JewishSurveys.org (run by a researchers at Berkley U.)  has got out one heck of an entertaining Jewish survey going on – on taharas mishpacha and premarital sex -oh and it is not just for you singles – it's for you married folks too! 

And a this ain't PG either…(don't get too nervous about seeing some of the following terms:   “Manual manipulation”  or  “Oral manipulation” )

The researchers stress that  “given the intimate nature of these matters, this brief, online survey is totally anonymous, and no identifiable information is collected.” 

Here is how they explain it – definitely worth checking it out… who knows the people over at Berkley might come up with some revealing results…



Family purity (“Niddah” / “Taharat HaMishpachah”) and premarital touching (“Negiah”) play an important role in the every day lives of Jewish men and women. The collection of handbooks on this topic grows from year to year, yet we know very little about how Jewish couples, men, and women experience and observe niddah and negiah. Anecdotal evidence and our previous research have led us to conclude that many couples and individuals are experiencing difficulties with this aspect of the halacha. We invite you to participate in this survey to shed light on these difficulties and explore some ways to address them. Given the intimate nature of these matters, this brief, online survey is anonymous.

Mark Guterman is a PhD candidate in Clinical Psychology at Fairleigh Dickinson University. He has done research on niddah among the Modern Orthodox community in America.

Orit Avishai is completing her PhD in Sociology at the University of California at Berkeley. She has done research on niddah among orthodox (“dati”) in Israel. She is a graduate of Tel Aviv University Faculty of Law and the Yale Law School, and Clerked in the Israeli Supreme Court before coming to Berkeley.

Take survey here