Intercorrelations of sex variables among a selected group of psychologists

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate professional psychologists along several dimensions in the area of human sexuality. The dimensions examined were level of sexual knowledge, sexual attitudes, diversity of sexual behavior, degree of sexual guilt, responses to pornography, and overall measure of self-esteem. Demographic factors were also considered. The sample consisted of 188 psychologists attending the annual Texas Psychological Association convention. Subjects responded to the McGary Sex Information Test, the Mosher "G" Sex Guilt Test, a sex attitude and behavior questionnaire, the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, and questions about two sexually explicit films shown following completion of other measures. Pearson product moment correlational analyses and multiple regression analyses were employed to examine relationships. The results of this study show strong significant relationships among a high level of sex information, diverse sexual behavior, liberal attitudes, low sexual guilt, and a favorable response to sexually explicit films. No relationship was found with these variables and overall self-esteem. Age and sex differences were found, but it was suggested that male and female differences are not as great as described in previous research. It was concluded that sexual guilt contributes more to sexual attitudes and behavior than does level of information. Further research is suggested to explore the relationship between sexual functioning and personality variables.