RESEARCH ARTICLE
Sexual diversity in the United States: Results from a nationally representative probability sample of adult women and men Debby Herbenick1, Jessamyn Bowling2, Tsung-Chieh (Jane) Fu1, Brian Dodge1*, Lucia Guerra-Reyes1, Stephanie Sanders1,3
a1111111111 a1111111111 a1111111111 a1111111111 a1111111111
1 Center for Sexual Health Promotion, School of Public Health, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, United States of America, 2 College of Health & Human Services, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States of America, 3 Department of Gender Studies, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, United States of America * [email protected]
Abstract OPEN ACCESS Citation: Herbenick D, Bowling J, Fu T-C(Jane), Dodge B, Guerra-Reyes L, Sanders S (2017) Sexual diversity in the United States: Results from a nationally representative probability sample of adult women and men. PLoS ONE 12(7): e0181198. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0181198 Editor: Junjie Xu, China Medical University, CHINA Received: February 10, 2017 Accepted: June 27, 2017 Published: July 20, 2017 Copyright: © 2017 Herbenick et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Data Availability Statement: The minimal data set underlying the findings is available in the openICPSR (Inter-University Consortium of Political and Social Science Research) data repository (Indiana University Sexual Diversity Study) [http://doi.org/10.3886/E100426V1].
In 2015, we conducted a cross-sectional, Internet-based, U.S. nationally representative probability survey of 2,021 adults (975 men, 1,046 women) focused on a broad range of sexual behaviors. Individuals invited to participate were from the GfK KnowledgePanel®. The survey was titled the 2015 Sexual Exploration in America Study and survey completion took about 12 to 15 minutes. The survey was confidential and the researchers never had access to respondents’ identifiers. Respondents reported on demographic items, lifetime and recent sexual behaviors, and the appeal of 50+ sexual behaviors. Most (>80%) reported lifetime masturbation, vaginal sex, and oral sex. Lifetime anal sex was reported by 43% of men (insertive) and 37% of women (receptive). Common lifetime sexual behaviors included wearing sexy lingerie/underwear (75% women, 26% men), sending/receiving digital nude/ semi-nude photos (54% women, 65% men), reading erotic stories (57% of participants), public sex (43%), role-playing (22%), tying/being tied up (20%), spanking (30%), and watching sexually explicit videos/DVDs (60% women, 82% men). Having engaged in threesomes (10% women, 18% men) and playful whipping (13%) were less common. Lifetime group sex, sex parties, taking a sexuality class/workshop, and going to BDSM parties were uncommon (each 75%). Significantly more women reported having engaged in lifetime vaginal sex (but not recent vaginal sex), receptive anal sex, and having worn sexy underwear for a partner. Significantly more men than women (25.6% vs. 10.9%) reported having ever engaged in sucking/licking of toes or feet. There were no statistically significant differences by gender in terms of spanking, whipping, partnered masturbation, role playing, tying up a partner or being tied up, giving or receiving oral sex, or having sex in public.
Sexual behaviors involving enhancement products and/or media The most prevalent lifetime behaviors in this section were watching sexually explicit videos or DVDs (>70% overall; see Table 3) followed by reading erotic stories (57% for both women and men) and, for men, looking at sexually explicit magazines (79.0%). Significantly more women than men reported having used a vibrator or dildo (50.2% vs. 32.9%). Significantly more men reported having used a phone app related to sex, looked at a sexually explicit magazine, watched a sexually explicit video or DVD, used over the counter enhancement herbs or pills, and having received nude or semi-nude photos of someone.
Social sexual experiences Going to a strip club was the most common lifetime “social” sexual experience for both women and men, although significantly more men reported ever having done this (59.4% vs. 30.1%; see Table 4). Similarly, significantly more men reported having ever engaged in a threesome (17.8% vs. 10.3%) or group sex (11.5% vs. 6.3%). Fewer Americans had taken a class or workshop about sex, attended a sex party or swinger’s party, or attended a BDSM party, and no statistically significant differences were found for these latter three items. Fewer than 2% of Americans reported engaging in any individual social sexual behavior in the past month.
Appeal of sexual behaviors For more than 20 sexual behavior items, there were no statistically significant gender differences in terms of ratings of appeal. These included having sex in a hotel room, giving/receiving massage, role playing, playful biting, spanking, whipping, tying up, reading erotic stories, dirty talk, and blindfolding. The most appealing behaviors were those commonly associated with romance and/or affection (e.g., saying sweet, romantic things during sex, kissing more often during sex, cuddling more often, making the room feel more romantic) (Table 5). Additionally, large proportions of Americans found the following to be somewhat or very appealing: having sex in other parts of the house, having sex more often, and vaginal intercourse. However, there were more than 25 behavioral items that significantly more men rated as appealing compared to women. Among others, these included all anal sexual behaviors (anal sex, anal toys, anal fingering), giving and receiving oral sex, most uses of media related to sex (watching explicit videos/DVDs, phone sex, sex over FaceTime or Skype, sending or receiving nude photos, etc.), having sex where one might be seen or heard by others, watching others (e.g., watching a partner undress, watching a partner masturbate, watching others do sexual things), and group sexual experiences (e.g., threesomes, group sex, sex parties). However, it is important to note that just because men rated these items as more appealing than women does not mean that they were generally appealing. Some behaviors, such as anal intercourse and group sex, were rated as “not appealing” or “not at all appealing” by most men and women.
PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181198 July 20, 2017
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Sexual diversity in the United States
Table 2. Partnered sexual behaviors by gender and age (N = 2,021, Men: n = 975, Women: n = 1046). Men (%) Total (%)
Total Men
18– 24
Women (%)
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Total Women
18– 24
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Vaginal intercourse* Past month
52.4
52.1
39.3
68.9
63.2
62.3
49.1
44.1
37.2
52.6
52.1
72.6
77.3
62.0
52.8
32.6
14.6
Past year
64.1
65.8
53.3
74.4
74.9
79.3
65.6
57.5
50.6
62.4
62.1
83.6
85.3
74.2
64.5
39.3
23.8
Lifetime
88.5
85.6
59.4
87.4
85.0
90.2
90.6
93.2
87.4
91.1
65.8
90.9
92.7
92.5
95.0
94.1
96.1
Gave partner oral sex Past month
34.9
34.0
32.9
50.7
41.5
34.0
36.8
21.7
21.4
35.7
44.7
53.5
53.0
41.6
31.9
19.7
8.0
Past year
54.6
56.7
49.5
69.4
71.3
67.9
57.7
42.3
33.7
52.6
57.3
76.4
73.8
63.0
54.3
27.4
15.2
Lifetime
82.7
83.0
61.3
84.8
88.2
88.4
87.9
86.8
76.1
82.5
62.3
85.5
89.0
89.0
86.4
85.1
66.9
Received oral sex Past month
35.0
38.4
36.4
66.0
44.9
42.4
36.7
27.9
19.2
31.8
35.8
48.1
51.3
34.7
28.3
17.0
8.5
Past year
54.8
60.9
61.7
76.1
71.0
75.1
59.6
46.2
33.4
49.2
59.7
69.5
68.7
54.9
49.4
27.7
16.2
Lifetime
84.8
85.0
67.1
89.2
88.3
92.2
89.1
88.4
74.1
84.6
64.2
87.4
87.9
89.9
87.3
88.0
76.9
Insertive anal sex Past month
-
5.7
2.7
8.1
10.1
8.7
6.3
1.4
0.8
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Past year
-
15.2
12.4
21.1
26.1
21.9
12.7
7.5
3.4
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Lifetime
-
42.6
20.2
44.3
55.1
57.9
45.3
35.5
29.7
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Received anal sex* Past month
3.5
2.5
7.2
3.3
3.9
0.4
2.2
0.7
1.4
4.4
6.7
9.9
5.0
5.0
5.0
0.6
0.0
Past year
8.7
5.3
8.9
5.6
10.5
7.0
2.6
1.2
1.4
11.8
17.0
25.5
18.3
14.7
9.8
1.2
0.0
23.8
9.3
9.8
5.6
15.4
11.3
7.7
7.2
6.4
37.3
27.7
41.2
46.2
44.2
39.9
33.6
20.1
3.0
3.9
8.4
2.3
1.4
3.8
1.8
0.8
16.9
23.9
29.5
27.0
15.1
16.3
7.2
2.6
Lifetime
Worn sexy underwear or lingerie for a partner* Past month
10.3
Past year
22.7
8.9
8.2
17.7
10.1
10.4
8.6
6.4
1.9
35.5
45.9
63.3
55.0
36.1
31.7
15.1
7.1
Lifetime
51.8
26.2
13.5
23.5
30.8
33.3
33.9
28.1
10.1
75.4
61.9
81.0
85.2
75.0
80.8
72.8
61.4
Had sex with someone in public place Past month
1.2
1.5
1.2
3.7
0.0
3.0
1.4
0.7
0.7
0.9
0.0
4.9
0.7
0.5
0.6
0.0
0.0
Past year
5.3
6.0
11.0
12.5
2.9
7.5
4.7
3.7
1.9
4.7
7.4
12.7
6.3
4.7
4.2
0.0
0.0
44.1
45.4
21.2
49.6
42.2
59.9
53.9
47.1
32.8
42.9
27.0
49.2
50.9
52.8
51.3
38.1
16.1
Lifetime
Tied up your partner or been tied up as part of sex Past month
1.3
1.4
3.1
4.1
1.6
0.4
1.1
0.6
0.0
1.3
2.4
4.2
3.8
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Past year
4.5
4.3
7.9
15.1
3.8
3.2
2.5
1.4
0.3
4.8
7.6
15.0
8.4
1.9
3.8
0.0
0.0
21.1
21.7
11.7
40.7
25.9
31.4
19.5
15.0
8.2
20.6
14.7
30.8
34.2
20.3
26.4
7.9
5.2
Lifetime
Sucked/licked partner’s feet/toes* Past month
1.6
2.3
1.3
5.3
3.7
1.5
3.6
0.0
0.8
0.9
2.0
2.1
1.5
0.5
0.4
0.5
0.0
Past year
5.3
8.3
6.2
14.3
8.3
10.3
11.9
1.8
3.9
2.6
2.0
8.1
4.0
1.6
1.8
1.5
0.0
18.0
25.6
14.6
28.6
25.5
28.7
33.1
27.1
15.6
10.9
5.1
12.3
14.4
11.7
13.1
8.8
6.8
Lifetime
Masturbated with someone else (spouse, boy/girlfriend, friend, someone else) Past month
18.8
18.4
21.9
19.6
18.8
24.0
19.0
13.7
9.6
19.1
21.6
30.9
30.8
24.3
16.5
9.3
0.7
Past year
33.2
35.5
35.8
43.0
49.4
48.3
28.9
25.1
16.8
31.1
27.6
50.7
51.7
38.1
29.9
13.8
3.2
Lifetime
55.2
57.5
46.2
62.2
69.6
71.4
55.8
48.0
44.0
53.1
42.0
62.8
70.0
67.7
56.7
42.6
18.0
(Continued)
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Sexual diversity in the United States
Table 2. (Continued) Men (%) Total (%)
Total Men
18– 24
Women (%)
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Total Women
18– 24
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Masturbated in front of partner Past month
10.2
10.7
10.0
16.6
11.2
13.2
10.3
8.4
5.5
9.8
7.2
25.0
19.2
9.2
7.8
1.0
0.7
Past year
20.6
21.3
17.0
28.8
25.9
31.0
19.9
12.8
11.7
19.8
18.3
40.0
32.4
27.1
16.2
5.7
0.7
Lifetime
41.5
43.7
24.8
49.7
56.3
56.2
44.2
42.9
24.1
39.4
25.1
53.4
55.3
55.4
42.5
25.3
7.6
Role played with partner Past month
2.2
2.6
3.7
7.1
2.3
3.5
2.4
0.6
0.0
1.7
3.9
4.2
2.5
1.2
1.1
0.7
0.0
Past year
7.6
8.1
12.9
17.1
6.1
10.2
8.5
2.3
1.1
7.2
7.6
13.3
13.8
5.3
5.7
4.3
0.9
23.7
25.8
19.2
38.7
27.6
35.0
26.6
18.3
12.9
21.8
14.7
31.0
33.8
22.3
24.8
13.9
7.1
Lifetime
Playfully whipped or been whipped by partner as part of sex Past month
2.5
2.2
4.6
3.8
2.3
3.1
2.1
0.0
0.0
2.7
2.3
9.3
5.4
3.3
0.4
0.0
0.0
Past year
6.0
5.6
6.9
12.9
5.6
6.3
5.9
3.1
0.0
6.4
6.7
15.6
14.1
6.9
3.1
0.6
0.0
15.0
16.2
9.2
22.7
17.9
23.8
18.3
13.3
4.1
13.8
8.4
30.3
20.4
18.3
10.4
7.2
2.6
Lifetime
Spanked or been spanked as part of sex 8.1
6.1
9.2
15.2
12.4
5.7
2.8
0.5
0.3
10.0
23.2
25.4
17.9
7.5
4.3
0.7
0.0
Past year
Past month
17.2
14.2
13.4
39.2
27.5
13.6
8.7
3.8
0.3
20.0
40.3
50.8
37.0
16.4
10.2
0.7
0.0
Lifetime
31.9
29.5
16.8
49.4
46.0
41.2
25.9
18.3
7.4
34.1
46.0
58.8
56.5
39.5
27.3
11.9
5.2
*Chi-squared p-value
Sexual diversity in the United States: Results from a nationally representative probability sample of adult women and men Debby Herbenick1, Jessamyn Bowling2, Tsung-Chieh (Jane) Fu1, Brian Dodge1*, Lucia Guerra-Reyes1, Stephanie Sanders1,3
a1111111111 a1111111111 a1111111111 a1111111111 a1111111111
1 Center for Sexual Health Promotion, School of Public Health, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, United States of America, 2 College of Health & Human Services, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina, United States of America, 3 Department of Gender Studies, Indiana University, Bloomington, Indiana, United States of America * [email protected]
Abstract OPEN ACCESS Citation: Herbenick D, Bowling J, Fu T-C(Jane), Dodge B, Guerra-Reyes L, Sanders S (2017) Sexual diversity in the United States: Results from a nationally representative probability sample of adult women and men. PLoS ONE 12(7): e0181198. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0181198 Editor: Junjie Xu, China Medical University, CHINA Received: February 10, 2017 Accepted: June 27, 2017 Published: July 20, 2017 Copyright: © 2017 Herbenick et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Data Availability Statement: The minimal data set underlying the findings is available in the openICPSR (Inter-University Consortium of Political and Social Science Research) data repository (Indiana University Sexual Diversity Study) [http://doi.org/10.3886/E100426V1].
In 2015, we conducted a cross-sectional, Internet-based, U.S. nationally representative probability survey of 2,021 adults (975 men, 1,046 women) focused on a broad range of sexual behaviors. Individuals invited to participate were from the GfK KnowledgePanel®. The survey was titled the 2015 Sexual Exploration in America Study and survey completion took about 12 to 15 minutes. The survey was confidential and the researchers never had access to respondents’ identifiers. Respondents reported on demographic items, lifetime and recent sexual behaviors, and the appeal of 50+ sexual behaviors. Most (>80%) reported lifetime masturbation, vaginal sex, and oral sex. Lifetime anal sex was reported by 43% of men (insertive) and 37% of women (receptive). Common lifetime sexual behaviors included wearing sexy lingerie/underwear (75% women, 26% men), sending/receiving digital nude/ semi-nude photos (54% women, 65% men), reading erotic stories (57% of participants), public sex (43%), role-playing (22%), tying/being tied up (20%), spanking (30%), and watching sexually explicit videos/DVDs (60% women, 82% men). Having engaged in threesomes (10% women, 18% men) and playful whipping (13%) were less common. Lifetime group sex, sex parties, taking a sexuality class/workshop, and going to BDSM parties were uncommon (each 75%). Significantly more women reported having engaged in lifetime vaginal sex (but not recent vaginal sex), receptive anal sex, and having worn sexy underwear for a partner. Significantly more men than women (25.6% vs. 10.9%) reported having ever engaged in sucking/licking of toes or feet. There were no statistically significant differences by gender in terms of spanking, whipping, partnered masturbation, role playing, tying up a partner or being tied up, giving or receiving oral sex, or having sex in public.
Sexual behaviors involving enhancement products and/or media The most prevalent lifetime behaviors in this section were watching sexually explicit videos or DVDs (>70% overall; see Table 3) followed by reading erotic stories (57% for both women and men) and, for men, looking at sexually explicit magazines (79.0%). Significantly more women than men reported having used a vibrator or dildo (50.2% vs. 32.9%). Significantly more men reported having used a phone app related to sex, looked at a sexually explicit magazine, watched a sexually explicit video or DVD, used over the counter enhancement herbs or pills, and having received nude or semi-nude photos of someone.
Social sexual experiences Going to a strip club was the most common lifetime “social” sexual experience for both women and men, although significantly more men reported ever having done this (59.4% vs. 30.1%; see Table 4). Similarly, significantly more men reported having ever engaged in a threesome (17.8% vs. 10.3%) or group sex (11.5% vs. 6.3%). Fewer Americans had taken a class or workshop about sex, attended a sex party or swinger’s party, or attended a BDSM party, and no statistically significant differences were found for these latter three items. Fewer than 2% of Americans reported engaging in any individual social sexual behavior in the past month.
Appeal of sexual behaviors For more than 20 sexual behavior items, there were no statistically significant gender differences in terms of ratings of appeal. These included having sex in a hotel room, giving/receiving massage, role playing, playful biting, spanking, whipping, tying up, reading erotic stories, dirty talk, and blindfolding. The most appealing behaviors were those commonly associated with romance and/or affection (e.g., saying sweet, romantic things during sex, kissing more often during sex, cuddling more often, making the room feel more romantic) (Table 5). Additionally, large proportions of Americans found the following to be somewhat or very appealing: having sex in other parts of the house, having sex more often, and vaginal intercourse. However, there were more than 25 behavioral items that significantly more men rated as appealing compared to women. Among others, these included all anal sexual behaviors (anal sex, anal toys, anal fingering), giving and receiving oral sex, most uses of media related to sex (watching explicit videos/DVDs, phone sex, sex over FaceTime or Skype, sending or receiving nude photos, etc.), having sex where one might be seen or heard by others, watching others (e.g., watching a partner undress, watching a partner masturbate, watching others do sexual things), and group sexual experiences (e.g., threesomes, group sex, sex parties). However, it is important to note that just because men rated these items as more appealing than women does not mean that they were generally appealing. Some behaviors, such as anal intercourse and group sex, were rated as “not appealing” or “not at all appealing” by most men and women.
PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181198 July 20, 2017
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Sexual diversity in the United States
Table 2. Partnered sexual behaviors by gender and age (N = 2,021, Men: n = 975, Women: n = 1046). Men (%) Total (%)
Total Men
18– 24
Women (%)
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Total Women
18– 24
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Vaginal intercourse* Past month
52.4
52.1
39.3
68.9
63.2
62.3
49.1
44.1
37.2
52.6
52.1
72.6
77.3
62.0
52.8
32.6
14.6
Past year
64.1
65.8
53.3
74.4
74.9
79.3
65.6
57.5
50.6
62.4
62.1
83.6
85.3
74.2
64.5
39.3
23.8
Lifetime
88.5
85.6
59.4
87.4
85.0
90.2
90.6
93.2
87.4
91.1
65.8
90.9
92.7
92.5
95.0
94.1
96.1
Gave partner oral sex Past month
34.9
34.0
32.9
50.7
41.5
34.0
36.8
21.7
21.4
35.7
44.7
53.5
53.0
41.6
31.9
19.7
8.0
Past year
54.6
56.7
49.5
69.4
71.3
67.9
57.7
42.3
33.7
52.6
57.3
76.4
73.8
63.0
54.3
27.4
15.2
Lifetime
82.7
83.0
61.3
84.8
88.2
88.4
87.9
86.8
76.1
82.5
62.3
85.5
89.0
89.0
86.4
85.1
66.9
Received oral sex Past month
35.0
38.4
36.4
66.0
44.9
42.4
36.7
27.9
19.2
31.8
35.8
48.1
51.3
34.7
28.3
17.0
8.5
Past year
54.8
60.9
61.7
76.1
71.0
75.1
59.6
46.2
33.4
49.2
59.7
69.5
68.7
54.9
49.4
27.7
16.2
Lifetime
84.8
85.0
67.1
89.2
88.3
92.2
89.1
88.4
74.1
84.6
64.2
87.4
87.9
89.9
87.3
88.0
76.9
Insertive anal sex Past month
-
5.7
2.7
8.1
10.1
8.7
6.3
1.4
0.8
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Past year
-
15.2
12.4
21.1
26.1
21.9
12.7
7.5
3.4
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Lifetime
-
42.6
20.2
44.3
55.1
57.9
45.3
35.5
29.7
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Received anal sex* Past month
3.5
2.5
7.2
3.3
3.9
0.4
2.2
0.7
1.4
4.4
6.7
9.9
5.0
5.0
5.0
0.6
0.0
Past year
8.7
5.3
8.9
5.6
10.5
7.0
2.6
1.2
1.4
11.8
17.0
25.5
18.3
14.7
9.8
1.2
0.0
23.8
9.3
9.8
5.6
15.4
11.3
7.7
7.2
6.4
37.3
27.7
41.2
46.2
44.2
39.9
33.6
20.1
3.0
3.9
8.4
2.3
1.4
3.8
1.8
0.8
16.9
23.9
29.5
27.0
15.1
16.3
7.2
2.6
Lifetime
Worn sexy underwear or lingerie for a partner* Past month
10.3
Past year
22.7
8.9
8.2
17.7
10.1
10.4
8.6
6.4
1.9
35.5
45.9
63.3
55.0
36.1
31.7
15.1
7.1
Lifetime
51.8
26.2
13.5
23.5
30.8
33.3
33.9
28.1
10.1
75.4
61.9
81.0
85.2
75.0
80.8
72.8
61.4
Had sex with someone in public place Past month
1.2
1.5
1.2
3.7
0.0
3.0
1.4
0.7
0.7
0.9
0.0
4.9
0.7
0.5
0.6
0.0
0.0
Past year
5.3
6.0
11.0
12.5
2.9
7.5
4.7
3.7
1.9
4.7
7.4
12.7
6.3
4.7
4.2
0.0
0.0
44.1
45.4
21.2
49.6
42.2
59.9
53.9
47.1
32.8
42.9
27.0
49.2
50.9
52.8
51.3
38.1
16.1
Lifetime
Tied up your partner or been tied up as part of sex Past month
1.3
1.4
3.1
4.1
1.6
0.4
1.1
0.6
0.0
1.3
2.4
4.2
3.8
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Past year
4.5
4.3
7.9
15.1
3.8
3.2
2.5
1.4
0.3
4.8
7.6
15.0
8.4
1.9
3.8
0.0
0.0
21.1
21.7
11.7
40.7
25.9
31.4
19.5
15.0
8.2
20.6
14.7
30.8
34.2
20.3
26.4
7.9
5.2
Lifetime
Sucked/licked partner’s feet/toes* Past month
1.6
2.3
1.3
5.3
3.7
1.5
3.6
0.0
0.8
0.9
2.0
2.1
1.5
0.5
0.4
0.5
0.0
Past year
5.3
8.3
6.2
14.3
8.3
10.3
11.9
1.8
3.9
2.6
2.0
8.1
4.0
1.6
1.8
1.5
0.0
18.0
25.6
14.6
28.6
25.5
28.7
33.1
27.1
15.6
10.9
5.1
12.3
14.4
11.7
13.1
8.8
6.8
Lifetime
Masturbated with someone else (spouse, boy/girlfriend, friend, someone else) Past month
18.8
18.4
21.9
19.6
18.8
24.0
19.0
13.7
9.6
19.1
21.6
30.9
30.8
24.3
16.5
9.3
0.7
Past year
33.2
35.5
35.8
43.0
49.4
48.3
28.9
25.1
16.8
31.1
27.6
50.7
51.7
38.1
29.9
13.8
3.2
Lifetime
55.2
57.5
46.2
62.2
69.6
71.4
55.8
48.0
44.0
53.1
42.0
62.8
70.0
67.7
56.7
42.6
18.0
(Continued)
PLOS ONE | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0181198 July 20, 2017
8 / 23
Sexual diversity in the United States
Table 2. (Continued) Men (%) Total (%)
Total Men
18– 24
Women (%)
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Total Women
18– 24
25– 29
30– 39
40– 49
50– 59
60– 69
70+
Masturbated in front of partner Past month
10.2
10.7
10.0
16.6
11.2
13.2
10.3
8.4
5.5
9.8
7.2
25.0
19.2
9.2
7.8
1.0
0.7
Past year
20.6
21.3
17.0
28.8
25.9
31.0
19.9
12.8
11.7
19.8
18.3
40.0
32.4
27.1
16.2
5.7
0.7
Lifetime
41.5
43.7
24.8
49.7
56.3
56.2
44.2
42.9
24.1
39.4
25.1
53.4
55.3
55.4
42.5
25.3
7.6
Role played with partner Past month
2.2
2.6
3.7
7.1
2.3
3.5
2.4
0.6
0.0
1.7
3.9
4.2
2.5
1.2
1.1
0.7
0.0
Past year
7.6
8.1
12.9
17.1
6.1
10.2
8.5
2.3
1.1
7.2
7.6
13.3
13.8
5.3
5.7
4.3
0.9
23.7
25.8
19.2
38.7
27.6
35.0
26.6
18.3
12.9
21.8
14.7
31.0
33.8
22.3
24.8
13.9
7.1
Lifetime
Playfully whipped or been whipped by partner as part of sex Past month
2.5
2.2
4.6
3.8
2.3
3.1
2.1
0.0
0.0
2.7
2.3
9.3
5.4
3.3
0.4
0.0
0.0
Past year
6.0
5.6
6.9
12.9
5.6
6.3
5.9
3.1
0.0
6.4
6.7
15.6
14.1
6.9
3.1
0.6
0.0
15.0
16.2
9.2
22.7
17.9
23.8
18.3
13.3
4.1
13.8
8.4
30.3
20.4
18.3
10.4
7.2
2.6
Lifetime
Spanked or been spanked as part of sex 8.1
6.1
9.2
15.2
12.4
5.7
2.8
0.5
0.3
10.0
23.2
25.4
17.9
7.5
4.3
0.7
0.0
Past year
Past month
17.2
14.2
13.4
39.2
27.5
13.6
8.7
3.8
0.3
20.0
40.3
50.8
37.0
16.4
10.2
0.7
0.0
Lifetime
31.9
29.5
16.8
49.4
46.0
41.2
25.9
18.3
7.4
34.1
46.0
58.8
56.5
39.5
27.3
11.9
5.2
*Chi-squared p-value
