A recent study published in Archives of Sexual Behavior presents findings that appear to contradict the theory that single men’s involvement in “low-cost” sexual activities weakens their desire to be married.
Sex-exchange theories posit that men’s heightened desire for sex motivates their willingness to exchange benefits like fidelity and commitment for sex. In this way, sex constitutes “erotic capital” that women can use to their advantage. These ideas have led some researchers to suggest that the rise in low-cost sexual activities, such as pornography, hookups, and masturbation, may be contributing to the declining interest in marriage among young people.
Study author Samuel L. Perry set out to investigate this theory by examining the association between engagement in low-cost sexual activities and desire for marriage among single men.
To do this, Perry analyzed data from two nationally representative surveys of single American men, both of which included items concerning sexual habits and desire for marriage. Using the New Family Structures Study (NFSS) that was conducted in 2012, data was obtained from 349 single men between the ages of 18 and 39. From the 2014 Relationships in America (RIA) Survey, Perry obtained data from 1,402 single men between the ages of 18 and 60.
Both surveys addressed subjects’ pornography use, frequency of masturbation, and frequency of recent sex. Since the surveys did not directly address hookup sex, the current study considered participants to be partaking in hookup sex if they reported engaging in recent sex, and also reported not being in a relationship. Finally, both surveys questioned subjects’ desire for marriage with the simple question, “Would you prefer to be married?”
To control for possible confounds affecting the link between low-cost sexual activity and desire for marriage, Perry considered participants’ sexual dissatisfaction, sexual orientation, and belief that “marriage is an outdated institution.” He also controlled for various sociodemographic variables, including age, race, religious affiliation, education, and household income.
Multivariate modeling was used to examine the relationship between the variables of interest. For the 2012 NFSS survey, results showed that single men partaking in casual sex reported a lower desire to be married. However, once pornography use was taken into account, this association was no longer significant. Moreover, the use of pornography actually predicted an increased desire for marriage. This remained true even when taking numerous potential confounds into account.
For the 2014 RIA survey, results were overwhelmingly similar. Pornography positively predicted the desire to be married, while hookup sex was not related to men’s desire to be married. Masturbation was initially a positive predictor of wanting to be married but became insignificant when pornography use was taken into account.
“In other words,” Perry says, “holding constant how much casual sex single men were having, their level of satisfaction with that sex, how much they masturbate, or even their views about marriage as an institution, viewing pornography did not seem to make them less inclined to want marriage, but could, in fact, make them more interested in the prospect of a committed romantic relationship.”
These findings, Perry suggests, may imply that pornography simply cannot replace the benefits of a committed relationship.
One limitation of the study was that the surveys only measured men’s desire to be married, and not their likelihood of actually getting married. Perry suggests that future longitudinal studies could examine the influence of low-cost sexual behaviors throughout the life course.
The study, “Does Low‑Cost Sexual Gratification Make Men Less Eager to Marry? Pornography Use, Masturbation, Hookup Sex, and Desire to Be Married Among Single Men”, was authored by Samuel L. Perry.
