"[1][2] The institute's mission is "To foster and promote a greater understanding of human sexuality and relationships through research, outreach, education, and historical preservation."

Research, graduate training, information services, and the collection and preservation of library, art, and archival materials are main activities carried out by The Kinsey Institute.

[7][needs update] Shortly after the ISR's establishment, Kinsey's interview based research was published in the 1948 bestselling[8] book, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male.

[12] Under Paul Gebhard's leadership, the interview based research project continued, resulting in the publication of Pregnancy, Birth and Abortion  [d][13] and Sex Offenders: An Analysis of Types.

[14] Other significant publications included JoAnn Brook's Sexual Nomenclature: A Thesaurus[15] and Alan Bell and Martin Weinberg's Homosexualities: A Study of Diversity Among Men and Women.

[18] During her first years as director, as part of her contract with the university, the institute was completely renovated and expanded adding a new full floor for the library including temperature and humidity controlled stacks, a scholars' reading room, additional staff offices, and The John Money Visiting Scholars Study, an art gallery and new archives for the art and artifacts collections and additional research offices and laboratory space.

[20] From 1984 to 1993, with direction from Indiana University to play an active role in public education, the institute produced "The Kinsey Report", an internationally syndicated newspaper column.

[23] Following June Reinisch's retirement, Stephanie Sanders held the institute's research and curriculum programs together as the Board reorganized its internal structure amid drastic budget cuts from Indiana University.

[28] During the following year, the institute began regularly rotating exhibitions of artwork and archival materials in addition to offering public tours.

[40][41] The Kinsey Institute is considered to have one of the largest collections of library, archival, and art materials pertaining to sex, gender, and reproduction.

A sampling of the broad range of items housed at the institute includes scientific and popular books, pulp magazines, publications from both sexual and anti-sexual organizations, data from Kinsey's original interview project, films, photos, erotic objects, and artwork by both professionals and amateurs.

[44] However, materials do not circulate and must be studied within the reading room which is open to scholars, professionals, university faculty, and students over eighteen who are researching topics pertaining to sexuality, gender, and reproduction.

[45] Due to the highly specialized nature of the collection, holdings are described using subject headings created by The Kinsey Institute and organized using a modified version of the Dewey Decimal System.