Methods Section
Methods
Participants: Five females and five male participants over the age of 18 gave information regarding their relationship, sexual relations, and sexual satisfaction. All participants were undergraduate students in a committed, heterosexual relationship. There was a broad range of commitment, usually decided by the couples themselves. The selection was random, to try to provide the most general conclusions for college student orgasm and sexual satisfaction experience. All of the students were unpaid, but many of them were in similar situations and needed participants of their own; this provided a good subject pool for all in the class. All of the participants were volunteers, and therefore the same selective processes acted on all participants.
In the interview section of the research, my partner and I were one of the couples included. We currently have been in a committed relationship for six years, and have had a sexual relationship for four of those years. He is a white, Caucasian male at the age of 20. I am a white, Caucasian female age 19.
In another part of the research, a survey was collected. Gender and age were an item on the survey, as well as whether or not the surveyed were in a committed relationship. The selection of fifty participants was conducted randomly, on a completely volunteer basis. No compensation was given to the participants, but both the survey group and the interview group were given contact information to be able to find the results of the research. The survey consisted of multiple questions regarding sexual satisfaction, partner satisfaction, and general components of orgasm (relating to physiology, psychology, adjective rating scale, and etcetera).
Interview: Participating couples were asked to sit at a desk together and answer a list of questions provided to them one time as a couple, and another time separately. This method was considered to be best to obtain maximum disclosure of subjective evidence on the topic, while also maintaining the participants’ feelings of safety in their privacy. The participants wrote down their answers, and were recorded as well to provide an accurate display of body language. By questioning them together, it was easier to distinguish how the answers of one affected the other. This helped in researching the effects of partner satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the sexual side of the relationship on one another. By questioning them apart, it provided a control of sorts to compare the results of the couples’s interview to. At the same time, it also provided a gender specific orgasm preference experience; much the same as the survey would provide.
Survey: The survey was conducted on more of a mass population scale, to ensure that a larger population sample was taken for the research. The survey was used as a control, and also to provide a further data collection of general characteristics for each gender on orgasm and partner satisfaction. It also helped legitimize the research more; because the interviews were conducted on a small sample size, randomization on such a small number could still possibly provide biased research data. By using the survey, the research is more general to the topic of college-age students in heterosexual relationships.
Materials: The interview consisted of two copies of the same questionnaire, first given to the couple participating separately, and then together. An adjective rating scale was used to describe their orgasm experience from 1 to 10. If a participant rated a certain adjective as a 10, it meant that this adjective very strongly accurately described the sensation felt during orgasm. If a participant rated a certain adjective as a 1, it coincided with an inaccurate description of experience felt. If no response was given, then
