A method for empirically assessing volunteer selection effects: Recruitment procedures and responses to erotica.

Abstract

In this experiment we used a method that empirically assessed the effects of subject self-selection in laboratory research. Subjects were recruited for two "different" experiments (responses to erotica or personality questionnaires) and then exposed to the same procedures. The domain used to demonstrate this "different experiments" approach was sex research, and the substantive issue examined was whether men and women differ in their responses to erotica. In Part 1 of the study, all subjects answered questionnaires that assessed personality and demographic characteristics. In Part 2, subjects who agreed to watch an erotic movie (95% agreed) reported their reactions to it. The study indicated that conclusions about prior sexual experience, sexual opinions, and affective responses to the erotic film were qualified by recruitment condition. This experiment suggested that volunteer selection can have an important effect on experimental results, and it demonstrated a method for assessing the extent of these effects.

Volunteer bias in human sexuality research: Evidence for both sexuality and personality differences in males

“…Those higher in personal misbehavior or delinquency may prefer (or at least not avoid) these types of sexual studies because they should be less concerned about conforming to social conventions and norms. It is also of interest to note that both high psychoticism and lower rule-following have been found to relate to sexuality (e.g., Bogaert and Rushton, 1989;Eysenck, 1976) which, as mentioned, discriminates between volunteers and nonvolunteers (e.g., Saunders et al, 1985).…”

“…For example, Farkas et aL (1978) found that volunteers for sexual research are lower in sex guilt than nonvolunteers, and Saunders et al (1985) and Morokoff (1986) found that volunteers had more sexual experience (e.g., number of partners) than nonvolunteers. In a review, Morokoff (1986) concluded that volunteers do differ from nonvolunteers in sexuality, and that these differences are greatest when the effort to participate or the intrusiveness of the measurement technique (e.g., genital plethysmography) is high.…”

“…In fact, few if any differences have been found between volunteers and nonvolunteers for numerous general personality characteristics, authoritarianism, self-esteem, and psychopathology (Barker and Perlman, 1975;Farkas et al, 1978;Saunders et al, 1985). For example, all 14 personality traits measured on Jackson's (1967) Personality Research Form (PRF) Form A failed to discriminate between a sample of volunteers and nonvolunteers (Saunders et al, 1985), and 21 of 22 personality traits on Jackson's (1967) PRF Form AA failed to discriminate between another sample of volunteers and nonvolunteers (Barker and Perlman, 1975).…”

“…The question of whether volunteers for human sexuality research are different from nonvolunteers has generated considerable research (Barker and Perlman, 1975;Bauman, 1973;Bogaert, 1992;Farkas et al, 1978;Kaats and Davis, 1971;Kenrick et aL, 1980;Morokoff, 1986;Nirenberg et aL, 1991;Saunders et al, 1985;Wolchik eta!., 1985Wolchik eta!., , 1983o This is understandable be-cause this research question addresses concerns about the generalizability of sexual surveys, that is, the extent to which participants in sexual research are biased, self-selected, and do not represent the population of interest.…”

“It Feels So Good It Almost Hurts”: Young Adults' Experiences of Orgasm and Sexual Pleasure

“…It is recognized that those who volunteer to participate in sexuality research are likely different to those who do not (Boynton, 2003;Saunders, Fisher, Hewitt & Clayton, 1985), meaning we should be cautious of simple generalization. The use of an anonymous survey may have encouraged a wider range of people to participate than in face-to-face qualitative research, and allowed us to explore the meanings around orgasm with a sample than is larger than is typical of qualitative research, giving us access to a sense of wider patterning of meaning.…”