Sexual Activity - Essay Example

Human sexuality is something that many researchers have sought to debate and research over the centuries. While some may have found the issue a promising area for discovering, others would treat it as being no more than taboo. From a primal consideration, the human beings desire to engage in sexual activity, is linked with the innate desire for procreation and increasing the species. A topic that can be seen from both the social, as well as the scientific standpoints. One such researcher would be Alfred C. Kinsey. Every researcher, throughout the course of their career, will find themselves at a point in time where their findings will have an impact upon the viewing public. Whether it would be positive or negative, the power of research and its importance, are undeniable and relevant. For any researcher(s), it becomes the question first and foremost, as to what any long term impact the individual(s) work, would have had on the ability for greater understanding. Articles and research papers are often times written by those who seek to research issues and then wish to deliver what they find to the rest of the world. Others may also wish to produce articles themselves, only this time, on assessing the impact of the work of others, such as the case would be with John Bancroft. In his work 'Alfred C. Kinsey and the Politics of Sex Research', Bancroft looks to the work done by Kinsey and the response of others to the research itself. With that being said, in regards to Kinsey, "It was evident from his own research, and has been confirmed in various ways since, that major changes in sexual behavior had been underway through much of the first half of the 20th century," (Bancroft, p.2). This statement in itself, would give credence to the validity of Kinsey's work and show the need for greater study and debate. The article discusses the attention paid towards contraception and how the debate would consider, for instance, the use of contraception and its ability to control the size of average families. From a social standpoint, there would be those that felt it was important to have the opportunity to be aware of such issues and others would think that an issue like sexuality, should be kept in the confides of the home and in the bedroom between a man and woman. While it would have been easy to single out Kinsey for his research, it is important to note that, "He was not the first to report results of sex surveys in the US," (Bancroft, p.3). With that in mind, it would be fair to classify Kinsey as one of many, who would have put together studies on the matter at hand. Author Bancroft asserts, regards to assessing Kinsey's impact, "But one clear part of Kinsey's legacy is that sex became less mysterious," (Bancroft, p.4). When certain things have not been discussed in any great detail before, they can often times seem to some, as being unknown and dangerous even. Kinsey's work would take away the disguise and uncertainty about regular human sexual activity and reveal it to be nothing more, than typical behavior that would occur among healthy human beings. His greatest desire would be to reveal the distinct natures of male and female human beings and how each one would approach sexual intercourse. Sometimes, after research has been performed, the results lead to the production of revised guidelines. This would be true as a result of Kinsey's work. Based on his findings, "The American Law Institute, after much debate, published its revised Model Penal Code in 1995. This was clearly influenced by Kinsey's findings," (Bancroft, p.4). The author further goes on to detail that, as a result of Kinsey's work, the revised Model Penal Code would make it so that such things as being a homosexual, living together when you were not married, as well as the sexual activity of two people who were willing participants, were no longer seen as crimes. With such a revision taking place, it would lead many to consider the influence of Kinsey in the area of sexual activity, to be considerable and not to be ignored. It is common to distinguish individuals by their gender and sexual preference. Kinsey would seek to form his own classification basis using a scale named after him. This scale would be called the Kinsey Scale. The scale's purpose would be so that, "..individuals could be placed somewhere on a continuum, dependent on the extent to which their sexual behavior was exclusively or partially homo- or heterosexual. He presented his findings from this scale for a number of different times periods in an individuals life, emphasizing that individuals would vary at different stages of their lives, in their place on this scale," (Bancroft, p.5). The process at which Kinsey would set about to complete his research, would give credence to the material gathered and the assertions made. The strength of John Bancroft's article on Alfred Kinsey is fairly sound. Throughout his work, Bancroft addresses the level of research that Kinsey performed and the nature of his beliefs on the matter that he was researching. Making it a point to mention instances, where Kinsey's work would influence the viewpoints of others. Throughout history, the nature of sexual activity and the debate behind it, has often times been very intense and had very different attitudes arise from each individual, who would be participating in the discussion. In mentioning the questions surround the usage of contraception methods, Bancroft hits on the same issue that Kinsey himself would have at the time. The issue as to determining the impact contraception methods, when present and used, would have had on the containment of human population growth. Despite the baby boom that would occur between the 1940's and the 1960's, contraception would be something that many would wish to use for that very reason. In an era where everything can be affected by politics, the study of sexual activity has been no different. "The political process has influenced sex research in a variety of ways, although the most important has been through the use of federal funds for sex research," (Bancroft, p.6). With the presence of such funding, comes the ability for some to seek to influence the results of such findings and in turn, have a less than favorable response when the results do not come out as they would have liked. John Bancroft offers a very clinical and detail oriented account of the work of Alfred Kinsey and its impact on the world view of sexual activity. The key for making a clear and concise assessment of another person's work, is to offer a summation of the person's career and any ramifications that would have arisen as a result. Everyone may be faced with limited means available in the process of producing and documenting research findings. While he makes note that Kinsey would have had such limits placed on the research he would have done, he also states his belief that the work of Alfred Kinsey did in fact, leave an impact on the topic of sexual activity and those who wished to know more about it. Reference Bancroft, John. "Alfred C. Kinsey and the Politics of Sex Research". The Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender and Reproduction. Indiana University. Pages 2-6. Retrieved from class readings. Read More