Dr. Alfred Kinsey was a biologist at Indiana University when, in the late 1930s, he began compiling data from tens of thousands of interviews about the sexual practices of men and women. That research became the best-selling Kinsey Reports. And Dr. Kinsey became the foremost pioneer of sex research.
Born in 1894 in Hoboken, New Jersey, he attended Bowdoin College and Harvard University before Indiana University hired him to teach in 1920. He established a solid academic reputation and was listed by American Men of Science as a "starred" scientist.
In 1938, Kinsey took over a new marriage course. In preparing for his lectures, he discovered little survey research was available on human sexuality so he and his staff began gathering case histories of sexual behavior. Initially they interviewed students in his classes, then other students and faculty, and later people persuaded to be interviewed.
This data was published in 1948 as "Sexual Behavior in the Human Male." Its revelations about the sexuality of white American males created immediate controversy. It sold more than 250,000 copies and was translated into a dozen languages.
Just before publication, the Kinsey Institute was founded to guarantee confidentiality to individuals interviewed and provided a safe and permanent location for the growing collection of data.
From 1938 to 1963, Dr. Kinsey and his staff interviewed more than 18,000 men and women. They asked the frequency of practices like masturbation, premarital, extramarital, and homosexual sex. Dr. Kinsey’s research was not without controversy. He expanded it to include observing and participating in heterosexual and homosexual activity, with his co-workers and others.
In 1953, the Institute published “Sexual Behavior in the Human Female,” which also sold more than 250,000 copies and was translated into several languages.
Many Americans were shocked to learn women are as capable of sexual enjoyment as men. Previously people thought women merely engaged in sex to procreate or please their male partners. Kinsey's findings on homosexuality were also shocking. He reported that a third of American males and 13 percent of American females claimed to have had at least one same-sex experience by age 45.
Dr. Kinsey’s reports greatly challenged many myths about sexual behavior in American society. His research unveiled findings on previously taboo topics, such as extramarital sex, homosexuality, oral sex, and masturbation.
Kinsey died at age 62 in 1956. The cause was reported to be a heart ailment and pneumonia. His Kinsey Institute lives on and is still advancing sexual health and knowledge worldwide.
Stacy Lloyd is a writer and video producer in Phoenix, Arizona. A former television news journalist, she covered stories around the world. Currently, she produces corporate and non-profit videos and broadcast programming.