For some gay men, a glory hole serves to depersonalize their partner altogether as a disembodied object of sexual desire, either sticking through or on the other side of the hole. It is suggested by queer theorist Tim Dean that glory holes allow for a physical barrier, which may be an extension of psychological barriers, in which there is internalized homophobia (a result of many societies' reluctance towards discussing LGBT practices and people). In light of the ongoing HIV pandemic, many gay men re-evaluated their sexual and erotic desires and practices. The glory hole is seen as an erotic oasis in gay subcultures around the world people's motives, experiences and attributions of value in its use are varied. Almost total anonymity is maintained, as no other attributes are taken into consideration.
As a wall separates the two participants, they have no contact except for a mouth, a penis, and perhaps a hand. Numerous motivations can be ascribed to the use and eroticism of glory holes. Glory holes are sometimes the topic of erotic literature, and pornographic films have been devoted to the uses of glory holes. In more recent years, public glory holes have faded in popularity in many countries, though some gay websites offer directories of the remaining glory holes. However, they are not exclusively favoured by gay people, and have become more commonly acknowledged as a fetish for straight and bisexual couples.
The partition maintains anonymity and a sense of reassurance that the people involved would not be identified and possibly arrested. Glory holes are especially associated with gay male culture, and anal or oral sex, and come from a history of persecution. A glory hole (also spelled gloryhole and glory-hole) is a hole in a wall or partition, often between public lavatory cubicles or adult video arcade booths and lounges, for people to engage in sexual activity or observe the person in the next cubicle while one or both parties masturbate, tea-bag or fellate.