More men and women are identifying themselves as bisexual, according to the results of a survey released Thursday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The survey, which was part of the National Survey of Family Growth, interviewed 9,175 males and females ages 18 to 44 from 2011 to 2013. The data was collected through a computer where the respondents entered their answers without talking to a live interviewer, a method called audio computer-assisted self-interviewing (ACASI).
"In ACASI, the respondent listens to the questions through headphones, reads them on the screen, or both, and enters the response directly into the computer," the study authors wrote. "This method avoids asking the respondent to give his or her answers to the interviewer, and it has been found to yield more complete reporting of sensitive behaviors."
According to the results, 6.2 percent of the men reported they had same-sex contact while 17.4 percent of the women reported the same. On the other hand, more men (92.1 percent) said they were attracted only to the opposite sex compared to women (81 percent).
With regard to sexual orientation, 95.1 percent of the men and 92.3 percent of the women identified themselves as heterosexual or straight; 5.5 percent of the women and 2 percent of the men said they were bisexual; 1.9 percent of the men and 1.3 percent of the women said they were homosexual, lesbian or gay; and 1 percent of the men and 0.9 percent of the women were either uncertain or refused to disclose information.
"Sexual attraction and sexual orientation correlate closely, but not completely, with reports of sexual behavior," the authors concluded.
