Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Casual sex – and no emotional wreckage?

Results of a study on casual sex among young adults surprise U researchers. But they note the physical risks.

By JOSEPHINE MARCOTTY, Star Tribune

Last update: December 9, 2009 - 8:24 AM

As most every parent knows, hooking up for casual sex is bad for young people because it causes emotional or psychological damage.

Right?

Well, actually, no. At least not for young adults between the ages of 18 and 24, according to a new study by University of Minnesota researchers.

Even they found the results startling.

They asked more than 1,300 young Minnesota adults about their most recent sexual encounters, their self-esteem and their emotional well-being. Interestingly, only about one-fifth of the subjects said their last encounter was casual. But their overall emotional status was no different than the four-fifths who said they were in committed relationships with their most recent sexual partner.

"We were so surprised," said Marla Eisenberg, an assistant professor at the university's School of Public Health who studies adolescent and young adult health.

"The conventional wisdom is that casual sex, 'friends with benefits,' and hooking up is hurtful. That's what we've been teaching kids for decades," especially in the federally funded abstinence-only sex education programs, she said.

Not that Eisenberg advocates casual sex. Far from it.

"Casual sex is not for everyone" as an emotional matter, she said. Moreover, there is real physical risk: Rates of sexually transmitted diseases are rising relentlessly, and teen pregnancy rates in Minnesota are on the increase as well.

But, she said, sex education curriculums, parents and public health programs should "focus on the things that are real threats," such as interpersonal violence, pregnancy risk and STDs, not on the theory that casual sex is emotionally harmful.

The researchers surveyed 1,311 young adults in Minnesota, pulled from a group they began following years ago as part of a major ongoing research study in adolescent health and nutrition. All the people in the study were sexually active and answered a series of survey questions about their last sexual encounter, depressive symptoms and self-esteem.

SOURCE: http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/health/78786622.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUUl