Opening Insights
Pocket Wisdom Insights (PWI) invites you to explore the following Co-Lab Blog.
This blog features parts of influential and insightful article written outside of the PWI Co-Lab
by Mary Bowerman on February 9, 2017, published by WUSA.
We have republished this content in respect of the author’s vision, message and research.
If you thought sleeping with someone before a first date was a no-go, but texting during a date was OK, think again.
Informational Insights
While the rule of thumb may have been wait to have sex until a third date, 34% of singles have had sex before a first date, and Millennials are 48% more likely to have sex before a first date than all other generations of singles, according to the annual Singles in America survey, funded by Dallas-based dating service Match and conducted by Research Now.
Millennials especially are unencumbered by fears that may have held people back from having sex in the past, says Helen Fisher a biological anthropologist and chief scientific adviser to Match, who helped develop the representative survey of more than 5,000 singles.
“We have a real misunderstanding of Millennials,” she said. “I think they are very career oriented, so sex before the first date could be a sex interview, where they want to know if they want to spend time with this person.”
In many ways sex has become a less intimate part of dating, according to Kimberly Resnick Anderson, a certified sex therapist. With dating and hookup apps making it easier than ever to hop in bed, now the intimate part can often times be introducing a partner to friends and family.
“We used to think of sex as you crossed the line now you are in an intimate zone, but now sex is almost a given and it’s not the intimate part,” Anderson said. “The intimate part is getting to know someone and going on a date.”
And while 40% of singles have dated someone they met online, they don’t want technology to spill-over to the actual dates.
Prior to an actual date, 42% of singles said they judge a date by their social media posts. But three in four singles is turned off if a date answers their phone without any explanation, and more than half are turned off by texting during the date.
“It’s sort of a mixed message because on one hand people judge potential sexual partners based on social media posts, but then they also want them to put (their phones) down,” Anderson says. “It’s kind of a love-hate relationship.”
Oh, and that cracked phone you’re waiting to upgrade? Time to lose it, according to Fisher.
“Singles don’t like people who have a cracked phone, or an old phone or those who use a clicking sound when typing,” she says, citing the survey. “I think we will see more of these taboos as singles are leading the way in expressing new forms of politeness in the technological era.”
[..]
Other findings from the survey:
- Quit it with the d*ck pics! Thirty-two percent of single men admitted to sending a picture of their genitals, but 90% of women reported they were unaroused by those NSFW pics. And gay men agreed, with almost two-thirds reporting they are unaroused by pictures of male genitalia.
- Big love? Almost 70% of singles approve of polyamorous relationships, or sexual relationships with a deep connection with more than one partner, but only 6% have practiced polyamory.
- Your cheating heart? The survey found that Republicans are 48% more likely to have ever cheated, closely followed by those who drink heavily, according to the survey. And Millennials are the most faithful respondents, but hey, maybe they just haven’t had as much time to slip up.
Possibilities for Consideration
Take a moment and examine…
- As you reviewed the material above, what stood out to you?
- What is the potential impact, economically and/or socially?
- What action is needed to stop or support this idea?
- You may want to consider whether you:
- want to be aware of,
- should become supportive of,
- would want to be active in this topic?
Add Your Insight
I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply.
Being willing is not enough; we must do.
LEONARDO DA VINCI