NCJ Number
125904
Date Published
1975
Length
256 pages
Annotation
This discussion of impersonal, anonymous homosexual encounters among men in public restrooms includes the findings of research started in 1965 and an analysis of the ethical issues involved in the research methods used.
Abstract
The study focused on sexual activities that took place in the restrooms in public parks, which are one of many locations of these restrooms, which are called "tearooms" if they become a focus of homosexual activity. The researcher posed as a homosexual to gather information by means of participant observations conducted in these restrooms. He also traced vehicle license numbers and interviewed men in their homes. The analysis details the behaviors he observed and his justification for making the people observed the unwitting objects of his study. He argues that the behavior observed took place in public places and that he protected the identity of those described. Both the author and the critics examine the ethical conflict between the scientist's need for objective data and the individual's need for protection against surreptitious invasion of privacy. Index, tables, and footnotes.