Nation turns on to sensual census
By Jim Buckell
27nov02
THE nation's sexual pulse has been taken and, although results won't be
revealed until the new year, the inside tip is that it's beating faster.
La Trobe University's Centre for Sex, Health and Society has completed a
sensual census based on 19,300 questionnaires and plans to lift the sheets
on our bedside manners in February.
The telephone survey asked a randomly selected sample aged 16-59 what they
did, how often, with whom and how they felt about it.
Questions ranged from the type of sexual practices, number of partners,
types of relationships, emotional satisfaction, frequency of sex, and
knowledge and attitudes about sex and sexually transmitted infections.
The survey was conducted over 13 months to June this year and received a
73.5 per cent response rate, a remarkably high figure for this kind of
nationwide survey, indicating a willingness to come clean about matters
sexual when confidentiality is guaranteed.
Although project co-ordinator Anthony Smith was coy about revealing details
of the study until the final report was prepared, he expected the results
to be similar to findings in the US and the UK. However, although sexual
behaviours varied little between these countries, there were differences in
attitudes, which could affect take-up of health services and treatment.
"Attitudes in the US are much more conservative than they are in the UK,
but in terms of the actual practices themselves there is less difference,"
said Associate Professor Smith.
"The church and the moral majority seem to shape what people think about
sex, but they don't seem to shape what they actually do."
Nevertheless, Professor Smith and Marian Pitts, director of the centre,
said there was an opening up about sex and sexuality in the past five or 10
years.
People were more willing to discuss their sex lives, a trend reflected in
the popularity of television shows such as Sex and the City and Big Brother.
So, based on the findings overseas, what can we expect to find?
The age of first sexual intercourse is dropping. It's 17 years and five
months in the UK, and has been coming down for 40 years. The question is,
will it continue to drop and, if so, what implications does this have for
sexual health and contraception?
Sex in marriage is becoming less important as fewer people get married and,
of those that do, fewer couples wait until marriage before having sex. More
than ever, sex is about recreation rather than procreation.
Sexual repertoires are broadening. Oral and anal sex are more widely
practised than in the past, especially among those under 30. In the US,
studies have found that oral sex is widely practised among young teenagers.
"In some ways this is a strategy to reduce risks of STIs and to reduce risk
of pregnancy," said Professor Pitts, who said she believed the sexual
activities of former US president Bill Clinton were highly influential. "We
have to bear in mind that oral sex was relatively unspoken about until Bill
Clinton.".
The implications for STIs are evident. In Australia, chlamydia transmission
rates are on the rise.
Among gay men there is concern about an increase in gonorrhoea and HIV in
some states.
Acceptance of homosexuality was growing. In the UK, a sexual snapshot last
year revealed a large increase over 10 years in the number of people
reporting they had had gay sex before the age of 16.
The centre will follow up its work with a longitudinal study over five
years funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council. Starting
in January, the $2.25 million survey will chart attitudes and behaviours in
a cohort of 7500 people a world first.
"This will enable us to recruit several samples of Australians and follow
them through life changes: change of partners, decision to marry, pregnancy
decisions and outcomes," said Professor Pitts.
Until now, most studies of this type targeted groups thought to be at risk
adolescents, gay men, women in relation to childbirth and people aged 50
and older.
"There are whole sections of society we know very little about. Basically,
the age between 20 to 50 is largely uncharted territory for men and women,"
said Professor Smith.
That's all about to change.
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