Wood, Lindsey: Hook Up Culture

            It is a well known stereotype that today’s generation is more sexually active. But is the stereotype all that accurate? According to a study performed by Dr. Martin A. Monto, the statistics between college students who went to school between 1988 to 1996 and the students who went to school between 2002 and 2010 show that today’s generation is not having any more sex than the generation that preceded us. Why then, does everyone seem to believe it is so?

            I believe that it’s because today’s generation is more open and tolerant of talking about sex. Growing up, I was taught that the word “sex” was considered a bad word, and that it was not to be talked about, like it was some kind of secret. But as I got older, I realized that everyone knew what it was, and that it definitely was not a secret by any means. After reading Marc Perry’s article, I’ve realized that the generation before us never talked about sex openly like our generation does. We have become much more tolerant and liberal towards the way that sex is perceived. It’s not that today’s generation is having more sex; it’s just that we talk about sex more often. According to Dr. Martin A. Monto’s study, the prior generation had just as much sex as the generation now. No one knew, however, because no one would speak about their sex lives. If you walk around campuses today, I’m sure you would hear several people talking about the last person they hooked-up with, or how many people they’ve hooked-up with, or even their personal hook-up likes and dislikes.

            In conclusion, the hook-up culture of college students hasn’t changed at all through the past 30 years, but rather, society has become more open-minded towards sex in general.