spellman, the dean of students at Claremont McKenna College, states that her college allows either verbal or non-verbal consent, with non-verbal consent being assessed by looking at whether the other person is "actively participating" and touching the other person when he is touching her or encouraging the first person", signs which indicate that a "...person is an active participant in whatever is going on."<ref name="Tovia Smith">{{cite web |url=https://www.npr.org/2014/06/13/321677110/a-campus-dilemma-sure-no-means-no-but-exactly-what-means-yes |title=A Campus Dilemma: Sure, 'No' Means 'No,' But Exactly What Means 'Yes'? |last=Smith |first=Tovia |date=13 June 2014 |website=www.npr.org |publisher=NPR |access-date=23 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref>

The ''Daily Dot'' states that verbal consent is best because both participants can clearly indicate what they want, ask questions and seek clarification; in contrast, nonverbal consent may not be clear, as people "...have different understandings of gestures, “vibes,” and nonverbal cues", which can lead to "ambiguity and misunderstanding".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.dailydot.com/irl/what-is-consent/ |title=A plain and simple guide to understanding consent |last=Dimeo-Ediger |first=Winona  |date=13 September 2017 |website=www.dailydot.com |publisher=Daily Dot |access-date=21 June 2018 |quote=}} </ref> [[Lisa Feldman Barrett]], a psychologist and neuroscientist, states that in a sexual consent context, "[f]ace and body movements aren’t a language" that participants can rely on, because the human "brain is always guessing" about how to interpret smiles and expressions; as such, "...facial movements are terrible indicators of consent, rejection and emotion in general" and they are "not a replacement for words."<ref> {{cite web |url=http://time.com/5274505/metoo-verbal-nonverbal-consent-cosby-schneiderman/ |title=Why Men Need to Stop Relying on Non-Verbal Consent, According to a Neuroscientist |last=Feldman Barrett |first=Lisa |date=11 May 2018 |website=time.com |publisher=Time |access-date=21 June 2018 |quote=}}</ref>