Sex and Relationships
Below are questions pertaining to Reed students' feelings about sex and relationships.
How comfortable are you with sexual relations between two people in the same dorm or dorm wing?
(compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2024
Scale: 1 (Extremely uncomfortable) to 7 (Extremely comfortable)
Actual norm = 5.22 (1.68)
Perceived norm = 4.61 (1.42)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants reported feeling more comfortable with sexual relations between people in the same dorm than the typical Reed student.
How comfortable are you with being in a polyamorous relationship? (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2024
Scale: 1 (Extremely uncomfortable) to 7 (Extremely comfortable)
Actual norm = 2.77 (1.98)
Perceived norm = 3.92 (1.24)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants reported feeling significantly less comfortable with being in a polyamorous relationship than the typical Reed student.
How comfortable with public displays of affection (PDA) are you? (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2024
Scale: 1 (Not at all) to 7 (Extremely)
Actual norm = 4.27 (1.68)
Perceived norm = 4.35 (1.39)
p = 0.62, not significant
Participants reported being about as comfortable with PDA as the typical Reed student.
How many sex toys do you have?
Note: we are defining a sex toy as a product that was advertised for sexual pleasure (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2024
Scale: open-ended response, only accepted numbers
Actual norm = 1.74 (2.42)
Perceived norm = 1.55 (0.99)
p = 0.21, not significant
Participants reported owning around the same amount of sex toys as the typical Reed student.
How much do you seek romantic relationships (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2024
Scale: 1 (Not at all) to 7 (Extremely)
Actual norm = 4.44 (1.79)
Perceived norm = 4.58 (1.23)
p = 0.35, not significant
Participants reported that they are looking for romantic relationships about as much as the typical Reed student.
How often do you engage in hookups from campus parties or social events? (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2024
Scale: 1 (Never) to 7 (Very frequently)
Actual norm = 1.54 (1.09)
Perceived norm = 3.97 (1.29)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants reported feeling less likely to hook up from a Reed campus party or social event than the typical Reed student.
How pleasurable is your average sexual experience?
(compared to most Reed students; note that only participants who said yes to the pre-screening question “Have you ever had sex?” saw these questions)
Year: 2024
Scale: 1 (Note pleasurable at all) to 7 (Extremely pleasurable)
Actual norm = 5.00 (1.35)
Perceived norm = 4.21 (1.09)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants reported feeling like their average sexual experience was more pleasurable than the typical Reed student.
Do you use one or more dating apps? (No, Yes) Compared to percentage of Reed students using dating apps (0, 10, ...,100)
Year: 2018
71 No; 49 Yes; 4 missing.
So, 40.8% said yes
Perceived % = 50.50 (18.14)
p < 0.0001, significant
How frequently do you use dating apps just for fun (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2018
Scale: 1 (not at all frequently) to 7 (very frequently)
Actual norm = 2.61 (2.25)
Perceived norm = 4.35 (1.57)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants report using dating apps for fun less than the average Reed student.
When you see other Reed students on dating apps, how likely are you to "swipe right"? (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2018
Scale: 1 (not at all frequently) to 7 (very frequently)
Actual norm = 3.24 (1.99)
Perceived norm = 3.86 (1.54)
p < 0.005, significant
Participants reported feeling more likely to "swipe right" than the average Reed student.
When you "swipe right" on another Reed student, how frequently are you looking for romantic relationships? (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2018
Scale: 1 (not at all frequently) to 7 (very frequently)
Actual norm = 2.70 (1.88)
Perceived norm = 3.06 (1.27)
p < 0.06, not significant
Participants reported that they are looking for romantic relationships about as much as the average Reed student.
When you "swipe right" on another Reed student, how frequently are you looking for hook-ups? (compared to typical Reed student)
Year: 2018
Scale: 1 (little to no sexual experience) to 7 (sexual expert)
Actual norm = 2.49 (1.96)
Perceived norm = 4.08 (1.50)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants report looking for hook-ups significantly less than the average Reed student.
How would you rate your level of sexual experience pre-Reed?
Year: 2011
Scale: 1 (little to no sexual experience) to 7 (sexual expert)
Actual norm = 2.71 (SD = 1.75)
Perceived norm = 3.35 (SD = 1.10)
p < 0.0001, significant
How often do you currently engage in sexual behavior?
Year: 2011
Scale: 1 (never) to 7 (multiple times a day)
Actual norm = 2.90 (SD = 1.73)
Perceived norm = 3.66 (SD = 0.95)
p < 0.0001, significant
How often do you masturbate?
Year: 2011
Scale: 1 (never) to 7 (multiple times a day)
Actual norm = 3.26 (SD = 1.53)
Perceived norm = 4.09 (SD = 0.96)
p < 0.0001, significant
How often do you view pornographic materials (e.g. pictures, magazines, videos)?
Year: 2011
Scale: 1 (never) to 7 (multiple times a day)
Actual norm = 2.46 (SD = 1.43)
Perceived norm = 3.66 (SD = 1.04)
p < 0.0001, significant
How often do you engage in unconventional sexual behavior (e.g. S & M, roleplaying, using toys)?
Year: 2011
Scale: 1 (never) to 7 (multiple times a day)
Actual norm = 1.83 (SD = 1.35)
Perceived norm = 3.11 (SD = 1.08)
p < 0.0001, significant
How comfortable are you engaging in sex with multiple partners at one time (e.g. threesomes, orgies)?
Year: 2011
Scale: 1 (not at all) to 7 (extremely)
Actual norm = 2.29 (SD = 1.64)
Perceived norm = 3.15 (SD = 1.32)
p < 0.0001, significant
How much do you agree with each of the following statements?
Year: 2010
Scale: 0 (not at all) to 10 (extremely)
I am achieving my desired relationship status.
Actual norm = 5.18 (SD = 3.58)
Perceived norm = 3.32 (SD = 1.57)
p < 0.0001, significant
In general, I would like to be in a long-term relationship.
Actual norm = 7.40 (SD = 2.41)
Perceived norm = 4.85 (SD = 1.83)
p < 0.0001, significant
In general, I am interested in being in a monogamous relationship.
Actual norm = 7.74 (SD = 2.56)
Perceived norm = 5.42 (SD = 1.94)
p < 0.0001, significant
I have sexual contact on a weekly basis.
Actual norm = 5.07 (SD = 4.42)
Perceived norm = 4.19 (SD = 2.01)
p < 0.0001, significant
How comfortable are you with engaging in non-committed sexual encounters?
Year: 2008
Scale: 1 (not at all) to 7 (extremely)
Actual norm = 3.39 (SD = 1.89)
Perceived norm = 4.48 (SD = 1.06)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants report that they are less comfortable with non-committed sexual encounters than the typical Reed student.
How many times have you engaged in non-committed sexual encounters in the past month?
Year: 2008
Scale: Number of times
Actual norm = 1.26 (SD = 0.65)
Perceived norm = 2.07 (SD = 0.55)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants report that engaged in fewer non-committed sexual encounters in the last month than the typical Reed student.
How committed do you prefer to be in a relationship?
Year: 2008
Scale: 1 (not at all) to 7 (extremely)
Actual norm = 5.54 (SD = 1.46)
Perceived norm = 3.87 (SD = 1.06)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants report that they prefer to be in a more committed relationship than the typical Reed student.
How comfortable are you with an open relationship?
Year: 2008
Scale: 1 (not at all) to 7 (extremely)
Actual norm = 2.92 (SD = 1.85)
Perceived norm = 3.75 (SD = 1.21)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants report that they are less comfortable with an open relationship than the typical Reed student.
How comfortable are you with kinky sex?
Year: 2008
Scale: 1 (not at all) to 7 (extremely)
Actual norm = 4.30 (SD = 1.83)
Perceived norm = 4.62 (SD = 1.08)
p < 0.01, significant
Participants report that they are less comfortable with kinky sex than the typical Reed student.
How comfortable are you with polyamory?
Year: 2008
Scale: 1 (not at all) to 7 (extremely)
Actual norm = 2.48 (SD = 1.79)
Perceived norm = 3.03 (SD = 1.24)
p < 0.0001, significant
Participants report that they are less comfortable with polyamory than the typical Reed student.