Featured

Members from UAE

	Rose
	Sappho
	little
	dolme
	amurahk

Sexual orientation scale- Does this accurately describe you?

I found this interesting sexual orientation scale/grid which looks at the 7 components of sexual orientation- such as sexual attraction, sexual behavior, sexual fantasies, emotional preferences, social preference, self identification, hetero/gay lifestyle.

A complete description is given here:

http://members.tde.com/ben/kleingrid.html

For a brief description:

http://www.bisexual.org/en/klein/index.php

I think in the end we're meant to average out what we got overall.

I'm not sure where I best fit in the labelling scheme of things, so I don't tend to label myself. If asked I would refer to myself as queer rather than any of the three most commonly used labels. I find that I fit better into the gay community with this label than with bisexual. From personal experience I've found that some people (both gay and straight) tend not to take bisexuality seriously, they think that bisexuals are confused-don't know what they want, are greedy, or that they don't really exist. As a result I feel more comfortable and less of an outcast when identifying myself under the umbrella term of queer, or behind a number which expresses more about myself than the word bisexual.

According to this scale I find that I rate mostly at 5 or 6, on a scale of 1 to 7, on all of the components mentioned. I was just wondering what others thought of this grid and do you believe it takes into account all of the factors encompassing sexual orientation. And where do you find yourself on each of the components. Is that an accurate assessment of where you see yourself as a bisexual?

I hope this topic has not been posted before. I'm new so I'm not sure myself.

Submitted by

N_i_n_a (80 posts)

on July 27, 2007 - 8:09am.

TAGS ::

Bisexuality

sexual orientation grid

Submitted by

Jo (150 posts)

on July 27, 2007 - 6:04pm.

Klein Sexual Orientation Grid
Variable	Past	Present	Ideal
A. Sexual Attraction	6	4	5
B. Sexual Behavior	1	1	6
C. Sexual Fantasies	7	4	5
D. Emotional Preference	7	4	4
E. Social Preference	7	3	4
F. Self-Identification	6	4	5
G. Hetero/Gay Lifestyle	1	6	4

Scale 1
Other sex only	Other sex mostly	Other sex somewhat more	Both sexes equally	Same sex somewhat more	Same sex mostly	Same sex only
1	2	3	4	5	6	7

Scale 2
Hetero only	Hetero mostly	Hetero somewhat more	Hetero/Gay	Gay somewhat more	Gay mostly	Gay only
1	2	3	4	5	6	7

It is definitely an

Submitted by

Nelle Thaler (29 posts)

on July 27, 2007 - 8:01pm.

It is definitely an interesting scale. I found however that for me it simply shows me just how complicated my sexual orientation really is (something which I certainly know). While I averaged about a four, I am by no means 50/50 bisexual but have tendencies, both sexually and within my personality, that are much more complicated than a definition like that. So yeah, I guess what I'm trying to say is that in response to your question, it is an accurate representation of where I stand as a bisexual, because it incorporates the complexities of the whole thing (and which I really like about it) but that averaging it out simplifies it beyond understanding. ;)

That scale seems pretty

Submitted by

Ina (78 posts)

on December 11, 2007 - 6:54am.

That scale seems pretty comprehensive to me, I especially like that it includes both ideal view of oneself and lifestyle (which I read to be as self-identification more or less). My "lifestyle" would now be very much lesbian, because I feel more and more politicized the longer I have a gay relationship and have to defend that to the world at large, I would rate it at 6. But my lifestyle wasn't "straight" when I had a boyfriend, back then I already identified with the gay rights movement a lot and was even more political about bisexual acceptance (largely because nobody took my outing seriously because I had a boyfriend), so I would rate my past lifestyle at a 4. The column "self-identification" to me only means where I would place my sexual orientation on the scale, and that would be a solid 4 now and then.

I think the scale really does capture the complexity of sexual orientation quite well, though the differentiation between "self-identification" and "lifestyle" might be under debate. What do you think? I might pass this around among friends just to see what the lesbians among them make of this.

Oh, and I average out at about a 6, since my emotional preference is very much female (6-7), women have always been sexually more attractive to me (6 in both the past and the present) and my sexual behaviour is naturally a 7 now (a 2 in the past). I think the social preference is a very interesting factor, I find that my entire life is much more female-orientated now then in the past, though not on purpose. Wonder why that is, actually?

I like this scale

Submitted by

BeautifulTroi (107 posts)

on December 27, 2007 - 2:48am.

I average out to around a 4, I think. On sexual attraction, I got a 2 in the past, 3 now, and 4 ideal. In sexual experience, I couldn't really answer accurately since I'm pretty inexperienced, but figured around a four all around. On sexual fantasies, I got 2 for the past, about a six now, and 6 ideally. On emotional preference, I got a two for past, 5 now and 4 ideally. In social preference, I got a 6 for the past, 4 for now, and 4 ideally. In self-identification, I got a 3 for the past, 6 now, and 6 ideally. For lifestyle, I got a 2 for the past, 4 for the moment, and 5 ideally.

Bump

Submitted by

jackedup77 (897 posts)

on March 25, 2008 - 1:59pm.

I think this scale is very useful. I agree that our sexuality is a bit more complicated than people would like to believe.

Help.

Submitted by

kalena (112 posts)

on May 26, 2008 - 12:21pm.

The scale confuses me =l

I don't think a mathemetic chart can really determine how someone feels but I'd like it if someone would explain what's the past present and ideal all about and why are there two scales?

Klein believed that a

Submitted by

jackedup77 (897 posts)

on May 26, 2008 - 2:05pm.

Klein believed that a person's sexual behavior and feelings tend to change over time. And that each person is unique in their sexual identity. 'present' is anything within the last year. 'Past' is your life up to that point. 'Ideal' is sort of what you wish the furture would hold.

Personally, I used to think I was only attracted to women. Now, I realize I'm attracted to men, but I prefer women. Ideally, I'd like to end up with someone who truly loves me.

The chart isn't really about mathematics, just a way for people to evaluate how complex their feelings and behavior are. The numbers are used to sort of keep tabs on how you feel and act.

I think the purpose of the chart isn't to determine how you feel (it can be used that way); but, to help foster discussion and understanding. Some people identify as straight; but others would think differently according to their behavior. The chart proves that things aren't as cut and dry as they seem; we may think the labels are self-explanatory but they are open to interpretation.

The second link in the original post doesn't work for me. I found the site it was pointing to:

http://www.bisexual.org/kleingrid.html

It explains things a little better.

The second scale is only for self-identification and lifestyle.