Sex Researchers:

Background

Laud Humphreys was a student sociologist in the 1960's and attempting to earn his Ph.D. at Washington University at the time of his infamous research. Due to the perceived dishonest nature of his study, his Ph.D. was later rescinded by the university.

Theory

As a doctoral candidate at Washington University, Laud Humphreys began researching what he referred to as "tea room trade" or the act of fellatio between two anonymous men in public restroom. Using the work of Evelyn Hooker as a foundation, his goal was to understand this phenomenon and to determine a rationale and classification for particular sexual behaviors. Humphreys spent time learning about this practice and determined to become an insider so that he could study these behaviors. Focusing primarily on the restrooms in public parks, Humphreys made himself a regular where these activities were displayed. He offered to be a look-out and warn the participants about unexpected visitors such as police officers by making noise to interrupt the sexual act before the participants could be caught and possibly arrested. Humphreys wanted to track those he observed so he would note the license plate on the vehicle of the participant. He observed and interviewed participants without their full disclosure regarding his intent to conduct research. He also manipulated information to obtain home addresses and used these later to interview participants again.

Results

In total, Humphreys observed a time and place representative sample of 134 men and finally reported on 100 men due to attrition. He conducted 50 interviews in the tearooms and another 50 interviews with participants in their homes one year later, posing as a social health surveyor. In order for participants to open their homes to him, Humphrey's realized that he must change his appearance, demeanor and his automobile, so he did. None of the participants seemed to make the connection to their previous interactions with him.
As Humphreys gained entry into this private system of instant sex, he learned that many (over 50%) of these men did not consider themselves homosexuals, were in fact mostly happily married, carried on very important roles in their respective communities and preferred to have quick sexual encounters, with few words and with men, all the while maintaining the appearance of being typical heterosexual males.
In his work, Humphreys identified five types of homosexuals: adolescent male hustlers, ambisexuals, closet queens, gay guys and trade homosexuals.

Commentaries

Humphreys was committed to the research of this behavior and took considerable risks to conduct this single study. However, he was not able to gain support from those in academia due to his perceived unethical approach. While the members of the Sociology Department at Washington University did not award Humphreys his Ph.D., many individuals today see his work of pioneering significance.

References

Humphreys, L. (1975). Tearoom trade: Impersonal sex in public places. New York: Aldine.

Lam, R.P., & Schaefer, R.T., (1992). Sociology (4th ed.). New York: McGraw- Hill.