The article “The Tearoom Trade” concerns a research study conducted by Laud Humphreys on sexual encounters between same-sex strangers in public restrooms. The researcher posed as a lookout for these encounters, writing down the license plates of the men without their knowledge and consent to later meet with them under false pretenses to assess their home life. Thus, Humphryes tried to establish what social, psychological, or physiological factors contributed to these men, not all of whom identified as gay, engaging in such an activity.
The author of the critique provides informative context for Humphryes’s study. It is noted that the sodomy laws in the United States of America, struck down only in 2003, prohibited citizens from engaging in a variety of sexual acts, including anal and oral sex. As a result, many men were detained for having sex with other men, accounting for the majority of anti-sodomy arrests. According to the article, men could play several roles when engaging in sexual activity in public restrooms referred to as “tearooms.” They included the role of an inserter, the person offering a sexual act, an insertee, the one who performs it, and a “watchqueen” who played the part of a lookout. In his role as a lookout, Humphreys secretly observed the encounters and took notes of them.
Under the disguise of a public health surveyor, Humphries learned that men who engaged in sexual activity in public bathrooms were often married and identified as Roman-Catholic. The majority were also married to women who were not on birth control, limiting sexual intercourse at home. Sex in tearooms provided these men with anonymity, mainly free, with rare monetary rewards, and brief. Overall, Humphreys concluded that lack of sexual gratification and loneliness contributed to men seeking sexual relations in public restrooms. Although the research provided a fascinating insight into the sexual behavior of these men, it was considered unethical due to the participants not being informed of their part in it. Specifically, his involvement in the men’s private life was questioned as he intruded on their home life. However, Humphries believed that a taboo subject should never be avoided in research, and its natural patterns of occurrence should not be disturbed by researchers. In summary, although the study remains controversial, it helped understand the behavior of men seeking sexual gratification from other men in public restrooms.
References
A. (2012). The Tearoom Trade – SexInfo Online. SexInfo Online.