The Influence of Social Desirability on Sexual Behavior Surveys

A Review

Bibliographic Data

ID21292387
AuthorsBruce King (0000-0002-2206-1280, Clemson University, corresponding author)
Year2022
Volume51
Issue3
Pages1495-1501
Publication date2022-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueArchives of Sexual Behavior (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0004-0002 • E-ISSN: 1573-2800
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s10508-021-02197-0
PMID35142972
OpenAlexW4210953190
LanguageEN
Citations received51
References cited73

Research in fields for which self-reported behaviors can be compared with factual data reveals that misreporting is pervasive and often extreme. The degree of misreporting is correlated with the level of social desirability, i.e., the need to respond in a culturally appropriate manner. People who are influenced by social desirability tend to over-report culturally desired behaviors and under-report undesired behaviors. This paper reviews socially desirable responding in sexual behavior research. Given the very private nature of the sexual activity, sex researchers generally lack a gold standard by which to compare self-reported sexual behaviors and have relied on the anonymity of participants as the methodology to assure honest answers on sexual behavior surveys. However, indirect evidence indicates that under-reporting (e.g., of a number of sexual partners, receptive anal intercourse, condom use) is common. Among the general population, several studies have now reported that even with anonymous responding, there are significant correlations between a variety of self-reported sexual behaviors (e.g., use of condoms, sexual fantasies, exposure to pornography, penis size) and social desirability, with evidence that extreme under- or over-reporting is as common as is found in other fields. When asking highly sensitive questions, sex researchers should always include a measure of social desirability and take that into account when analyzing their results

Condom · Developmental psychology · Population · Pornography · Sexual attraction · Sexual behavior · Sexual orientation · Social desirability · Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health · Demography · Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior · Medicine · Psychology · Sex work and related issues · Social Psychology