So, assuming that you wish to know how large your penis is - just for the sake of comparison, of course! - how do you measure it?
First of all, you will wish to be at your maximum size when you measure your dick. In formal research studies, there are various ways of ensuring this - artificially induced erections, for example. One approach that is often used is to measure the stretched non-erect length. However, stretched non-erect penile length is a very bad predictor of the size of man's erection, and the reliable way to get the erect length is to lay a piece of string along the top surface of the erect penis. Unfortunately, self-reporting is notoriously unreliable, and few studies based on self-reporting really tell us much about what size the average penis actually is.
If you would like to measure your penis and you're going to be honest with yourself here's how to do it. The length of your penis is simply from the end of the glans to the base, along the upper surface of the organ, pressing slightly into your pubic fat. Measuring along the underside is less reliable and gives more scope for variation. Penile circumference - also known as girth - is measured around the thickest part of the penile shaft.
Sad to say, any research which rely on men to measure their own organs tend to be very unreliable - and in any event, men with smaller penises may well be less likely to measure them accurately.
We know that studies which rely on self-measurement always show penis size to be longer and thicker than those where measurement is done by independent experts - i.e. not the man attached to the dick being measured! The September 1996 Journal of Urology reported that average erect length was 12.9 cm (5.08 inches). And one in the December 2000 International Journal of Impotence Research discovered that average erect penile length was a little more, at 13.6 cm (5.35 in).
A famous study by LifeStyles Condoms during 2001 found that the average length of the white male penis was 5.9 inches. These figures are more honest than self-measurement surveys where averages are consistently over 6 inches. Similar data are revealed in information about the circumference of the erect penis. Once again, studies from self-measurement data report thicker dimensions than those where staff have measured the penis. The LifeStyles Condoms survey showed that the average circumference was one tenth of an inch less than 12.6 cm (5.0 in).
As all men know, the flaccid length of a man's penis is not indicative of the erect length. Smaller penises grow proportionately more when they develop an erection, and the increase in volume between men varies very much. A smaller-than-average flaccid penis can grow by as much as six times its resting volume, while a large soft penis may only become harder on erection, with no increase in size at all.
The September 1996 Journal of Urology showed that average soft length was 8.8 cm (3.5 inches). And again, size is affected by the temperature at which the measurement takes place. It's hardly surprising to hear that many men (45%, by all accounts) wish they had a bigger penis. Even men who think think their penis is average in size want a bigger one! Clearly the idea of having a large penis makes men feel good. There is a major self-esteem issue here, for we know that men think a bigger penis is more masculine or desirable.
Another fascinating fact: homosexual men apparently have bigger penises than heterosexual men. Gay men measure in at 6.32 inches erect while non-gay men are 5.99 inches in length, according to 5,122 measurements of penises in the Kinsey Report. The straight erect penis girth is 4.80 inches, compared to 4.95 inches for gay men. Now - why? Do gay men pack a bigger dick in their pants?
All these measurements were taken by the men themselves so they may not be reliable. And it seems gay men's self-esteem depends on their perception of their penis size. For many gay men, penis size is a measure of masculinity. Of course, we all tend to think we are smaller than we are, because we don't get a true view of our penis when we look at it from above: this view makes it look shorter than it really is.
Needless to say, there are other studies which have tried to connect between penis size and race. There is interesting research which suggest black men are on average about half an inch longer than white men, while Oriental men seem to be cheated in the penis size department - their erections are half an inch shorter on average than whites (though it seems that this fits with the Asian women's smaller pussy).
More important is what women think of penis size. Do women select sexual partners on the basis of penis size? It seems unlikely. One suspects that while there may be a few women who are aroused by large dicks, but most women look for a sexual partner who is kind, has a sense of humor, and will make a reliable father. Indeed,, research shows penis size is important for a minority of women, and many hate large penises. Having said that, Women's Health magazine found that women seem to prefer a wider penis than a long one.
Nonetheless, if you are a man with a small penis, you won't suffer a life without a lover. All the men we spoke to in our research on penis size who had a small penis - and that means men with an erection less than four inches long - had a partner and enjoyed sex with her, or him if they were gay.
By: Robert Thomson
The author is publisher for Male sexuality and the penis. You can find more information on the penis at The Penis Website. Both are excellent penis related websites.
