As college students, we know that there are a few topics that are always on our minds: finals, trendy appearances, and, of course, sex. So how is it that, given college’s long and honorable tradition of playing host to sexual discovery, millennials have become “twice as likely to be sexually inactive,” as the generation before? A study published this August in the Archives of Sexual Behavior shows that that’s exactly what’s happening. But why?
Paul Taylor, executive VP of special projects at the Pew Research Center, has called our millennial generation “the most cautious generation we’ve ever seen.” He hypothesizes that our carefulness stems from socioeconomic vulnerabilities, social dangers of the internet (blackmail, cyberbullying, catfishing, misrepresentations of people and information, etc.), and watching our parents and other adults around us struggle through a recession. And that cautiousness carries on to our romantic relationships, and even our casual hookups. Thanks to the AIDS epidemic beginning in about 1981, Millennials have been forced to take sex more seriously than the “free love” generations that came before us. And thanks to advancements in technology, our generation has grown up more safely in general – higher crash/safety ratings in cars, safer sports equipment, etc. Additionally, social experts have explored things like emphases on rape culture and receiving genuine consent before crossing the line, especially on college campuses.
Today’s environment is also much faster paced and more competitive than those of generations preceding ours. At this point, especially as we drudge out of a tough economic recession, young people feel more pressure than ever to succeed. Good grades matter more. Extra-curricular activities are hardly considered extra; they’re necessary. Work experience has become more valuable, but only in addition to your outstanding academic credentials. So, across the nation more and more young people are finding themselves postponing serious romantic relationships and sex because it’s hard to make the time for them. And given our cautious natures, we’re less likely to dive into relationships and one night stands to satisfy any sexual itches, which means we’re foregoing sex altogether.
As for a more gender-specific reason to skip out on sex, thanks to things like female empowerment movements, breaking through glass ceilings, strong female figures in pop culture and society, and an overall boost in feminine appreciation, young females are feeling less pressure to say yes to quality time in the sheets to please their men. Why? Because we, as women, don’t need men the way we used to. We’re breaking away from a dependence on men to get by in life – to settle into a nice home, to get a good job, to have kids. They’re just not necessary the way they used to be. We have sex when we have time for it, and when we want it. End of story.
So, if it’s been a while, and you feel like your dry spell has lasted longer than “normal,” just remember that you’re not alone. And you’re likely a part of a greater crowd of people who just have other things going on, or aren’t ready to dive into something as risky as sex, both emotionally and physically, when they could be focusing on school, work, and getting ahead.