Natalya Fairless
Pronouns: she/her
Research Mentor(s): Terri Conley
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Psychology / LSA
Program: UROP
Session: Session 7 (4:40pm – 5:30pm)
Authors: Natalya Fairless, Julia Smoot, Terri Conley
Abstract
Sex guilt has long been measured by the Mosher Sex Guilt (MSG) Inventory, a highly regarded and often cited scale. Our research explores the true nature of the most recent version of the MSG Inventory, the Revised Mosher Sex Guilt Inventory (RMSG). We are interested in whether this scale measures sex guilt, or if, more accurately, sexual conservatism. Utilizing in-person card sorting and a written prompt, we primed individuals to either feel guilty or neutral before taking a survey which contained the RMSG Inventory as well as an alternative Contemporary Sex Guilt Inventory (CSC). We hypothesized that people who were primed with guilt would score higher on the contemporary scale compared to those in a neutral prime condition, and that there would be no discrepancy between prime states in RMSG Inventory. In analyzing the data, evidence suggests that sexually liberal individuals primed with guilt, or a neutral scenario, had insignificant differences in scores on RMSG, compared to a significant difference between prime states on the CSG Inventory. We then conclude that the RMSG Inventory is a measure of sexual conservatism rather than sexual guilt, which supports our hypothesis. Our results suggest that the RMSG scale not be relied upon as an accurate measure for sex guilt. These findings are important because an inaccurate measurement of sex guilt may hinder academic progress and research. An accurate measurement for sex guilt is vital for advances in the field, and the greater social psychology sphere.
