ABSTRACT
Whether it is seen positively or negatively, there is a widespread view that the 1960s was a period of rapid change, if not a revolution, in attitudes and behaviour related to sex and marriage. It is the purpose of this chapter to discuss some of the evidence on which such a view might be founded. Our conclusion is not a straightforward one because, though there has certainly been change, it is very hard to pin down because of the lack of evidence. We have few studies to go on and there are questions about their validity. Sex and marriage, though important in the lives of most of us, are the epitome of what we hold to be private. As Christopher Lasch (1977) has remarked, 'most studies of the family tell us everything except the things we most want to know.’ Considerable problems await anyone who tries to find out what they want to know about some aspects of our domestic lives. Methodological questions will form part of our discussion and, amongst other things, we will suggest that there have been important changes in the relationship of the researcher and the researched which not only affect the validity of studies, but show interesting parallels with the relationship between married partners. As well as drawing on surveys of married people, we will be using evidence from the discussions of the agony aunt of one well-known women's magazine.
