Regarding:
http://www.kinseyinstitute.org
maybe I didn’t see it, but can people still take this survey, even if it’s for fun? If not, that would be pretty cool to answer all those questions. Is there somewhere it can just be viewed, even if it’s read only?
Here: http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/research/surveylinks.html
Go Indiana University!
Damnit, I KNEW I didn’t look hard enough. thanks 1
This is obviously NOT the same survey that was used in the original Kinsey reports.
That was done in person, by a trained investigator asking questions. And it took much longer. They reported that the fastest surveyors could sometimes actually get one survey done in ‘just under an hour’. But this online survey takes only 20 minutes.
Also, Kinsey wrote an extensive explanation of why their particular methodology was used in these surveys (in-person interviews with a trained investigator), and why other methods did NOT yield accurate results. [To summarize, in talking about very personal, private issues like sex, people will tend to tell you what they think you want to hear – what is most ‘normal’.]
He specifically talks about how sef-administered studies (like this online survey, or forms-based sex surveys) and how random subject (man in the street interviews, or phone call surveys) produce inaccurate results. Even indicates what direction the results will be skewed.
Yet researchers continue to use these different methodologies (which are cheaper & faster to do), come up with different results, and then publish articles about how their ‘modern surveys’ disagree with Kinseys results.
t-bonham, do you know where I might find the original survey questions online?
If you’d like to learn more about the questions, and some rather interesting experiences of gathering the answers, I strongly reccomend:
Dr. Kinsey and the Institute for Sex Research by Wardell B. Pomeroy
I picked it up, and it has all kinds of interesting information about the survey, Dr. Kinsey and some of their associated experiences. Fascinating read, if you can stomach it.
Amazon has some used copies for $11 or so, including shipping.
I don’t know that they are online anywhere.
In fact, I am not even sure that there was a specific set of questions per se.
As I recall from reading about it, the survey as done by Kinsey & associates was more like an open-ended discussion, with the patient doing most of the talking. The surveyer would mostly listen. They would only prompt the interviewee if he/she did not cover specific areas. They went to some effort to avoid the yes/no or choose a, b, c, d, or e type of questions – an online survey would almost certainly be made up of just these type of questions.
I think the best source for the original surveys would be the Pomeroy book Mr. Slant suggested, or the original Kinsey Male & Female volumes. I don’t recall any list of questions, but the various tables made it pretty clear what kind of information they compiled.
Yeah, the title of the original male volume was:
Sexual Behavior in the Human Male by Alfred Charles Kinsey, Wardell B. Pomeroy, Clyde E. Martin. ISBN is listed as 0721654452 on Amazon, although it seems like it is too told to have an ISBN. Used copies in serviceable condition can be had for just under $30 or you can visit your local library. Thing stayed in print for decades.
The female volume:
Sexual Behavior in the Human Female by Jerome Cornfield, Robert Yerkes, George Corner, and Alfred C. Kinsey. Amazon has it listed under “ASIN” B000B8KGQ4. Used copies at $55. There’s a newer printing available for around $75, or of course you can try the local library.