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The term Kinsey scale or Kinsey scale test may be new for some of you while some of you might be familiar with it. Well, it must not come as a surprise to you but this term and concept of the Kinsey scale test were introduced in 1948 itself.
The Kinsey scale is nothing but a sexuality rating scale which has a sexuality rating ranging from 0 to 6. It is used to determine an individual’s sexual orientation on the basis of that individual’s experience and responses to a certain point in time.
Although the Kinsey scale is sort of outdated in today’s time, it was groundbreaking at the time when it came out. It was one of the first models to explain that sexuality is not only binary but can be more than just being homosexual or heterosexual.
In this article, I am going to talk about the Kinsey scale and all that you need to know about it. Stick till the end for more interesting details. So, let’s begin.
Background
Back in 1948, Alfred Kinsey, Wardell Pomeroy, and Clyde Martin developed the Kinsey scale through reports published in Sexual Behaviour in the Human male. Later on, in 1953 similar report was published for females.
Alfred Kinsey who is the creator of the Kinsey scale is known as the “Father of the sexual revolution”. He believed that there is more to human sexuality than being heterosexual and that humans can be more fluid in nature.
During his research, Kinsey utilized the assessments of human behavior to determine the rating on the scale instead of referring to the sociocultural labels. He made a few rating scales before releasing the final scale.
The very first scale developed by Kinsey had about 30 ratings that represented 30 different categories based on the case studies that he went through. However, the final scale has only 7 rated categories to determine sexual orientation. For the purpose of this research, more than 8000 interviews were organized.
The Kinsey Scale
As mentioned above, the scale has 7 categories ranging from 0 to X, where 0 means exclusively heterosexual, 6 means exclusively homosexual, and X means having no sexual or romantic attraction at all. The ratings from 1 to 5 are for those who have a varying attraction towards the same or opposite gender.
Below is a table of the Kinsey scale test for your better understanding:
| Rating | Description | Meaning |
| 0 | Exclusively heterosexual | Experiencing sexual or romantic attraction towards opposite gender exclusively. |
| 1 | Predominantly heterosexual or only incidentally homosexual | Mostly attracted to the opposite gender. Slightly attracted to the same gender. |
| 2 | Predominantly heterosexual or but more than incidentally homosexual | Mostly attracted to the opposite gender. More than a slight attraction towards the same gender. |
| 3 | Equally heterosexual and homosexual | Equally experiencing sexual or romantic attraction towards both opposite and same gender. |
| 4 | Predominantly homosexual or but more than incidentally heterosexual | Mostly attracted to the same gender. Slightly attracted to the opposite gender. |
| 5 | Predominantly homosexual or only incidentally heterosexual | Mostly attracted to the same gender. More than slightly attracted to the opposite gender. |
| 6 | Exclusively homosexual | Experiencing sexual or romantic attraction towards the same gender exclusively. |
| X | No socio-sexual contacts or reactions | No experiencing attraction of any kind towards any gender. |
Limitations Of Kinsey Scale Test
The following are the limitations:
- The scale does not cover all the orientations. It works out well for people who are straight, gay, or to an extent asexual, but it may not be helpful for others.
- There are also people who are attracted to nonbinary people and there can be more such orientations that are not mentioned on the scale.
- Individuals may not feel comfortable identifying themselves as a number on the scale.
- Sexual orientation is seemingly a personal experience and people may not be willing to measure it.
- Lastly the scale limits to binary people.
How To Take The Kinsey Scale Test?
Well, there are many websites that offer a Kinsey scale test online. However, it is important to know that any official Kinsey scale test does not exist. Although there is no harm in taking the online tests even though they are unofficial.
Also, it is important that you keep in mind that the Kinsey scale does not cover all the orientations so there is no need to consider the scale as the only way of determining sexual orientation. There can be many sexual orientations as we live in a world where everyone must be free to choose what they desire and feel is right for themselves.
The Bottom Line | Kinsey Scale Test
The Kinsey scale test is nothing but one of the many attempts to categorize human sexual orientation. The scale may work out right for some people while it may not for some others. There are other scales that exist as well but they too come with limitations.
However, there is no actual need to take the kinsey scale test or even look up to the scale to determine one’s sexual orientation. When people identify themselves as heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, or anything else, then this test falls on the unnecessary side.
Lastly, even though this is one of the ways to determine sexual orientation, it is important to keep in mind that any scale should not determine or limit one’s sexual orientation. People feel sexually or romantically attracted to each other while some don’t. So, there can be a lot of sexual orientations and does not limit to any scales.
