Kinsey book celebrates 50 years

Fifty years ago this month, the world learned for the first time that women enjoyed sex in a study from the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction. \nIn 1953, former Assistant Professor of Zoology Alfred C. Kinsey published his book "Sexual Behavior of the Human Female," which detailed the innovative research Kinsey conducted.\n"Kinsey realized that it was important for people to learn about behaviors they follow," said Kinsey Curator Catherine Johnson. "Once he did research, people realized that there's nothing wrong with them and other people have the same behaviors."\nThroughout the year, IU has celebrated the anniversary of the release of Kinsey's book.\nThis celebration concludes Nov. 13-15 with the Women's Sexualities Conference.\nThis conference is a joint project between the Institute, the history department and the gender studies department to bring together scholars from across the world to examine how Kinsey's research from 1953 holds up today.\nTopics such as Playboy magazine and sex education will be presented in panels and plenary sessions. Scholars will present the topics from various views, including psychological, historical and sociological perspectives, according to conference coordinator Donna Drucker.\nIn publishing this book, Kinsey and his associates created controversy across the nation and the world. It was not only the first time that people spoke about a typically private topic, but also it discredited many of the myths surrounding women's sexuality. The study revealed that 50 percent of women had premarital sex and 21 percent reported having extramarital sex. \n"This study showed that women were not conforming to the 1950s sitcom version of marriage where men and women sleep in separate beds," Kinsey Head of Information Services Jennifer Bass said.\nJohnson said that after the publication, Kinsey received letters from people thanking him for the book and for helping them feel better about themselves and their behaviors.\nAccording to the Kinsey Institutes' Web site, despite the book's immediate success, there were still people who did not believe the findings. People like Reverend Billy Graham declared that born-again Christian women were too virtuous, decent and modest to behave the way Kinsey reported women behaved. \nMany people said they believe Kinsey's research is important in education.\nBut junior and Human Sexualities discussion leader Aran Mordoh said the government will fund abstinence-only school programs. She found that some of her students do not know about sexual risks.\nThe Institute not only researches sex, but it offers a doctorate minor in human sexuality, clinics on sexual health and the menstrual cycle and the Kinsey Institute Sexuality Information Services for Students. \nAccording to Bass, Kinsey currently researches how people react in sexual situations using a theoretical model of sexual inhibition. \nMost people understand that sex is tied in with many aspects of society, from health concerns such as AIDS and sexual abuse, to marriages and relationships and how you feel about yourself, Bass said. She said this is the reason behind the Institutes research. \n-- Contact staff writer Stephanie Susman at ssusman@indiana.edu.