Ewen Callaway, reporter
He is a church-going teetotaller who has neither been to jail nor served in the military, according to a new survey of more than 7000 people. He also represents an estimated 1.1 million American men and 800,000 women aged 25 to 45 who have never had sex.
The study, led by urologist Michael Eisenberg of the
His team's survey found that 13.9 per cent of men and 8.9 per cent of women said they have never had sex.
Men and women who attended church at least once a week were respectively 5 and 3.9 times more likely to be virgins than those who attended church less often. Virgins of both sexes were slightly less likely to have swigged a beer in the last year, compared to non-virgins. And women with college degrees were 5.4 times more likely to be virgins than women who never got their Bachelor's.
Men who attended the military or spent time behind bars were slightly less likely to be 40-year-old virgins than those not exposed to such discipline. "We used incarceration or military service as surrogate markers for exposure to violence or aggressive behaviour," Eisenberg's team writes.
This may be true for prison, but people join the military for reason other than aggressive tendencies. "The entire reason for the low rate of virgins with military experience is likely less clear than simply those with violent or risk taking tendencies," they add.
The study also found that male homosexuals were 11 times more likely to be virgins than heterosexuals, while female homosexuals were 6 times more likely to say they were virgins than heterosexuals. African American men and women were significantly less likely to be virgins than any other ethnic group.
Just as notable as the characteristics associated with middle-aged virginity are the traits that aren't. Weight, income, and health all showed no association with virginity in men or women.
The standard disclaimers apply to the study. None of the associations show a cause-effect relationship with middle-aged virginity, and the findings represent a snapshot in time among a relatively small population. Income, education, religious attendance and alcohol use can all fluctuate over time.
And, remember, these are statistical associations, not set-in-stone rules. There are bound to be more than a few booze-swilling ex-convict atheists who happen to be middle-aged virgins. Now that would make a good movie.
Categories: Science In Society
Did they just ask a load of Catholic priests to complete the survey?
It says
an estimated 1.1 million American men and 800,000 women aged 25 to 45 who have never had sex.
and
13.9 per cent of men and 8.9 per cent of women said they have never had sex.
Those two statistics aren't necessarily contradictory - it could imply that there are a lot more virgins in the 18-25 and over 45 category. I'd certainly expect to see that in the 18-25 category, not sure about the over 45s though.
The numbers must be wrong, the US has a population of approximately 307 million.
"represents an estimated 1.1 million American men and 800,000 women aged 25 to 45 who have never had sex"
Duncan McKenzie:
I assume the percentages refer to an age subset, not the whole American population.
Those percentages refer to single study participants aged 25-45. The researchers then extrapolated those figures nationally to come up with 1.1 million men and 800,000 women.
You can find the study here: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111%2Fj.1743-6109.2009.01327.x . You'll need a library subscription to see more than the abstract, unfortunately.
Thanks for reading.
Ewen Callaway
"male homosexuals were 11 times more likely to be virgins than heterosexuals, while female homosexuals were 6 times more likely " Wait, do you define virgin as someone who has only had sex with someone of the opposite sex? Am I a 46 year old virgin? I certainly don't feel very virginal!
This is due to western females. They can leave school early with no qualifications and reproduce with teen hooligans. Any offspring are maintained through government welfare. The offspring grow into troublesome types like their fathers. The idea that single teen mothers are due to poverty is a lie, designed to turn such females into victims. Of course they would choose to reproduce with more responsible males if they were in genuine poverty. Instead, they deliberately reject such men as being “too nice” and choose to breed with unsuitable types to show that they have the power to decide to live off welfare.
Other females study at school and become feminist professional types. They are "too busy" with their careers, so have children late in life or never at all. They have no concept of sexual attraction toward men, only for having children and money for buying fancy cars, to make ludicrous statements of superiority toward other women. Men who want sex are branded as “typical men”, while the women then complain that a man is no good at sex or they want men with larger penises.
Women make a mockery of civilised values, because their choices mean prisoners and low-IQ types are just as likely to have sexual relationships (and pass on their genes) than law-abiding or intelligent men. Women are to blame for abortion, because they are getting drunk in night clubs and choosing to have unprotected sex with sleazy types because they find it sexually arousing, and they are experimenting with their bodies to see how easily they can conceive, but they don’t have the maturity to become mothers.
Modern media, such as films, trashy women’s and girl’s mags, pop music videos promote the idea that criminality, smoking, drunkenness drug, abuse and violence are cool and sophisticated, encouraging teen girls to copulate with males coz they have groovy hairstyles, drugs, trendy clothes, piercings, tattoos, motorbikes, knives etc. They then watch tv shows like “Big Bang Theory” and get the idea that any civilised man is an unsophisticated loser. Modern society with its welfare payments and panders to the feminist idea that women are the victims of men, and the welfare means women have no motivation to be careful who they copulate with. Women prefer to breed with teen layabouts, fat slobs, and macho posturing types who like to hang out in bars looking mean.
These things make a mockery of family values, education, respect for others, contributing to society and self-improvement. All of this nonsense results in more single people, violence, unwanted kids, people dying alone, etc.
Why are members of the military and incarcerated criminals lumped together? 'Exposure to violence' is a very ambiguous and thin commonality. Why not simply cite the statistics for the two groups independantly? Odd.
This was a very good description of the study, especially the limitations and context about the study design and cause-and-effect.
Nonetheless, some cause and effect are logically implicit. Having once been a churchgoer, it's no surprise at all to see that churchgoers are far more likely to be 40-year-old virgins (30 going on 80 year old virgins, the women at least). Their mental pathology about sex and relationships may have developed before going to church, or at least before choosing their own church as adults. But they use religion as a tool to avoid sex. So although churchgoing causing (or sustaining) virginity may be hard to prove, it certainly goes hand in hand. I once dated a woman who said she could not have sex with me because of her relationship with god. She sounded as if she was having sex with god.
The finding that male homosexuals are 11 times as likely to be virgins is also curious. Technically, are they truly homosexual if they're virgins? The gay lobby doesn't like to hear it, but homosexuality really is a choice for most so-called homosexuals. They take steps, they do some things, they avoid other things; past actions pave the way for future ones. Possibly they're conflicted and have closeted desires that build up as a result of chronic sexual inexperience---inexperience that is sustained by a prudish religious social life. Surely gay male sex is extremely available for those who want it.
Females who are putatively homosexual may on the other hand be more likely to be non-virgins (compared to putative male homosexuals) because they don't label their sexual behaviour so readily, or they feel freer to "go back" to being heterosexual without stigma.
And how do you define loss of virginity among homosexuals? Anal? Hand? Oral? Orgasm with another person? Would that include cybersex? (Maybe the actual report defines this). And indeed, what sexual orientation is a virgin?
I've read elsewhere that male homosexuals have the most amount of sex, female homosexuals the least, and heteros somewhere in the middle. And that intuitively makes sense.
This report highlights what I consider to be the grand crime of christianity in our society nowadays: it promotes and sustains a neurotic, life-crippling prudishness about sex and relationships that damages people in and out of the church. Especially in the protestant churches.
Odd age range to select. People at 25 are at a very different stage in their lives than people at 45. What's the bell curve on that?
Church freaks you better get humpin' cause there isnt anything on the other side :P
This is a ludicrous study. It's among only the unmarried for example. And they cannot even calculate percentages properly. Terribly silly really.
Mel, i assume they are also including homosexual sex. If not then the survey is very flawed.
I'm 31 and a virgin. I'd love to have a girlfriend (and sex). It's not easy for me though. Women just don't want to know me.
I'm curious about the definition of "virgin" used in the study.
I've talked to people who have extremely narrow and specific definitions of "virginity"--so narrow, in fact, that they engage in oral sex, anal sex, and group sex without PIV and still claim to be "virgins". I've talked to other people who have had sexual intercourse and still say they are "virgins" based on the idea that they didn't have an orgasm, that they didn't enjoy it, or that they only did it briefly.
There are people who have such an emotional attachment to the idea of virginity that they will engage in all kinds of sexual activity, including high-risk sexual activity, while still claiming to be virgins--a phenomenon I find more than a little baffling.
I have serious doubts about a survey that claims a percentage of homosexuals or heterosexuals have never had sex.
It might just be me, but people who have never had sex cannot be placed in a sexual category!
After all, they've never had sex!
An individual may have the impression they are of a sexual persuasion, but that isn't an indication of what their sexual persuasion will be (assuming they ever have sex for it to be confirmed).
Please correct this article. The abstract of the study percentage of virgins among men and women who have never been married, which is very different from the population at large. The extrapolated percentages from this study for the entire 25-45 year old population is 5% for men and 2% for women.
Since people do define sex in different ways, it's possible that it could skew the results. If by sex a person thinks of vaginal intercourse, then you're probably going to get much lower percentages for gay people. If it's only defined as intercourse, then the numbers might just be low for the lesbians. And it'd still beg the question of whether or not a person who'd had non-intercourse sex would be considered a virgin.
But it is nice to hear that being an poor, overweight, leper shouldn't hurt my chances too much at getting physical with the opposite sex. I've just got to avoid church.
13.9 percent of these men said they have never had sex & male homosexuals were 11 times more likely to be virgins? If most of the men are heterosexuals, that would mean hardly any homosexuals have ever had sex. So there obviously is something wrong with these numbers.
I seriously doubt a professor at the University of California would make silly errors such as counting homosexuals as "virgins." The methodology probably is sound. The problem comes with the average person mis-understanding who is in the survey pool.
I also am not surprised that more men are virgins than women. After all, even ugly women get hit on for sex, but ugly guys are just out of luck.
damn what am i doing wrong?? im 21 ive been to jail (as of last night) i drink alcohol and im not anti-social.. but im still a virgin
i think i fail.. lol
I don't think that it has anything to do with ugly or beautiful. For women maybe -- but not for men. It is not difficult for men today to get sex. Just go out and party, and there are enough opportunities. I myself am a 33-year-old, very well educated (phd from one of the top 3 Universities), male virgin with a very good job. And there have been enough opportunities for me to get sex. I am also not a member of any church. But the article really fascinates me. I can only speak for myself: I think that the reason for me being a virgin is a combination of luck and political climate. When I was a teen, I had a couple of girlfriends but they wouldn't let me make the final shot :-) Later, when you earn real money, and I did that starting with 24, you always think about the consequences. What is when she wants to have a child? In the current climate you are really doomed if your girlfriend just comes up with a child. And in my family there are two/three fathers who just pay and can never even see their children. This is a moral dilemma that I answer for myself with not having real sex with women (I don't count oral sex, which I had with several women, for example.) The percentage of 13% of unmarried men really makes me feel better. So far, I always thought that I am a real freak. Thanks for the study!
So OK, there are some definitional problems, and maybe the broad-acre stats are a bit dodgy, but I think this was a good useful report. There is a serious shortage of research into middle-age and old-age sexual behaviour, and anything that attempts to shed some light on either of these subjects is to be applauded. Please can all critics do and publish their own research in reply, and then we can all learn something even more useful.
One thing is clear: There are many more older virgins than popular culture would have you believe.
Writing a blog on issues around virginity, I hear from many older women and especially men about their sexual status. What strikes me is how much shame is attached to it. Very few use their real names in their communications, and so far none have agreed to be on camera for a documentary we are filming.
It's too bad because I think the more people know about how others live their sexual lives, the more open everyone would be with talking about it.
Therese Shechter
theamericanvirgin.blogspot.com
I havent had sex in 6 years is this dangeruos? I am 55 years of age but just dont carehow can it affect me negative,positive??
Okay, first of all... for all of you "commentators", if the study is based upon the un-married population, and not the entire population, it's because let's leave it safe to say that married people aren't virgins in general. Of course, there are exceptions because there are exceptions to every rule.
I, myself, am an exception to the results of this study; I'm a virgin who is a high-school drop-out, who has had a criminal past, who is agnostic, and who drinks alcohol. But, that does not mean that the majority of virgins are not as was described.
I am also a homosexual. Homosexuality is not a sexual category based upon sexual activities but rather sexual preferences. I can be a lesbian whilst being a virgin the same way that a heterosexual can be a hetero whilst being a virgin. I know what type of physicality I am attracted to whether or not I have yet acted upon my wants.
It *is* likely that the results of this study may have been skewed due to the skewed interpretations that people have about what is and what is not sex. But, I would like to give the people that performed the study the benefit of the doubt and assume that they realized and accounted for this; possibly by asking the people that they interviewed what their idea of sex was.
I can hardly believe some of these comments. I mean, it's as though everyone is trying to find the flaw, like it's some puzzle... it's a study, just something that's been thrown out there by people willing to do the footwork to come to some conclusions. It's a question for which there is an ever changing answer. There is no flaw because it was not supposed to be perfect... it was to be nothing more than an estimated answer to a question, I'm sure. It's a first draft, if you will.
I understand people wanting to give their input but, honestly, you shouldn't give your opinion if it can't be at least a little well-rounded. Don't argue against scientific results if you don't even know the scientific method. Don't try to tear something apart that you don't even know how to put together. Simple as that.
www.celibrate.org discusses issues like this and is very supportive of virgins. Some good real life stories from real people, a support page and some interactive stuff too. It's run by a group of male and female celibates, although not all are virgins.
Im a 41 yr old male virgin. Not homosexual at all. I was just always shy around women and never had the social skills. I do hope to break this cycle eventually, but time is going by.
What this study shows me is that I am not the only one out there. There are plenty of people who are on the same boat as me. But we hide in shame.
What it also indicates is that social anxiety can be a crippling disorder.
There is an entire forum of people who cannot get sex. It is called voluntary or involuntary incel. They talk about it here: http://incel.myonlineplace.org/forum/
I wouldn't be too hard on the commentators, Sam. The article left out key information about the study, such as the marital status of the respondents. This kind of scattershot reporting is common in science journalism - and I understand about time pressure, etc. - but, really, they ought to do better.
13.9% seems high. What's the % of married men in the US?
I agree with previous posters anyway. There shouldn't be any social stigma about remaining a virgin.
I understand people wanting to give their input but, honestly, you shouldn't give your opinion if it can't be at least a little well-rounded. Don't argue against scientific results if you don't even know the scientific method. Don't try to tear something apart that you don't even know how to put together. Simple as that.
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I like the double-standard. The gays say they are virgins and we'll take that as fact, but only a fool would trust the word of those deceitful lesbians.
Poor virgins! It must be tough...
Meredith- Cosmetic Dentistry Specialist
Not everybody is attractive and have a way with opposite sex (or not). Some people are shy and can't express themselves. If you lack social skills and avoid people you will never become non virgin. And as the years go by it will get tougher. Just some thoughts on the subject...
Bill - Silver and Gold professional
This story exemplifies "Gee Whiz" reporting- no real information on methodology; not even the definition of virginity used in the survey, much less the population the sample is drawn from. Popular science writers, please give us more info & less gee whiz.
Are the quoted numbers correct?
"His team's survey found that 13.9 per cent of men and 8.9 per cent of women said they have never had sex."
This percentage should be a lot more than 1.1 million American men. Has a decimal place moved?