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Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy pp 1–3Cite as

Kinsey, Alfred

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Introduction

Alfred Charles Kinsey was born in 1894 in Hoboken, New Jersey, to Sarah Ann Charles and Alfred Seguine Kinsey. The oldest of three children in a devout Methodist home, he loved hiking, scouting, and playing the piano, but he also suffered from a number of illnesses including rickets and typhoid fever. Socially avoidant but respected by classmates for his academic abilities, he was referred to as a future “second Darwin” in his high school yearbook.

Career

Kinsey began his college education studying engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, where his father was a faculty member. After 2 years of mediocrity in both effort and grades – likely due to lack of interest in engineering and pressure from his authoritarian father – Kinsey transferred to Bowdoin College in Maine to focus on biology. Despite his reputation as an excellent student, dutiful son, and strong Christian, Kinsey’s transfer shocked and angered his father, who cut off financial support. Kinsey...

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References

  • Bullough, V. L. (1998). Alfred Kinsey and The Kinsey Report: Historical overview and lasting contributions. The Journal of Sex Research, 35, 127–131. doi:10.1080/00224499809551925.

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  • Bullough, V. L. (2004). Sex will never be the same: The contributions of Alfred C. Kinsey. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 33, 277–286. doi:10.1023/B:ASEB.0000026627.24993.03.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gathorne-Hardy, J. (2004). Sex the measure of all things: A life of Alfred C. Kinsey (1998). London: Chatto & Windus.

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  • Jones, J. H. (2004). Alfred C. Kinsey: A life. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.

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  • Pastoetter, J. (Ed.) (2006). Special issue on Alfred Kinsey [Special issue]. Sexuality & Culture, 10(1), 3–113.

    Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Family Institute at Northwestern University, 618 Library Place, Evanston, IL, 60201, USA

    Adam Fisher

  2. Salt Lake City, UT, USA

    Mary Fisher

Authors
  1. Adam Fisher
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  2. Mary Fisher
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Adam Fisher .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, Illinois, USA

    Jay Lebow

  2. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, Illinois, USA

    Anthony Chambers

  3. The Family Institute at Northwestern, Evanston, Illinois, USA

    Douglas C. Breunlin

Section Editor information

  1. Employee Assistance Program, McLeod Health, Florence, SC, USA

    Farrah Hughes Ph.D., ABPP

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© 2016 Springer International Publishing AG

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Fisher, A., Fisher, M. (2016). Kinsey, Alfred. In: Lebow, J., Chambers, A., Breunlin, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Couple and Family Therapy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_672-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_672-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-15877-8

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Kinsey, Alfred
    Published:
    28 November 2017

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_672-2

  2. Original

    Kinsey, Alfred
    Published:
    27 December 2016

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-15877-8_672-1

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