Alfred Kinsey

:This article is about Alfred Kinsey, the 20th century biologist and human sexuality research scientist. For the 2004 movie about Alfred Kinsey, see Kinsey (movie).

Early years

Alfred Kinsey was born on June 23, 1894 in Hoboken, New Jersey to Alfred Seguine Kinsey and Sarah Ann Kinsey. Although his parents had received little formal education, his father was a professor at Stevens Institute of Technology. His parents were rather poor for most of Kinsey's childhood. As a result, the family could often not afford adequate medical care, which caused young Kinsey to contract a variety of diseases that are uncommon in the United States including rickets, rheumatic fever, and typhoid fever. These seem to indicate that Kinsey was both malnourished and living in unsanitary conditions for some of his childhood. Rickets, causing a curvature of the spine, caused Kinsey to have a slight stoop which was to prevent him from being drafted in 1917 for World War I.

Related Topics:
June 23 - 1894 - Hoboken, New Jersey - Stevens Institute of Technology - United States - Rickets - Rheumatic fever - Typhoid fever - Spine - 1917 - World War I

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Kinsey's parents were both extremely conservative Christians; this left a powerful imprint on Kinsey for the rest of his life. His father was known as one of the most devout and strict members of the local Methodist church and as a result most of Kinsey's social relationships were with other members of the church, often merely as a silent observer while his parents discussed religion with other similarly-devout adults. Kinsey's father imposed strict rules on the household including mandating Sunday as a day of prayer (and little else) outlawing social and sexual relationships with girls, and proscribing knowledge of anything remotely sexual including masturbation. Such a strict upbringing was not entirely uncommon at the time. Even most college freshmen then had little understanding of even the most basic facts about human sexuality. It is interesting to note that as a child, Kinsey was forbidden to know anything about the subject which was to make him famous.

Related Topics:
Christians - Methodist - Masturbation

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At a young age, Kinsey became interested in the outdoors and camping. He worked and camped with the local YMCA often throughout his early years. He enjoyed this so much that he intended to work professionally for the YMCA after his education was completed. Even his senior undergraduate thesis for psychology, a dissertation on the group dynamics of young boys, echoed this interest. He subsequently joined the Boy Scouts when a troop was formed in his community. His parents strongly supported this (and joined as well) because at the time the Boy Scouts was an organization deeply based on the principles of Christianity. Kinsey diligently worked his way up through the scouting ranks to Eagle Scout in only two years, rather than in the five or six years it typically took most people. It seems likely that Kinsey's early exposure to nature is responsible for his interest in entomology which occupied him for the first half of his career. Despite earlier disease having somewhat weakened his heart, Kinsey followed an intense sequence of difficult hikes and camping expeditions throughout his early life.

Related Topics:
Camping - YMCA - Psychology - Dissertation - Group dynamics - Boy Scouts - Eagle Scout - Entomology

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At high school, Kinsey was a quiet, but extremely hard-working student. He was not interested in sports, but rather focused almost all of his energy on academic work. It seems he developed an ability early on to spend immense amounts of time deeply focused on study, a trait which would serve him well in college and during his professional career. Kinsey seems not to have formed strong social relationships during high school, but at least earned respect for his academic ability.

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During high school, Kinsey became interested more formally in the disciplines of biology, botany, and zoology. Kinsey was later to claim that his high school biology teacher, Natalie Roeth, was the most important influence on his decision to become a scientist.

Related Topics:
Biology - Botany - Zoology - Natalie Roeth - Scientist

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