Rumors of Indiscretion

by Lawrence J. Nelson

"In March 1929 hundreds of students at the University of Missouri received a questionnaire that asked their opinions of marriage, family, and sex issues. Several questions were regarded as too intimate for university students, especially females. The so-called Sex Questionnaire, the product of a sociology class project, soon fell into the hands of the university's president, dean of women, and the local press, which deemed it "A Filthy Questionnaire." The Missouri legislature soon jumped into the controversy as the ensuing uproar went statewide and attracted national attention; a cry arose for the explusion of the students and professors responsible. Beyond the questionnaire, rumors also circulated that something "too terrible" to mention had gone on at the university. Investigations followed, including one by the American Association of University Professors.". "Although the controversy surrounding the questionnaire was not limited to sharp generational lines, college students - part