The Sex Recession: The Share of Americans Having Regular Sex Keeps Dropping

it would be super surprising if this didn't corelate with cost of living

I know this is a weak excuse from me b/c ppl in other countries aren't bothered but as a 30 y/o grown ass man, I just don't find it appropriate trying to bring women over to my parents house. I don't even think I qualify for tinder at this point tbh. lol
I didn't read the articles or look at the numbers, just wanted to respond to the comment. 👌
- Yeah but for other countries that’s a cultural difference. If you’re in the US, it’s totally seen as like embarrassing at best, red flag at worst, to bring a date over to your parents’ house, even though it’s totally reasonable to live at home bc the cost of living is just too damn high
- Look at the bright side- the population decline will lead to normalization.
- Maybe dad can shout some tips mid-session.
  "Spank the arse son! Harder! Like I did with your mother last night!"

Married women are having more sex than married men? Wait, where is my wife right now?

Maybe some of the women are married to women?
- But surely some of the men would also be married to other men and it would cancel out right?
I'll send her home as soon as my wife gets back from her boyfriend's house.
~~Nobody~~ almost nobody has sex on a schedule. It's probably more down to variability in self-reported frequency

Honestly, financial and now political stress have been stifling. It's hard to get in the mood when an authoritarian christo-fascist party is in charge of the government, constantly making headlines with their movements to destroying everything me and everyone I love cares about.

The conservatives are really mad that Americans are having so few babies. Less sex = less babies. One of the BIG reasons people aren't having kids/sex is because of the market being so shitty to start a family. But, the neo-cons don't need to worry. I'm sure the sex will trickle down from the billionaires any second now.

Elon Musk is happy to impregnate a bunch of women 🤮

So capitalism is killing sex, got it

Must be those damn millenials
- I guess broke people that juggle multiple jobs to afford rent don't really have time for sex.

Universal healthcare, the ability to afford visiting third places, and making it possible to raise a family would help with this.

Nah man. Let's just end abortions and lower the age of marriage.
-Republicans
- You forgot making workplace hiring discrimination basically legal so that women are more dependent on men, making it harder for some to leave wife beaters. Rape still counts, right?
- I mean, if you get em knocked up before they can really develop any independence and your Christian theocracy demands shotgun weddings, that's going to reduce the labor pool and increase wages due to scarcity. It also sounds like hell on earth, but it would be hell on earth with a somewhat higher median wage.

Well, that’s a whole lot of depressing graphs. Speaking of… I wonder if antidepressant use, or just depression rates in general, might have something to do with the married couples data.

When everything is super bleak, it's more difficult to get into the mood. That is my experience.
- or "humans can't reproduce in captivity"
- Why fuck when you can doomscroll?
- Or we are just too fucking busy. Having 2 working parents means there is no time for relaxing of any kind. And the time you do scrounge together to relax, its usually because youre alone.
My girlfriend was on antidepressants for a minute and her already not very high sex drive plummeted.
Depression, sure. Medication - when taken regularly as prescribed - helps make it easier to choose to move on from depressive thoughts (without the meds it's much harder to escape the "death spiral" of worsening thoughts & feelings), but it doesn't stop them - you still have to choose to move on from them. As such, I don't think they're contributing to a problem that'd be there regardless.
Depression over how impossible to get ahead life has become, how the power-hungry control freaks are squeezing everybody in every way possible - and then replacing them with machines, how the future of the world we live on becomes even more bleak by the day, how there's so many things demanding our attention that we have very little time left for ourselves, let alone to socialize in person, etc. Seems perfectly predictable that increasing the number of people with little to no hope left for their lives would react in such a manner.
- I didn’t mean anything negative toward antidepressants other than that lowered sex drive is often a side effect of many of the most commonly prescribed medications. And yes, there are many real reasons we see a consistent plague of depression in modern society.
  I would argue though that we are in one of the most food secure times in all of history. And are actually positively positioned for meeting our energy and resource needs.
  Our problem has more to do with management and greed than with actual reality of our situation as a species. If we were making better choices collectively we could reduce a tremendous amount of the harm we associate with population sizes and lifestyle. But many old systems would have to die, we have to let go of a lot of what we just assume to be ‘facts of life’ and start evaluating the intrinsic value of things differently. Meaning measuring success with a new set of rules.
  But it’s very hard to even consider when most of us are just trying to get from one day to the next. We feel trapped in someone else’s fabricated cage. Hence, the depression and hopelessness that’s universally felt. But all in all, I think we’re going to make it to be honest. We have to, or we will indeed fail as a species. The cage looks small but it’s not real. That’s what I remind myself anyway.
- The medication often affects libido.
  I'm not saying that to diminish everything else you're saying. Just adding a little info.
probably multifactorial, we got things like social media, having faux relationships online(excluding AI). depression, income, societal things like your race, income and "attractiveness". also Low-T in younger individuals that isnt normally tested anyways.
I was on antidepressants briefly and they made me enjoy sex somewhat less, but I did last longer
- When i first took any antidepressants years ago they absolutely sapped my sex drive. It took me forever to finish. I'm grown and married and neither my partner nor I wanted it to take an hour every time and it made the depression that much worse.
  I've changed meds since then and can finish in a relatively normal time frame again but those meds can definitely affect your physiology.

I used to have sex almost every day, but entertainment kept getting more entertaining... Sure sex is great, but have you tried deep diving into the history of typefaces? Or learning how to bind your own books from cereal boxes and thread??

I know I'm only speaking anecdotally, but I feel like sex is easier to like fall into when you have the capacity to be actually bored, and like have plenty of unstructured time.

Maybe I'm falling for the entertainment arm of the productivity gospel.

Also realise that some people don't have access to anyone to suggest sex with, so that's an additional barrier. If I lived alone, I don't think I would even bother attempting—just so much else to do!

According to Source Watch, The Institute for Family Studies (IFS) is

a conservative "think tank" which, according to its website, has the expressed mission "to strengthen marriage and natural family and advancing the well-being of children through research and public education."[1] Research from IFS and its employees are frequently cited and published in both conservative outlets such as National Review [2] and more mainstream ones, like the Washington Post.[3]. "IFS is a successor to the Ridge Foundation, through which Bradley and others used to support Wilcox's National Marriage Project."[1] The Institute for Family Studies says that its "commitment is rooted in the social-science fact that children are most likely to thrive when they are raised by their own married biological parents. The underlying premise of its work is that families and communities, freedom and prosperity, and the political order itself -- both at home and abroad -- are all critically dependent upon the existence of a strong healthy, pervasive marriage culture among the citizenry."[4]

I don't entirely understand how this fits their agenda (I would expect a "married heterosexuals are having more sex" narrative), and am not surprised by the results, but also don't really trust the source.

If they are earnest in their goals, I would hope for honest reporting for others to campaign around, plan for, or invest in. People interested in doing projects that I disagree with can still produce good data (though I agree we should look for missing data, for eg).
Surface level, this looks like a standardized survey they've used for decades? Could someone confirm the questions haven't changed much and the data collection is sane?

Im happily married to the love of my wife. We work opposite shifts, of 10+ hours, and we barely make ends meet. When are we supposed to do this?

Poly or typo?

Maybe it's difficult to enjoy things like sex when our very way of life is being dismantled in front of our eyes while we stand by helpless

After reading this comment section I feel lucky for me and sad for many of you. My wife and I have been together close enough to a decade to not split hairs. We average 4 times a week. We aren't just still attracted to each other, I would say attraction has intensified between us. And we know how to get each other off and both enjoy doing it.

We work well as a team, have defined goals for the future, blah blah blah, it sounds cliche as I type it, but it's true. We like each other. That seems to be uncommon. My coworkers all complain about their spouses and SOs. They also bitch about never getting laid.

Maybe our relationship is different because we were two people who knew themselves pretty well and were up front about who we were from the beginning. Maybe we were just lucky.

Thank you for this. It’ll be downvoted by unhappy people, but others need to know that a chaste Gilead relationship isn’t their only choice.
My partners and I have sex at least once a day, and in general are physical and affectionate throughout each day. We had each been in relationships before with lower libido individuals and learned how difficult that can become over time so that part of compatibility was important to us before we found each other.
It really makes a world of difference to find compatibility there. Most of life becomes easier. Healthy perspectives are easier to achieve. Physical health and fitness improves. Just knowing you can easily bring joy to someone you care about by helping them orgasm makes a lot of troubles feel insignificant.
And it’s just something fun and intimate that people can do together. There are many ways to express love in a relationship, like so many dances in our repertoire, but the most universal among them is sex.
Yeah, we have been together a dozen years and have sex every day. I don't understand complaining about your spouse, and my husband says the same. But we are old, I think it's easier, you make better choices.
I will say I feel really lucky though, sex -wise, and don't think it's usual.
Sorry for the following sweeping generalization but: Mostly guys seem to say they want everyday or more until they find someone who does, then get upset if they aren't the one with the higher sex drive. There's a very strange subconscious assumption that it's unfeminine or something. They feel better if they are the ones who want more than they are getting.
I'm happy for you bro :) sounds like you were made for each other, shes very lucky.
- I assure you I am the lucky one

So, regular sex is down, but what about weird sex?

The weird has been up for more than 4 hours and isn't going to see a doctor about it.
With all the sexlessness, any sex is "weird."
- My kink is having my genitals stimulated by another person. Or stimulating theirs. I’m a freak like that.
Some people have normal sex too, and by that I mean they stand upright, perpendicular to the surface of the ground.
Based on my extensive research on pornhub, it's skyrocketing.

The largest uptick happens right after the 2008 crisis. Hmm I wonder if we can infer a relation between workload and leisure from this.

I have major concerns with the source of this

Say more please!
- More.

More married women are having sex than married men?

Hmmm, so who could be having sex with all these married women.... Oooohh.
- Cyclists.
  Sexual performances are linked with how muscular your pelvis floor is, and sitting all day in a SUV eating McDonald doesn't help with that at all. So they cheat on their premature hubby at the first occasion. That's every right-wingers origin story.
My guess would be what men and women call "regular sex" is very different. Even if defined by the survey, I'd still think bias applies
Does the chart include same-sex couples?
If not, then yeah, that may account for some of the unmarried men statistic.
I assume that just means for whichever reasons they reported differently. Or the sample had more lesbians than gays.
Also possible that cultural stigmas curve the data a bit if the survey answerers believe the data to not be completely anonymous. Some may say yes because they want to give the perception that they are in a healthy happy relationship, and others may be saying, we have sex every once in a while, but I don't think it's actually once a week.

honestly? I don't have the time. My last two partners got fed up because I couldn't keep up with their expectations. I either working or exhausted from work. I liked having sex and they really wanted me back, but carving time and attention to give got to be too much for me.

I don't want to have REGULAR sex.

Regular, irregular sex

Damn... weekly? During the first couple of years of the relationship, sure.

Eight years later, now it's twice a month: right before and right after her period. Is that not a normal amount?

Depends... Are you both happy with it?
- Her: Yes.
  Me: No.
  I'd prefer 1-2x per week.
I don't think there is a normal, there is an average. But this would not work for me. The only times I've been that disinterested were the years I was breastfeeding (tanked my libido completely) and when my ex got radicalized and started spouting racist twaddle. Outside of those, it's just been defined by how often the guy could, so once a week with my ex and once a day with my husband. I think more sex is a positive good in a sexual, romantic relationship. It's free, it's fun, it feels good.
Are you doing natural family planning and she is afraid of sex closer to ovulation? Then that's sensible. I'd be frustrated though.

Statistically, you should try to date married women instead of married men (when you visit the US, I mean if your plane ever crashes there).

Yeah this about tracks. I bet a bunch of happiness and quality of life related stats all moved downward together over the past few decades.

But the sex and time with friends ones are great bottom lines to look at, because spending time with our people is good for us, and our society is not structured with individual personal well being as a priority.

And I say this as an extremely introverted person who loves being a recluse and especially lives having an empty house on the weekends. The effects of good positive relationships are undeniable, and lacking them can leave somebody in a negative feedback loop that really sucks.

I know other comments already went into the "if conservatives want the country to have more babies maybe they should make life conducive to raising a family instead of getting billionaires an 8% CAGR return rather than only 7%" thing, but i've got to acknowledge it here too. We have the whole damn country caught up in the rat race.

Hey, it's nice to be ahead of the curve for once. Just... I wish it was in regards to a different subject.

Sex recession, also good band name.

I've been tired.

I'll try to do better.

Not american but can relate. Sex is available - I'm just not interested in it. Never have been. My hands work just fine.

Autosexual :)
- Maybe.. I don't really consider myself to be the subject of my attraction though. Plenty of men and women out there I find visually pleasing to look at but I just don't feel the need to involve them in the act itself. It's like asking someone else to scratch an itch for me. Why bother when I can do it myself just as well.

does this surprise anyone?

not only are we living in a neoliberal world where having sex is "objectifying" and therefore vile (while employment is conveniently not classified as such), there's also an erasure of third spaces where you could even meet other people (outside of work) so if you wanna satisfy your desire for basic human contact, you can only meet people at the workplace, where it is legally forbidden to flirt or make sexual advances.

again, does this surprise anyone?

How is "sex is vile" a neoliberal idea? Liberals advocate for sexual freedom, acceptance, and diversity in sexual practices and identities. As opposed to conservatives, who generally hold "traditional" views on sex, emphasizing abstinence, marriage, and restriction of sexual content.
- there's a significant gap between "liberal" and "neoliberal". one embraces freedom of the individual, the other one sees the world as a big market, puts a price tag on everything, and wants people to be "productive" (a.k.a. at work) instead of wasting their time with unproductive sex or interpersonal relationships.
- a conservative would also called sex acts vile too.

It's the smart phone I reckon. It's hijacked our attention and reward systems to the point where we get enough dopamine from it relative to what we might get from a good bonk.

I wouldn't say "enough " or people would be happier. It's somehow more addicting, tho - probably due to receiving multiple up-votes meaning we've pleased more than just the same person we've routinely pleased, which feels good in a "I'm popular" way & is thus very validating.

Is it because most young men are Republican or right wing ideologies and women have swore to never have sex with men again do to this fact?

As a married man, I doubt it.

And if you share a birthday, just once a year!
- But what a day it is!
that means once every two years, right? ...right?

That last graph makes no sense being joined like that
Also no sample sizes

It took me a moment to parse it, too. It's trying to show the decrease in each age group between the earlier range of years and the more recent one. I'm guessing they're lumping all those years together into a single value to minimize the effects of any short-term trends.

Of all the garbage going on this really is a footnote and not worthy of focus. Maybe people less sex if under extreme stress. Maybe knowing they can't afford a kid makes them have less sex. Maybe more general acceptance of masturbation and the decrease of religion has made people less dependent on sex for release. Overall, doesn't matter. Not something important compared to the planet lighting on fire, fascism rising, etc.

Maybe if people were having more there would be less fascism. No really this metric is useful for tracking over economic stability and a few other things.
- No it's not, primarily because humans lie, especially about how much sex they've had and sexual partners. I'd much rather go with data that's scientifically verifiable and reproducible.

That socializing with friends graphs is weird. The drop from 2018 to 2019 is steeper than the drop from 2019 to 2020, when the lockdowns happened.

obviously I can only speak anecdotally for myself, but when lockdowns happened I found that my group made an effort to socialize more online
however in the past few years my own online socialization has dropped more. schedules didn't line up, people lost interest in the same video games, etc. I got a little busier with hobbies and sports, at the expense of time to socialize
The source is US conservative Christian so they probably ignored the lockdown
- Would love to see evidence related to this. There are conservatives that still care about truth (rare they may feel), and this seems to be reporting a survey they've had fixed for 2 decades?
  Is this a historically dishonest group? Did they change something big?

I wonder how much this is an actual reduction vs how much is people being more honest than they were before

I'm not sure the bar graph is depicting "markedly more sex" if you consider how much easier sex should be for people who definitely have a consistent partner.

Guess LaTour was wrong, people are not having sex and something seems to stop them.

Good. Less assbanging means fewer slaves for capitalism to exploit.

Well look at us getting everyone's attention with words like "assbanging".
- I picked up the term from Capt Spaulding.
I think it's the opposite. Less assbanging means more people are mired in exploitative subsistence wage labor, rather than having leisure time that could be spent having sex with people they met at a social function of some sort.
- I think the assbanging means procreating to create more asses to fill the workplaces with sad complacent poors.
  It means more of us being mired in exploitative labor but later there will be no children to replace their fallen parents on the grindstone.
What?
- Good. Less assbanging means fewer slaves for capitalism to exploit.

Why am I in those graphics? I'm not even American, dammit!

Ewestile dysfallen.

I feel like this gets stupid the more you look into it

Especially for the statistician interns that are having to hide in closets to count and observe people having sex. They really didn't think they "Institute for Family Studies" would be so literal in their work.
/jk

End of the world is coming soon~

I'm pumping those numbers up for you rookies.

regularity is boring more irregular sex please

suffer loveless relationships
Sex is not the sole expression of love that a person can give to their partner.