To carry on with data from our big national sex survey, the National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior (NSSHB) out of Indiana University, you may have heard the finding that 85% of men reported that their partner had an orgasm the last time they had sex compared to 64% of women who reported experiencing an orgasm.

Many media outlets are taking this to mean that tons of women fake their orgasms. And while some women do pretend to orgasm (as do some men), there's probably a great deal else that can help explain this gap. For example:

- Some of these men (just a few percent) had male partners, so that narrows the gap a little, but it's still pretty big.

- Among male-female partners, some women may not have pretended to orgasm but some men may have assumed that their female partner experienced an orgasm. And some women may not have spoken up. Better communication benefits everyone.

- Statistically speaking, there's room for error. After all, this wasn't a couples' study so we wouldn't expect the numbers to match up precisely but we would hope that the gap was a little more narrow.

- Some men may overreport that their partner had an orgasm. Some women may be answering as was "typical" for them (rather than was actually the case).

So, there are varied reasons for the so-called orgasm gap. But these data are not all bad news. The fact that nearly 2/3 of women experienced one or more orgasms the last time that they had sex is actually pretty great news for a society that has only paid more focused attention to female sexuality in the past several decades.

Although orgasm isn't important to every woman, it is a part of satisfying, pleasurable sex for many women and at different points in their lives and relationships. To learn more about pleasing women, and how women can please themselves, check out my book Because It Feels Good: A Woman's Guide to Sexual Pleasure & Satisfaction (yes, there are tips for men and couples in there, too) - and pay special attention to the section on the coital alignment technique, the sex toy chapter, the chapter about female orgasm, and the chapter about more pleasurable anal sex. You'll be glad you did.

Debby Herbenick, PhD is a sex researcher and educator, a widely read sex columnist and author of Because It Feels Good: A Woman’s Guide to Sexual Pleasure and Satisfaction. Follow her on Twitter @mysexprofessor and make friends with her on Facebook.