Joshua O. Corum , University of Louisville. The term "promiscuity" is often used in academic literature and pejoratively proliferated among society at large. The definition of promiscuity has not been clearly and consistently defined within research and varies significantly from person to person.
However, both research and society continue to utilize this term with the assumption of a universal meaning. This study investigated how individuals construct their personal definition of promiscuity and how the subsequent label is applied to others.
This thesis also examined how the definition of promiscuity is constructed within the collective conscience and how social institutions influence that definition. The relationship between the collective conscience and social institutions is analyzed using concepts from labeling theory and Foucault's biopower. An extensive online survey was used to collect data from respondents in the Louisville Metro area.
The survey employed a quantitative and qualitative mixed methods approach, incorporating fixed answer and open-ended formatted questions. The quantitative analysis of these five elements indicated Relationship Status interacted with Casual Attitude; those not in a partnership were more likely to refer to casual attitudes on sex as an element of promiscuity.
Younger respondents and those with lesser adherence to the sexual double standard were more likely to refer to unsafe sex practices in their definition of promiscuity. Additional analyses were conducted to examine the interactions between the same factors and how an individual quantifies promiscuity in relationship to number of sexual partners. Respondents provided a numeric threshold for the promiscuity of a woman and a man. The analysis found three factors - Race, Sexuality, and Religiosity, affected the thresholds provided by respondents.
