Response to an AIDS Foundation online sex survey has set a new record for the largest ever survey in New Zealand of the sexual behaviour of men-who-have-sex-with-men (MSM) – with nearly 2,200 responses being received.

For the first time, the New Zealand AIDS Foundation research unit and the University of Otago placed the Gay Online Sex Survey (GOSS) questionnaire on internet dating sites popular with MSM (including GayNZ.com's personals page”) over a two-week period in February/March.

The nation-wide GOSS survey and its related biennial study, GAPSS (the Gay Auckland Periodic Sex Survey), are carried out by the Foundation in Association with researchers at the University of Otago.

Combined with GAPSS 2006 – which was launched at the Big Gay Out in February and included gay bars, saunas and cruise clubs in Auckland over a one-week period – Foundation researchers and their University of Otago colleagues are now faced with analysing a total of 3443 responses.

Information from previous GAPSS surveys has helped the AIDS Foundation target HIV prevention programmes. Saxton says the research team would also like to highlight the “tireless and enthusiastic work” of the GAPSS recruitment team in Auckland who each, on average, individually encouraged 77 homosexually-active men to take part in the survey in all sorts of circumstances.

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