Kinsey, << KIHN zee, >> Alfred Charles (1894-1956), an American biologist, was one of the first scientists to study human sexual behavior. His research, which began in the late 1930’s, contributed important insight into relationships among human beings.
Kinsey’s interest in sex research began when he was a zoology professor at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana. While teaching a marriage course, he realized that scientists had little knowledge about human sexual practices. Kinsey began to interview people about their sexual behavior and attitudes. He received grants to help finance his studies. In 1947, Kinsey founded the Institute for Sexual Research at the university.
Kinsey and his colleagues interviewed thousands of men and women in the United States and Canada. The interviews formed the basis of Kinsey’s books, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male (1948) and Sexual Behavior in the Human Female (1953). The two books became known as The Kinsey Report. Both were best sellers, though they had been written for physicians, sociologists, and other professionals. They created controversy because many people charged they were immoral and some scientists considered them unscientific.
Kinsey was born on June 23, 1894, in Hoboken, New Jersey. He graduated from Bowdoin College in 1916 and received a doctor of science degree from Harvard University in 1920. Kinsey became known for his studies of gall wasps before entering sex research. He died on Aug. 25, 1956.
