Learning the details of others' sex lives is the most enticing of
guilty pleasures. We measure our own practices against the
"normalcy" that sex surveys seek to capture. Special interest
groups use or attack survey findings (such as the claim that 10% of
Americans are gay) for their own ends. Indeed, we all have some
stake in these surveys, be it self-justification, recrimination, or
curiosity--and this testifies to their significance in our culture.
"Kiss and Tell" chronicles the history of sex surveys in the
United States over a century of changing social and sexual mores.
Julia Ericksen and Sally Steffen reveal that the survey questions
asked, more than the answers elicited, expose and shape the popular
image of appropriate sexuality. We can learn as much about the
history and practice of sexuality by looking at surveyors' changing
concerns as we can by reading the results of their surveys. The
authors show how surveys have reflected societal anxieties about
adolescent development, teen sex and promiscuity, and AIDS, and
have been employed in efforts to preserve marriage and to control
women's sexuality.
"Kiss and Tell" is an important examination of the role of
social science in shaping American sexual patterns. Revealing how
surveys of sexual behavior help create the issues they purport
merely to describe, it reminds us how malleable and imperfect our
knowledge of sexual behavior is.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
