Kinsey

Kinsey scale is a scale used in research to describe a person's sexual orientation based on their experience or response at a given time. The scale ranges from 0, for those who would identify themselves as exclusively heterosexual with no experience with or desire for sexual activity with their same sex, to 6, for those who would identify themselves as exclusively homosexual with no experience with or desire for sexual activity with those of the opposite sex, and 1-5 for those who would identify themselves with varying levels of desire or sexual activity with either sex.

The Kinsey scale was first published by Alfred Kinsey, Wardell Pomeroy and others in the book Sexual Behavior in the Human Male (1948). The book also reported that 46% of the male subjects had "reacted" sexually to persons of both sexes in the course of their adult lives, and 37% had at least one homosexual experience.

History

The Kinsey scale was developed in order to challenge the conventional approach to sexuality, which posited a binary distinction between heterosexuality and homosexuality. Kinsey and his colleagues instead proposed a multi-dimensional approach, suggesting that sexual orientation could be measured on a continuum.

Criticism

The Kinsey scale has been criticized for its methodology and for its failure to account for asexuality or individuals who identify as bisexual or pansexual. Some critics argue that the scale is overly simplistic and does not adequately capture the complexity of human sexuality.

See also

• Sexual orientation
• Bisexuality
• Pansexuality
• Asexuality

Kinsey Resources
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