Survey finds 10 partners before marriage 'normal'

Drudge ^ | 10th December 2001 | Ananova

[Don Myers]

Survey finds 10 partners before marriage 'normal'

The majority of young people think it is normal for a person to have at least 10 sexual partners before marriage.

A survey has also found that three in 10 believe it is acceptable for a girl to lose her virginity before the age of 15.

Research carried out by Brook, the youth sex advisory service, says there is a "cultural change" in young people's attitudes towards sex.

Some 64% of men and 54% of women agreed that it was acceptable for a person to sleep with more than 10 partners before getting married.

But the survey, which questioned people aged 17 to 25, also showed that they wanted more information about sex and contraception.

Men admitted to getting most of their knowledge about contraception from TV and magazines, while women learned the most from magazines and their mothers.

Half of all the young women surveyed said they wished that teachers had supplied them with more information about preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases.

Brook chief executive Jan Barlow said: "Young people have an increasing number of sexual partners and they are saying that's OK.

"But at the same time they don't have the information and access to services that they need.

"Young people must seek out advice and information in order to make their choices and to understand how to protect themselves both against pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases."

[Don Myers]

"And welcome to the Department of Education!"

Yes, indeed.

[Don Myers]

"This isn't a license to act irresponsibly, but I do endorse premarital sex as a way to better choose a life partner."

We disagree.

[Jadge]

"Better to save oneself for meaningful, long-term relationships. It's a good compromise, IMO."

As a man that has had both casual encounters and meaningful encounters, I agree. Everything is much better when it means something.

However, sex is complicated, especially for the youthful. Rarely are the boys and girls on the same wavelength. With experience, it becomes an easier thing to manage, in my opinion.

I also believe that it takes a lot of practice to perform well in bed. I know I am light years ahead of the game from when I started. I'd hate to think about not having sex, and then trying to please someone I really cared about. I'd be the casualty of that relationship.

If sex were basketball, Michael Jordan couldn't just pick up a ball at 30 (for the first time) and score 63 points. Sex takes practice, dedication, and drive.

;)

[Freedom'sWorthIt]

Congratulations, America! You now have exactly what the social engineers of the 60's were aiming for. Good luck!

[Caipirabob]

Survey finds 10 partners before marriage 'normal'

Is this over the period of their life before marraige or just the night before?

Hey, just need to know what the expectations are here...

[ctdonath2]

Ten is a conservative number.

Probably more a matter of expressing statistics. If one has 20 and another has 0, the average is 10. The statistical distribution is likely much more interesting that just the raw number "10": could easily be 1/3rd are 0, 1/3rd are 1-2, and 1/3rd are 25+ ... still works out to an average of 10.

[Jadge]

I assume from your position that you did not engage in premarital sex.

If that is correct, then perhaps you aren't in the best position to judge whether or not doing so is harmful.

[FreedomFriend]

Funny how the ones who are married and don't have to sleep alone are always the ones saying that.

Uh, I'm a 24 year old male, and I have no problem not having sex. In fact, I would feel like I had violated myself if I did so before marriage. Furthermore, I know of some guys who have had sex before marriage, only to realize that it was the sex that kept them in the relationship, not the loving of that particular woman. Thus, they feel as though they wasted a good chunk of their life on relationships that were meant to go nowhere instead of finding the right girl who God has for them. In essence, they are the victims of a degenerated society.

[Cu Roi]

I wasted a good chunk of my life thinking God's plan for me was to be alone and miserable because that was the way I was brought up. I pulled the lever HG spoke of in #131 and let me tell you it cost me a lot more than a quarter. If I was 24 again I would have done things a lot differently.

[lavaroise]

I was overly exagerating my case to make a point.

[FreedomFriend]

So, are you agreeing with me that just wanting to "find sex" led you to get into a relationship that wasted a good chunk of your life, via not finding the right one then, or by having financial assets seized by this particular woman. I'm curious.

[FreedomFriend]

Don, I don't understand it either. I'm very confident that the ones without brains are the ones who are advocating every type of degeneracy known to man. Some are caught up in the society at large, pressured to perform sexually. Others are out there pressing for "sexual liberation", etc. for goals that they actually think are worthy. However, as I've come to understand it, one has to have a sense of understanding in the Christian arena to understand why abstinence is so important. Futhermore, religious inspiration, coupled along with actual statistical facts in relation to failed marriages, STD's, etc., leads to a powerful message to the uninformed. That is, the ones who will listen.

Quite honestly, most of these so-called "Dr's" are degenerates themselves, by-products of the free drug and sex culture. To them, they may not have known anything else. Many have been indoctrinated in the universities, or they have had their beliefs shaped by the television, of whom are run by avid Leftists. In essence, I find them to be seriously lacking in the thinking department. If not that, I find them to be pushing for the destruction of our society as a way to meet their own sick and selfish needs and goals, albeit intended or unintended.

Keep up the good work. Your responses are certainly with merit and interesting.

[Economist_MA]

However, as I've come to understand it, one has to have a sense of understanding in the Christian arena to understand why abstinence is so important. Futhermore, religious inspiration, coupled along with actual statistical facts in relation to failed marriages, STD's, etc., leads to a powerful message to the uninformed.

My, aren't we feeling good about ourselves today. You are certainly aware that divorce rates are highest in the bible belt states, which by mere coincidence are also the states in which the average marriage age is the lowest and church attendance the highest.

[Petronski]

That may be true, but at age 25 I don't know any females who are virgins. Not one.

I would politely suggest that you need to start hanging out with a better class of people.

[nepdap]

The majority of young people think it is normal for a person to have at least 10 sexual partners before marriage.

Average, maybe. But still not normal.

[Petronski]

I assume from your position that you did not engage in premarital sex. If that is correct, then perhaps you aren't in the best position to judge whether or not doing so is harmful.

I assume from your position, your Honor, that you have never robbed a bank. If that is correct, then perhaps you aren't in the best position to judge whether or not doing so is harmful.

[Cu Roi]

I come from a religious background, and my family just didn't talk about sex. So I dated a number of women, and had a little fun but didn't go all the way with them.

I finally got married and we had a couple of good years together sexually, but now after working on it for years it apparently just isn't part of `God's plan' for me. But where I come from a deal's a deal, and she knows that I'm just not going to get up and leave. As a result at age 32 it looks like the rest of my life is going to look a lot like your current situation.

I eventually confronted my father about all this, and after looking back on it all he pretty much conceded that everything they taught me was a bunch of BS.

By `costs' I am refering to opportunity costs, not money.

[FreedomFriend]

Yes, and you have to understand that we have a higher percentage of Blacks, which, I might add, have high levels of divorce. The social welfare state has become the "daddy" to many of them.

Furthermore, just because an area appears to be more Christian does not mean that they are following God. I mean, there are non-Christians in the south.

Thus, I feel that you need to understand what you're seriously saying. No, I'm not high on myself, but merely presenting the evidence that I have witnessed, along with observable, visible facts.

[marajade]

"Where do they find these mutants?"

In Utah. The age of consent for marriage is still 14.

[marajade]

That's rather sexist if you ask me.