[Sexology and epidemiological methods. A pilot study of sexual behavior, experience, knowledge and attitudes in women]

A pilot study on the feasibility of giving sexological interviews to various groups of women is presented. 225 forty-year-old women were interviewed about various aspects of their sexual knowledge, attitudes and practice. Other groups which also participated were: 20 women over 60 years of age; 30 women under 18 years of age who belonged to a lower socioeconomic stratum; and 5 women over 18 years of age who had chronic pelvic pains with no apparent organic cause. A questionnaire was also sent out to 2 groups of 100 women, asking if they would take part in a sexological survey. The names of the first group (group I) were taken from a physician's journal archive, the names of the second group came from a doctor's appointment list. The subjects in group II failed to answer the questionnaire significantly more often than those from group I. 56.5% answered the questionnaire positively, i.e., they would take part in a survey, while 22% answered negatively. It was found that it is harder to motivate older women and women who regard sex as a taboo subject to take part in a sexological study. It is important that the interviewer be female. 90% of those interviewed allowed the interview to be tape recorded. A personal interview has many advantages over a questionnaire and allows the respondents to clarify the terminology before answering the questions.