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The Science of “Gaydar”: How Well Can We Detect Other People’s Sexual Orientation?

Posted on by Kinsey Institute

by Dr. Justin Lehmiller

Is Gaydar Real?

Gaydar has been the subject of a fair amount of scientific controversy as of late. Some researchers have argued that it’s real, while others have claimed that it’s a myth. So which one is it?

Is gaydar really a thing and, if so, how accurate is it?

People talk about ‘gaydar’ as the ability to determine whether someone is gay based on their intuition about the person. What we’re talking about here are cases where people make inferences about others’ sexual interests in response to minimal information, such as the way someone dresses, walks, or talks.

Dr. Nicholas Rule, a social psychologist at the University of Toronto, published a paper earlier this year in the Archives of Sexual Behavior in which he reviewed the accumulated scientific literature on this topic.

Here are of the major takeaways from his analysis: (more…)

How Do We Rate Sexual History When We Choose A Partner?

Posted on by Kinsey Institute

By Dr. Justin Lehmiller

How do we rate sexual partners?In determining whether someone is a desirable partner, we appear to take their sexual history into account, according to a recent study in the Journal of Sex Research. However, the way we feel about a given person’s sexual history is complex and depends not only on our gender, but also our personality and relationship goals.

In this study, researchers in Wales surveyed 188 heterosexual adults recruited online and at a college campus regarding their willingness to become sexually or romantically involved with hypothetical persons of the other sex. These prospective partners varied in the number of people they’d had sex with before, ranging from 0 to 60 or greater.

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How Do Alcohol and Marijuana Affect Sexual Performance?

Posted on by Kinsey Institute

By Dr. Justin Lehmiller

How do Alcohol and Marijuana affect sexual performance?

A lot of people attempt to enhance their sex lives by turning to perception-altering substances, with two of the most common being alcohol and marijuana. But how exactly do these drugs affect us in the bedroom?  A recent study published in the Archives of Sexual Behavior offers some insight.

In this study, 24 young adults in New York City completed in-depth interviews in which they were asked to compare their past experiences using alcohol and marijuana during sex. Although this sample is obviously small, the findings are nonetheless informative.

Here are some of the highlights:

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How “Feeling Old” Can Affect the Quality of Your Sex Life

Posted on by Kinsey Institute

By Dr. Justin Lehmiller

How does "feeling old" affect the quality of your sex life?

How does sex change as we get older?

Although many studies have looked at this question over the years, they have pretty much all addressed it from the same angle: how do the physical changes that occur as we age affect the experience of sex? The basic storyline that has emerged from these studies is that, as we get older, our odds of developing chronic health conditions increases and this, in turn, negatively impacts the frequency and quality of sexual activity.

But what about the psychological changes that accompany aging? Independent of our health status, does “feeling old” have implications for our sex lives, too?

A new study published in the Journal of Sex Research suggests that it does.  (more…)