The Association for Gay and Lesbian Orientation Research
1.3. How many are there?
Men and women who adopt the role of Gay activist, like to claim homo-sexual activity is more prevalent than it really is. This exaggeration of numbers gives the illusion of a powerful voting bloc, and adds weight to the claim to be a significant consumer market which entices pink dollars into gay political campaign coffers. Both are political strategies.
The usual figure quoted is "one in ten" a convenient number, which, if repeated often enough comes to be seen as fact. Some homo-sexuals have exaggerated the figure to 15% (Kirk and Madsen 1987, 300) and some even claim 30%, neither of which has any scientific research validity. The original 10% figure was distorted from the Kinsey (1948) report which of course was not representative of average American society. Instead, the Wall St Journal, March 31st 1994 provided a summary of six research studies;-
USA 1.2% of males and females reported homo-sexual activity in the 12 months preceding the survey. Only 0.7% reported exclusively homo-sexual partners.
France 1.4% of men and 0.4% of women reported homo-sexual activity in the five years preceding the survey. Only 0.7% of men and 0.6% of women reported exclusive homo-sexual partners.
Britain only 1.4% of men had homo-sexual contact in the five years preceding the study.
Canada only 1% of college students under age 25 reported homosexual contact.
Norway 0.9% of males and females reported homo-sexual activity in the three years preceding the study.
Denmark less than 1% of men were exclusively homo-sexual.
A recent study based on the new Australian Bureau of Statistics census for 1996 confirms the low prevalence of homo-sexual activity in Australia. The study by Dr Stuart Reece (1998 pending publication) based on reported gay households and Australian HIV Surveillance Unit prevalence statistics shows estimated homo-sexual activity for each state and territory as follows:
|
NSW |
VIC |
QLD |
SA |
WA |
ACT |
NT |
TAS |
|
0.54% |
0.38% |
0.42% |
0.35% |
0.31% |
1.4% |
0.28 |
0.22% |
Australia total prevalence of homo-sexual activity 0.43% of the population.
The low incidence of homo-sexual activity reported in the Wall St Journal survey and the Australian statistics confirms that homo-sexual orientation for some people is transitory, not fixed, and that very few people adopt homo-sexual activity as an alternative lifestyle.
New York Times 1994 Oct 18;144(49,853):A10
Dunlap DW950424"A new nationwide study shows that while only 2% to 3% of the overall (male) population is homosexual, about 10% of men living in large cities have had same-sex relations in the past year. Educational levels seem to have a bearing on self-identification, especially for women; 2.5% of female college-graduates identified themselves as lesbian, compared to about 1% for women with less education.
Blacks seemed less likely to identify themselves as gay or lesbian, perhaps because the terms themselves are perceived as being associated with white identity."
(see http://www.thriveonline.com/health/Library/CAD/abstract27315.html )
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