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Millennials’ Lackluster Sex Lives May Doom The U.S. Economy

Last Updated September 28, 2020 2:53 PM
Jonathan Berr
Last Updated September 28, 2020 2:53 PM
  • A decline in sex rates among young adult Americans could be a real threat to the GDP.
  • “The economic issues are real and significant,” Christine Whelan, director of Money, Relationships and Equality Initiative in the School of Human Ecology at the University of Wisconsin told Today.com.
  • Sexual intimacy is commonly associated with healthy relationships and overall wellbeing.

If the so-called experts are to believed, millennials have “ruined” industries as varied as cruises, paper napkins, and diamonds. Now comes word from a CNBC op-ed by analyst Jake Novak that the lackluster sex lives  of the demographic group the media love to hate is hurting the broader U.S. economy .

The notion isn’t as crazy as it seems.

Declining Sex, Marriage Rates

Novak writes:

“A number of studies have recently blamed the fall in sex and marriage rates on technology and the new opportunities it gives young adults to withdraw from in-person human relationships…Everything from online porn to sophisticated video games, to social media is being used by many as a substitute for real human contact, especially for men.”

Declining sex rates and the corresponding drop off in marriages indicate that millennials are also going to delay other aspects of adulthood such as buying a house or a car. Unfortunately, millennials are far  worse off economically t han members of other demographic groups .

Millennials Financial Challenge

 A Deloitte study estimated that the net worth of Americans aged 18 to 35 has plunged 34 percent since 1996 . Meanwhile, the costs of education jumped 65 percent during the past 10 years and the cost of food rose 26 percent.  Debt for people under 30 rose 160 percent from 2004 to 2017 while average household income growth was under  seven percent  growth 

Paying off student loan debt — which averages around $30,000 — often means people have to put marriage and starting a family on hold. 

Novak added:

Fewer people making adult connections simply leads to a decline in both, and you don’t need to be an economic genius to know that less marriage and children weakens economic demand overall.”

Though some economists have blamed them for saving too much and spending too little, many millennials are not putting any money away for retirement.

What’s Causing The Sex Draught?

Researchers have taken note of the “Great American Sex Draught”  for years. Data from the respected General Social Survey found in 2018 that 23 percent of adults said they hadn’t had sex in a year, an all-time high. The reasons for this phenomenon are both sociological and economical including the fact that record numbers of young adults continue to live with their parents.   

Novak argues that the “sex recession” is weakening what he calls “the primordial human desire to make with other humans and do the work to make that happen.” The “work” he’s talking about refers to the money people spend in their search to meet someone special, which can be considerable, Match.com estimated in 2016  that the average unmarried adult spent $1,596 annually on dating.

All those flowers, tickets to concerts and restaurant meals can certainly add up though it’s hard to imagine that the “Sex Recession” could cause an economic depression, as Novak suggests.

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