The Treatment of Sexual Dysfunctions - Diagnosis

Sex History - Interviewing Technique

Taking a sex history has one principal objective:
To obtain an accurate picture of the person's sexual behavior and possible sexual problems.

Therefore, the questions must be phrased in a way appropriate to the person's age, ethnic background, and educational level. This may require the interviewer to use slang, street language or a particular jargon. In any case, purely scientific or medical terms are to be avoided, unless one is talking to a scientist or medical professional. The questions must also be easy to understand, precise, and unambiguous. They should not be too vague, invite misunderstanding or suggest any particular answer. Examples:

• In some cases it may be necessary to explore the family background, but this will be successful only if the questions are precise. Wrong: "How was the relationship with your parents?" The answer to this question may be: "OK." or  "So-so", or "Average." Right: "How was the relationship with your mother?" and "How was the relationship with your father?" The answers to these two questions may reveal that the relationship with the mother was good, but that with the father was very bad, and this may turn out to be relevant to the case.
• It may be important to know the frequency of marital intercourse, but again, the question must be precise. Wrong: "In one week, how often do you sleep with your wife"? The answer may be: "Seven times per week." Right: " How often per week do you have intercourse with your wife?" The answer may be: "Two times". Married couples usually sleep together every night, but do not always have intercourse every night.
• It may be important to know about a man's homosexual contacts, but not much will be learned if the question implies a stereotype. Wrong: "Are you gay?" The answer may be: "No." Right: "Have you ever had sex with another man?" The answer may be: "Yes". Many men have sex with other men in a variety of circumstances while not considering themselves homosexual or gay.