This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on ISI (134)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in JAMA  Topic Collections  • Public Health, Other  • Alert me on articles by topic

Stephanie A. Sanders, PhD; June Machover Reinisch, PhD

JAMA. 1999;281:275-277.

Context  The current public debate regarding whether oral sex constitutes having "had sex" or sexual relations has reflected a lack of empirical data on how Americans as a population define these terms.

Objective  To determine which interactions individuals would consider as having "had sex."

Methods  A question was included in a survey conducted in 1991 that explored sexual behaviors and attitudes among a random stratified sample of 599 students representative of the undergraduate population of a state university in the Midwest.

Participants  The participants originated from 29 states, including all 4 US Census Bureau geographic regions. Approximately 79% classified themselves as politically moderate to conservative.

Main Outcome Measure  Percentage of respondents who believed the interaction described constituted having "had sex."

Results  Individual attitudes varied regarding behaviors defined as having "had sex": 59% (95% confidence interval, 54%-63%) of respondents indicated that oral-genital contact did not constitute having "had sex" with a partner. Nineteen percent responded similarly regarding penile-anal intercourse.

Conclusions  The findings support the view that Americans hold widely divergent opinions about what behaviors do and do not constitute having "had sex."

Author Affiliations: The Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction, (Drs Sanders and Reinisch) and Gender Studies (Dr Sanders) Indiana University, and R² Science Communications Inc (Dr Reinisch), Bloomington; and the Institute of Preventive Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark (Dr Reinisch).

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Sexual abstinence only programmes to prevent HIV infection in high income countries: systematic review
Underhill et al.
BMJ 2007;335:248-248.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Growth Trajectories of Sexual Risk Behavior in Adolescence and Young Adulthood
Fergus et al.
Am. J. Public Health 2007;97:1096-1101.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

The Fellatio 'Epidemic': Age Relations and Access to the Erotic Arts
Curtis and Hunt
Sexualities 2007;10:5-28.
ABSTRACT  

Sexual Victimization Among African American Adolescent Females: Examination of the Reliability and Validity of the Sexual Experiences Survey
Cecil and Matson
J Interpers Violence 2006;21:89-104.
ABSTRACT  

Adult Genital Surgery for Intersex: A Solution to What Problem?
Boyle et al.
J Health Psychol 2005;10:573-584.
ABSTRACT  

US teenagers think oral sex isn't real sex
Hopkins Tanne
BMJ 2005;330:865.
FULL TEXT  

Oral Versus Vaginal Sex Among Adolescents: Perceptions, Attitudes, and Behavior
Halpern-Felsher et al.
Pediatrics 2005;115:845-851.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Sexual Economics: Sex as Female Resource for Social Exchange in Heterosexual Interactions
Baumeister and Vohs
Pers Soc Psychol Rev 2004;8:339-363.
ABSTRACT  

College Women's Experiences of Sexual Coercion: A Review of Cultural, Perpetrator, Victim, and Situational Variables
Adams-Curtis and Forbes
Trauma Violence Abuse 2004;5:91-122.
ABSTRACT  

Adult Sexuality
Sharpe
The Family Journal 2003;11:420-426.
ABSTRACT  

Transmission of HPV
Lytwyn et al.
CMAJ 2003;168:1391-1391.
FULL TEXT  

Good Girl or Flirt Girl: Latinas' Definitions of Sex and Sexual Relationships
Faulkner
Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences 2003;25:174-200.
ABSTRACT  

Adolescent Sexuality
Sharpe
The Family Journal 2003;11:210-215.
ABSTRACT  

Sexual Assault of College Women: A Feminist Interpretation of a Routine Activities Analysis
Mustaine and Tewksbury
Criminal Justice Review 2002;27:89-123.
ABSTRACT  

Six-Year Study of the Incidence of Herpes in Genital and Nongenital Cultures in a Central Kentucky Medical Center Patient Population
Ribes et al.
J. Clin. Microbiol. 2001;39:3321-3325.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Is There a Gender Difference in Strength of Sex Drive? Theoretical Views, Conceptual Distinctions, and a Review of Relevant Evidence
Baumeister et al.
Pers Soc Psychol Rev 2001;5:242-273.
ABSTRACT  

Measuring sexual behaviour: methodological challenges in survey research
Fenton et al.
Sex. Transm. Infect. 2001;77:84-92.
FULL TEXT  

Update in Women's Health
Walsh et al.
ANN INTERN MED 2000;133:808-814.
FULL TEXT  

Comparison of a Ligase Chain Reaction-Based Assay and Cell Culture for Detection of Pharyngeal Carriage of Chlamydia trachomatis
Winter et al.
J. Clin. Microbiol. 2000;38:3502-3504.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

On Being `Just Friends': The Frequency and Impact of Sexual Activity in Crosssex Friendships
Afifi and Faulkner
Journal of Social and Personal Relationships 2000;17:205-222.
ABSTRACT  

A Second Century for the Archives of Internal Medicine
Dalen and Stavri
Arch Intern Med 2000;160:15-18.
FULL TEXT  

Attitudes Toward and Definitions of Having Sex
Burland et al.
JAMA 1999;282:1916-1919.
FULL TEXT  

Whose Freedom?
Block
Arch Intern Med 1999;159:2092-2092.
FULL TEXT  

The Social Construction of Violence: The Case of Sexual and Domestic Violence
Muehlenhard and Kimes
Pers Soc Psychol Rev 1999;3:234-245.
ABSTRACT  

Advertising Policies of Medical Journals: Conflicts of Interest for Journal Editors and Professional Societies
Orentlicher and Hehir
J Law Med Ethics 1999;27:113-121.
 

The Firing of Dr Lundberg
Bologna et al.
JAMA 1999;281:1789-1789.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
JAMA and AMA Archives Journals Editors and JAMA Ed
Arch Intern Med 1999;159:425-426.
FULL TEXT  

Defining Sex: The Eye of the Beholder
JWatch Emergency Med. 1999;1999:24-24.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
JAMA and AMA Archives Journals Editors and JAMA Ed
Arch Gen Psychiatry 1999;56:210-211.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
JAMA and AMA Archives Journals Editors and JAMA Ed
Arch Dermatol 1999;135:323-324.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
JAMA and AMA Archives Journals Editors and JAMA E
Arch Ophthalmol 1999;117:384-385.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
JAMA and AMA Archives Journals Editors and JAMA Ed
Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg 1999;125:259-260.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
JAMA and AMA Archives Journals Editors and JAMA E
Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 1999;153:221-222.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
JAMA and AMA Archives Journals Editors and JAMA Ed
Arch Surg 1999;134:238-239.
FULL TEXT  

JAMA and Editorial Independence
The authors are listed at the end of this article.
JAMA 1999;281:460-460.
FULL TEXT